Orlando lost one of its strongest voices over the weekend. Billy Manes, a journalist, activist, and provocateur, died over the weekend shortly after parting ways with the LGBT publication Watermark. Before Watermark he wrote for Orlando Weekly and it was in that capacity that for years WMFE listeners heard Manes on our air.
Manes ran for mayor, he hob nobbed with Duran Duran, but it was the Pulse nightclub shooting that introduced Manes to the world.
Manes’ husband Anthony Mauss, dear friend and former boss at the Orlando Weekly, Erin Sullivan, and former Orlando Weekly coworker Jessica Bryce Young joined Intersection to remember Billy Manes.
"Billy was an incredibly serious and dedicated journalist who felt every story he told as if it were his own story," Sullivan said.
Young said that Manes was an "accidental teacher" and he taught her many things over the 14 years she knew him.
Mauss said Manes' mark will be felt the most in his heart.
"Billy belongs to the city of Orlando, to Central Florida, to Florida, but for me – simply - in my heart," Mauss said.
Listen to the whole segment by clicking on the audio player above.
We asked Billy's friends to remember their favorite story about Billy Manes and send us a voice recording. Here are a couple of those stories: