Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN

Kathi Westcott

I am personally grateful to Kathi Westcott for any number of important reasons, not the least of which is that she, and her life partner Teri, kindly offered their assistance in vetting a guy I met in July 2001 to see if he was “husband material.” I fondly recall going to dinner with Kathi and Teri on Tuesday, July 17, 2001 and asking them if they would mind if a guy I had met the Saturday prior could join us. Kevin Kirby joined us for dinner, and now – coming up on seven years later – he jokingly, and affectionately, refers to that night as the “lesbian inquisition.” I had the great pleasure of working with Kathi as an SLDN Staff Attorney, and she was a valued friend. Given my past treacherous dating history, coupled with her personal knowledge of me, it made good sense to reach out to her for an assessment of Kevin. I am proud to say that her assessment was quite positive and – as the test of time has proven – accurate. Accuracy is Kathi Westcott’s stock in trade, and compassion is her greatest attribute. She came to SLDN in May 11, 1999 and has these nine years later left her mark by having zeroed in on the legal issue impacting the lives of many hundreds of service members, providing them with accurate and compassionate legal representation. Kathi’s considerable legal skill led to her eventual rise within SLDN to the position of Legal Director. June 30th marked Kathi’s final day at SLDN, as she is leaving to take a new position with Change to Win. As all of us who know Kathi, and particularly those of us who have been privileged to work with Kathi, can attest, this is Change to Win’s gain and SLDN’s loss. I can’t even begin to express how valuable her effort has been to SLDN, and to so many of our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered troops. I think the defining case of Kathi’s SLDN legal career may well have been that of PFC Barry Winchell. PFC Winchell was brutally murdered in his sleep on July 5, 1999 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, by two other soldiers who believed he was gay. Beginning almost immediately following the murder, SLDN received multiple reports from gay and lesbian residents of nearby communities that the Army was attempting to whitewash the anti-gay aspect of PFC Winchell’s tragic death. Kathi was immediately dispatched to Fort Campbell and she spent countless hours traveling between Washington, D.C. and Fort Campbell to watch over the Army’s investigation into the murder and, later, to watchdog the courts martials of the two defendants. Thereafter, following two murder convictions, Kathi turned her attention to the Fort Campbell chain-of-command, to include the then Commanding General who SLDN concluded had allowed a climate of harassment and hostility to fester targeting perceived gay and lesbian soldiers. Kathi can rightfully take credit for having led the fight that resulted in the first ever documented instance of a General Officer paying a price for official indifference to the well-being of their gay soldiers (the General’s promotion to his third star was delayed for nearly two years, with several U.S. Senators, led by the courageous Sen. Edward Kennedy, publicly opposing his promotion). Several months following the Fort Campbell murder convictions, the Army post received a new Commanding General. I had the pleasure of traveling with Kathi to meet with the new Commander, Maj. Gen. Richard Cody (who was later promoted to full General and served as the Army’s Vice Chief of Staff). Kathi eloquently urged Maj. Gen. Cody to avoid the mistakes of his predecessor, and to implement programs to ensure that all of his soldiers were truly treated with dignity and respect. When the history book of SLDN is written, Kathi Westcott’s accuracy and compassion will be rightfully recognized. I think I can confidently speak for every LGBT service member and Veteran when I say to Kathi how very much she is appreciated, and how very much she will be missed. -Jeff Cleghorn -----

06-30-08