We are just one of very many this morning who are deeply saddened by the death of Connie Kurtz (on the right) yesterday.  A wonderfully uplifting passionate LGBT activist who was one half of a legendary couple Ruthie and Connie.  Friends for almost sixty years and life-partners for most of that time, they were a forceful pair of NY Jewish lesbians that never for one single moment ever stopped fighting for equal rights for everyone. Even much more important than that, together this delightfully happy pair were the true examples of the real meaning of being so in love with each other.

All of us who were deeply touched by Ruthie and Connie will be reflecting on a myriad of ways they affected our lives for the better. Ours is a simple story.  12 years after seeing Deborah Dickson’s documentary on their lives ‘Ruthie & Connie Every Room In The House, we finally got to meet them. It was February 2016 and they were at The Biltmore Hotel to receive the SAGE Pioneer Award, presented by Services & Advocacy For GLBT Elders, the country’s largest and oldest organization for LGBT seniors. 

The morning after the Gala in their honor, they sat down with us for a wide-ranging interview about their life and work.  It was one of those joyous and rare life-enhancing moments that one never forgets, and from that day forth I was privileged enough to be able to consider them friends.

Our hearts go out to Ruthie for her enormous loss and our thanks too for the fact that she shared Connie so generously with us all.

https:// queerguru.com/2016/03/ruth-connie-a-love-story