John C. Graves

John Cowperthwaite Graves (May 16, 1938 – October 13, 2003) was a professor, psychotherapist, singer, and philanthropist associated with the LGBTQ+ rights movement in Boston, Massachusetts and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He died on October 13, 2003, from heart failure at the age of 65.

Biography Graves was born on May 16, 1938, in New York City into an affluent family. He attended Princeton University where he received his doctorate degree in philosophy. He then went on to work as a professor teaching philosophy at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for ten years between 1964 and 1974. Graves left teaching and began working as a psychotherapist with Homophile Community Health Service in Boston.

In 1990, Graves moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida and became involved in local LGBTQ+ organizations. Notably, Graves was elected president of Stonewall Library and Archives in 1992 and subsequently as president of its honorary board of trustees until his death. The first recipient of this fellowship was Robert Rosenwald Jr., the attorney who helped overturn Florida’s ban on gay couples’ ability to adopt in 2010.

Honors & Legacy Graves received a number of accolades for his philanthropy and charity. The Gay and Lesbian Foundation of Florida honored Graves with a humanitarian award. In 2001, the Association of Fundraising Professionals honored Graves as an outstanding philanthropist for his charity, making him the first openly gay man to receive said honor. Thanks to his work and donations, the Stonewall Library and Archives named the John C. Graves Reading Room in his honor. The Sunshine Cathedral of the Metropolitan Community Church also named and dedicated its John C. Graves building to the legacy and contribution of Graves’ philanthropic work.