June LaTrobe was on Belmont Avenue near the Red Line Jan. 3 when she passed out. June (as she prefers to be called), 71, was rushed to the hospital, where she learned she had massive blood clots in her lungs.
At the end of February, June had serious stomach problems, so she went to Howard Brown and they sent her to Illinois Masonic Hospital immediately. She had a colonoscopy, which showed the reasons for the blood clots: a massive blockage in her colon, which was though malignant. June was operated on immediately, and doctors removed about 40 percent of her colon to attack the colon cancer diagnosis.
She since has been on multiple medications, and it wasn't until May 16 that she learned she was cancer-free.
"I'm the type of person who, if I have a plan, I'm able to deal with things. But at first, that was not the case, and very upsetting," said June, who is transgender and lives in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. "I think this is true for everyone. ... When [doctors] put your name and cancer in the same sentence, it can prompt you to do some prioritizing in your life. That was exactly the case for me."
Consequently, she admits she paired down some activities that she is involved in.
June, who turns 72 June 1, is now retired from her career in corporate sales and marketing. She is single, with five children (three girls, two boys) from three past marriages.
June is now on Rep. Mike Quigley's LGBT council, and is a member of the board of the Chicago House. Plus, she is the co-chair for the Trans Right Project which is part of the Civil Rights Agenda.
Although she now uses a walking stick to more easily get around, June remains a staunch advocate for the transgender community, braving stomach pain and more medical woes at times.
"So far [this year], it definitely has been challenging, I'll say that," said June, an admitted TV junkie who enjoys shows on multiple networks.
June was, from its inception until November 2012, responsible for transgender and gender-varying programs at the Center on Halsted. She also was a past officer at the now-defunct Illinois Gender Advocates. In addition, June has been very active with Lakeview Action Coalition.
June started her transition in 2005, but has ties to the "T" part of the LGBT community dating back decades.
"It's been an interesting life," June said, smiling. "I did not play with dolls as a kids, and don't remember having any interest. I [also] never tried on his mom's clothes. I went to high school, then started working, and then went to the Air Force. I was [stationed first in] West Berlin, and it was in Berlin where I had a romantic experience with a trans female. The experience was not a big deal.
"After that [experience], I slipped into a quasi-normal life, though I always had an interest in the trans community in the back of my mind, so to speak."
After June's third divorce in the early 2000s, she took to the Internet for information on the trans community. She also met other transgender Chicagoans.
"An awakened feeling [for the transgender community] in me came about after an experience, and that's when I realized that I was what I was interested in. In other words, in the past I had been interested in trans-women, but in reality, that's more of who I am," said June, who sought help and guidance along the way from multiple people at Howard Brown Health Center in Lakeview.
"For me, the timing was perfect."
And today, she's happier than ever, except for her medical issues.
"The work I'm doing now is more rewarding than any in my past," she said. "I did not truly become an advocate until I became active in the trans community."
June said she has had "wonderful mentors along the way," starting with Rick Garcia, who is a member of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame and the founding executive director of Equality Illinois.
June said she has had many contributions to the LGBT community that she's proud of, starting with visibility for the trans side of the rainbow. She also boasts a Trans101 presentation that she gave in 2010-2011 to every unit in DePaul University's student affairs department, totaling about 150 people. Plus, June has been instrumental helping 120-plus transgender Chicagoans looking/hoping to get their name changed or have their gender-identification marker changed.
June, who wears a silver ring with multiple colors of the rainbow on it, also wears a red AIDS pin daily.
"I'm very sensitive to the fact that the battle [against HIV/AIDS] is not over," June said. "I have a dear friend who has AIDS, and is still alive. That person played an interesting, integral part in my transition—it's kind of a tribute."
