Kirsten Freni

Abstract

Kirsten Freni grew up in a tight-knit Italian American family transplanted from the North and West End of Boston to Revere, MA. Her father was a decorated World War II veteran who worked in the produce industry. Her mother was a stay at home mom and later became a beloved cafeteria mom in the school system. As a fierce advocate and fighter, Kirsten gravitated to her older sister, who became an aesthetician on Newbury Street in Boston in the 1980s and introduced her to a community of gay men she describes as “amazing, beautiful, and gifted souls.” Freni is a 1986 Revere High School graduate with a Travel Management degree from Newbury College. She worked in the travel industry for many years, but her passion has been in health care and LGBTQ+ advocacy, working with Prism GLBT Health, the Northshore Alliance of LGBTQ Youth, and AIDS awareness. Kirsten’s other roles have included: President of NAGLY; original board member of NS Pride; Certified HIV Outreach Counselor/Tester; Co-Chair for the Boston HIV Vaccine Community Advisory Board; past MA Commissioner of LGBTQ Youth; and original member of Lynn’s World AIDS Day Events Committee. She started attending Fran’s in the 1990s and resided in Lynn from 2008 to 2018 . Kirsten is part of the founding group for United Lynn Pride and was one of the original flag raisers at City Hall. She discusses the special challenges for LGBTQ+, technological change, and doing outreach during the pandemic.