long beach >> Come out, come out, wherever you are.

Today is National Coming Out Day, which celebrates people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender by encouraging them to come out about their sexuality and show the public that LGBT people are everywhere.

National Coming Out Day was founded in 1988 by New Mexico psychologist Robert Eichberg and openly lesbian Los Angeles political activist Jean O’Leary, who ran the National Gay Rights Advocates.

Oct. 11 was selected because it was the anniversary of the 1987 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights.

We asked three local members of the LGBT community to describe their coming out experience. Here’s what they told us:

Vanessa Romain

Vanessa Romain, 58, is a community activist and emeritus member with Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride.

“I had my first girlfriend, Bernadette, while I was attending an all-girls Catholic school in Huntington Park. My family and I lived in South Central. I invited Bernadette over to the house as a friend, but then told everyone she was my girlfriend. I wanted her to meet my mom and brothers.

“My mother was delighted. She said, You found a person who is very nice and loves you for who you are.

“It took my brothers a little time to accept it. They didn’t know many lesbians. We didn’t talk about it, but they accepted it in a few months.

“Whenever we had holiday meals with the family, my mom would invite Bernadette, the same way she would invite my brothers’ girlfriends.

“My mom fought for civil rights in our neighborhood. She was very supportive of gays and lesbians.”

Joel Gemino

Joel Gemino, 32, is a youth services manager at the Long Beach LGBTQ Center.

“In my senior year in high school while growing up in Ontario, I was going through my first breakup and being very dramatic about it. He was supposed to be the person I would be with forever (laughs). I had no one to turn to, so I told my mom, I broke up with someone. She said, ‘Who was it?’ I said, ‘His name is Adam.’

“She said, ‘That’s OK.’ I said, ‘You knew (I’m gay)?’ and she said, ‘Yes.’

“I gave my mom permission to tell the entire family. The next day, it was a Saturday, I got up to watch TV and my sister, who is three years older than me, said, ‘Hi, my gay brother.’ My mom worked fast.

“My whole family was very supportive. I couldn’t have asked for a better coming out.”

Gina Smith

Gina Smith, who is in her early 60s, is a St. Mary Medical Center Foundation board member and member of St. Mary Medical Center’s CARE 21, which helps fund the hospital’s CARE Program, which offers the area’s largest and most comprehensive HIV treatment.

“My girlfriend, Linda, moved in with me and my folks when I was 16 because her folks disowned her because she was gay. She had no place to go, and it wasn’t unusual for us to help people if they had no place to go.

“My mom knew I was a lesbian, but it was never discussed with my dad. My mom didn’t want my dad to worry. My dad was very protective of me and wanted me to have a ‘normal’ life.

“When I was 18, Linda and I moved out of my folks’ house and moved in together. About 11 years later, I came home to my parents house very upset. Linda and I had broken up. I was devastated. It was my first breakup.

“My dad said he and my mom were going to Vegas for a few days and invited me to go with them. I said I was too upset and couldn’t go. I told my dad that Linda and I weren’t going to be living together any more.

“My dad said, I’m sorry to hear that, but there are more women in the world than just Linda. I almost fainted. I said, ‘How did you know?’

“He said he had always known.”

Contact Phillip Zonkel at 562-714-2098.