Who We Are

An all-volunteer non-profit organization celebrating LGBTQIA+ history

Our Mission

The Rainbow Honor Walk honors self-expressed LGBTQ individuals, now deceased, who made significant contributions in their fields. Through bronze sidewalk plaques in San Francisco’s historic Castro neighborhood, we ensure their stories are visible, remembered, and celebrated by generations to come.

 

Remembrance

We honor the lives and legacies of LGBTQIA+ trailblazers who shaped history, culture, and community through their courage and contributions.

Education

Our plaques serve as educational landmarks, inspiring visitors to learn about pioneers in arts, activism, politics, literature, science, and culture.

Community

As an all-volunteer organization, we're powered by community support and work in concert with the LGBTQIA+ community and our Board of Directors.

Visibility

We ensure LGBTQIA+ history remains publicly visible in one of the world's most iconic queer neighborhoods, the Castro district in San Francisco.

Selection Criteria


The criteria for all nominations to be honored with a Rainbow Honor Walk sidewalk plaque are:

  • Self-expressed LGBTQ individuals
  • Now deceased
  • Made significant contributions in their fields

Criteria for additional names to be added to the Walk over the years may change subject to the wishes of the community working in concert with the Rainbow Honor Walk Board of Directors.

501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization

The Rainbow Honor Walk is an all-volunteer non-profit 501(c)3 organization. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

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Board / Committees

Board of Directors

Advisory Committee

Steve Adams
Max Buck
Rachel Forbes
Madeline Hancock
Ben Leong 
Isak Lindenauer – Cofounder
Kyriell Noon

David Perry – Cofounder
Charles E. Roddy
Rebecca Rolfe
Charlotte Ruffner
Gustavo Serina
Andrea Shorter
Theresa Sparks

Kendall Austin Stulce 
Dr. Betty L. Sullivan
Karen Sundheim
Barbara Tannenbaum
Alan Thomsen
Colton Windsor

In Memoriam: Tom Ryan

Our Progress

46 Plaques Installed

We have successfully installed 44 bronze plaques throughout the Castro neighborhood, celebrating remarkable LGBTQIA+ trailblazers.

28 Plaques Planned

We have successfully installed 44 bronze plaques throughout the Castro neighborhood, celebrating remarkable LGBTQIA+ trailblazers.

Future Expansion

We have successfully installed 44 bronze plaques throughout the Castro neighborhood, celebrating remarkable LGBTQIA+ trailblazers.

Donna Sachet

Donna Sachet

Donna Sachet started her adventure in San Francisco over 25 years ago and the City has applauded her fun-loving spirit, quick wit, and musical talent ever since. She served as Miss Gay SF in 1992 and was elected the 30th Empress of the City in 1995. She co-chaired the SF GLAAD Media Awards for 4 years, co-hosted a cable talk show for 6 years, has served on the Boards of Directors of Positive Resource Center, LGBT Community Center, EqualityCalifornia, and the Imperial Council. Donna was chosen as Community Grand Marshal of the SF Pride Parade in 2005 and made history in 2009 as the first drag personality to sing the National Anthem for a major league game, the SF Giants at AT&T Park.

Her Songs of the Season cabaret benefit show benefiting AIDS Emergency Fund ran for 25 years and Pride Brunch which she co-created with Gary Virginia benefiting PRC is still running 22 years later. She currently writes a bi-weekly column for The SF Bay Times and stars weekly in Sunday’s a Drag at The Starlight Room in Union Square.

Peter Goss

Peter Goss

Peter Goss has been a licensed Realtor since 1985. He joined Corcoran Global Living (formerly Zephyr Real Estate) when he relocated to San Francisco in 1999. From 2002 until 2012, Peter and his partner, Sean Pattanasuvoranun, owned and operated Tangerine Restaurant at 16th & Sanchez Streets. Prior to his move to San Francisco, Peter was regularly one of the top ten producing agents in Washington, D.C. with Long & Foster Realtors where he held licenses in Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Before initiating his real estate practice, he was an advertising sales representative with The Washington Blade (when he met David Perry in 1984) and the Florida Keys Magazine. Peter’s early work experience was in the travel industry with the Walt Disney World Company and as the Director of Visitor Relations (Tourism) for the City of Lexington, Virginia, where his duties included managing a visitor center and its various programs, including several self-guided walking tours of Historic Lexington. He received a Bachelor’s Degree from Washington & Lee University in 1982.

Prior to joining the board Peter served on the advisory committee for 360 The Positive Care Center at UCSF and worked closely with Sanchez Elementary School as a volunteer and contributor for more than a decade.Her Songs of the Season cabaret benefit show benefiting AIDS Emergency Fund ran for 25 years and Pride Brunch which she co-created with Gary Virginia benefiting PRC is still running 22 years later. She currently writes a bi-weekly column for The SF Bay Times and stars weekly in Sunday’s a Drag at The Starlight Room in Union Square.

Kristen Ivanetich

Kristen Ivanetich

Kristen Ivanetich (she/her) is a queer San Francisco Bay Area native and parent, collaborator, and optimist. She’s a communications leader with over 25 years of creative, corporate, and technical writing and editing experience at Wells Fargo, PeopleSoft, Sunset Magazine, and various software and publishing companies. She holds a degree in English from San Francisco State University.

As mother of two brilliant young adults, she served on the Everett Middle School PTSA board and engaged in the Lowell High School PTSA. When she isn’t defending the Oxford comma, Kristen enjoys reading, traveling, spending time with loved ones, and replenishing her soul along the Northern California coast.

Kathy Amendola

Kathy Amendola

Kathy Amendola began her exciting career at Thomas Cook Travel in New York City and later proceeded to include worldwide tour operators and hotels. After working for luxury resorts on Maui for 6 years, Kathy transferred to the Hotel Palomar, San Francisco in 1999 and became more involved in the LGBT community by serving as a Board member for the Golden Gate Business Association (GGBA), the Merchants of Upper Market & Castro (MUMC), and the Rainbow Honor Walk project. Since purchasing “Cruisin’ the Castro Walking Tours” in 2005, Kathy’s mission is to not only educate people on the LGBT culture but to raise awareness that equality is a human right, and not a privilege. Kathy lives, loves and gardens in the Castro.

Tim Denike

Tim Denike

Timothy (“Tim”) Denike is a San Francisco native who has spent his career building technology at some of the Bay Area’s most influential companies, including Apple and Yahoo!. A longtime member of the Castro community, he first discovered an appreciation for the neighborhood’s history more than 30 years ago during a walking tour led by community historian Trevor Hailey as part of an LGBTQ literature course in college.

He attended the unveiling of the Rainbow Honor Walk’s original 24 plaques on Castro Street and is proud to now serve on the Board of Directors. Tim brings professional experience along with a longstanding personal commitment to preserving and celebrating the stories of those who shaped LGBTQ+ history.

Christie James

Christie James

Christie James is a proud queer radio personality, voice-over actress, and in-demand DJ rooted in the San Francisco Bay Area. With over a decade of experience on the airwaves and behind the decks, she’s built a career on connection, culture, and amplifying voices—especially those from the LGBTQ+ community.

Her journey began in the U.S. Navy, where she was selected for the Presidential Honor Guard and later served as an award-winning military journalist. After her service, she returned home to the Bay and quickly rose through the radio ranks, earning on-air roles at KYLD (WiLD 94.9), KISQ (98.1 KISS FM), PRIDE Radio, and now Classic Hits 103.7 FM, where she hosts Morning Drive with Christie Live, one of the only all-female morning shows in the country.

Off the air, Christie is deeply committed to uplifting queer spaces through music, visibility, and joy. She’s been a featured DJ and stage producer for San Francisco Pride, Oakland Pride, Golden State Valkyries and Olivia Cruises, and frequently spins for community-driven organizations like NCLR, Generation Thrive, and Meta. Whether she’s DJing a wedding with Heart of Gold DJs, hyping up the Oakland A’s where she served as their official Treehouse DJ, or curating inclusive experiences across the Bay, Christie always shows up with purpose, heart, and high energy.

A lifelong Bay Area native, Christie’s mission is simple: to use music and media to build community, celebrate identity, and make everyone feel welcome—especially those who’ve ever felt unseen. Her vibe? Unapologetically queer, deeply rooted, and always ready to turn up the love.

Bill Lipsky

Bill Lipsky

Bill Lipsky received his doctorate in history from Carnegie Mellon University. He has been a Visiting Assistant Professor of Education at Pepperdine University, Los Angeles; a Curriculum Specialist with the Graduate School of Education, UCLA; and a program developer and facilitator for Visa, Citicorp, MCI, Wells Fargo, and the City and County of San Francisco, specializing in employee and management skills development. He is the author or editor of six books, most recently Gay and Lesbian San Francisco (2006), and his articles have been published in Review of Politics, Educational Leadership, Curriculum Review, the Bay Area Reporter, and other publications. He created Snapshot: LGBT History of San Francisco for the Human Rights Campaign and GLBT San Francisco: Castro, a historic sites map, for the GLBT Historical Society. He lives in San Francisco with his husband of 40 years and with Langston Chews and Miss Scarlett O’Hairball (who will never be hungry again). He collects LGBT historic photographs, Edward Gorey first editions, Scrooge McDuckiana, and American world’s fair memorabilia. He writes a monthly column, “Faces from Our LGBT Past,” for in the San Francisco Bay Times.

Bri Lister

Bri Lister

Bri Lister has over a decade of product analytics experience across SF startups and is currently employed as a Data Scientist at Grindr. She primarily grew up in Los Angeles before moving to the Bay area to study Mathematical and Computational Science at Stanford. Following university she moved directly to San Francisco where she currently lives in the Castro with her wife. Outside of work Bri is active in several recreational queer sports leagues in the city and enjoys supporting our local women’s sports teams (Go Valkyries!). In addition to her work at the Rainbow Honor Walk Bri currently volunteers at the GLBT Historical Society and SF LGBT Center, and previously served on the Board of Stanford Pride.

Sharon Guyun

Sharon Guyun

Currently I am an Activity Director for Alzheimer’s and Dementia Resident’s, Certified Home Health Aide, Reiki Master, Certified Crisis Intervention Counselor for Sexual Assault Survivors, Body Talk Tapping Technician, Yoga Teacher and a Self Care Coach.

Worked as an Electrocardiogram Technican for 20 years. Also worked in Hospital Administration for 10 years. I am presently studying to be a Death Doula.

Fun Fact: My Sister and I were born on the same date, same time 19 years apart. I was 19 years old when she was born. She could have been could have been my daughter.

Brian McConnell

Brian McConnell

Brian McConnell is an author, inventor and tech entrepreneur. He moved to San Francisco in 1994 and is a long time resident of Twin Peaks. A serial technology entrepreneur he has founded four companies in the telecom and translation technology industries. He was also a co-creator of Guerrilla Queer Bar, a freewheeling bar crawl/flashmob in the early 2000s (before social media ruined everything).

Joseph D. Robinson

Joseph D. Robinson has devoted most of his career to advancing the research, treatment, and prevention of infectious diseases, with a focus on HIV/AIDS, HCV. He began his professional path as the practice administrator for Marcus A. Conant, M.D., leading administrative operations for the Conant Medical Group—the largest private HIV practice in San Francisco. Joe later transitioned into the life sciences industry, joining VaxGen under the leadership of Donald P. Francis, M.D., where he contributed to the first Phase III preventive vaccine trials targeting sexually transmitted and community‑acquired HIV. He subsequently joined Presidio Pharmaceuticals, supporting the development of an effective antiviral therapy for HCV. Today, Joe leads operations at Nurix Therapeutics, which is engaged in early drug discovery and development efforts to identify novel drugs aimed at treating cancer and immunological and inflammatory diseases. Beyond his scientific and operational work, Joe has been deeply involved in community service and nonprofit leadership. He was the founding Secretary of both the Conant Foundation and the Rainbow Honor Walk, the latter of which he has served since its inception. Previously, he served as Team Manager for the San Francisco RockDogs basketball team. Over nearly four decades, Joe has extensively supported HIV transmission prevention efforts. He resides in San Francisco with his spouse.

Tarita Thomas

Tarita Thomas

Tarita Thomas is a Facilitator and Executive Coach with a twenty year history in Talent Acquisition, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging. A Chicago native, with a specialized economics and marketing degree from Purdue University, Tarita has developed a niche in the Bay Area for supporting talent and executives in tech start-ups and non-profits. Her free time is dedicated to women’s wellness initiatives including founding The pms Telethon, dedicated to eradicating cramps, fibroids and endometriosis, publishing a book on menstrual cycles called First Blood and writing her upcoming second book, Last Blood, on the joys of menopause. Tarita has served on the board of The Red Web Foundation and on the leadership committee for the Bisexual Network of the US. Fond of roaming the planet, Tarita currently divides her time between the multi-culti potluck that is Oakland, California and the tiny fishing village of Lo De Marcos in Nayarit, Mexico.

Paul Winfield

Paul Winfield

Dr. Paul T. Winfield is a program manager, author, world explorer, yogi and change agent. He has lived in 12 countries on six continents, and traveled over 70 countries. A proven leader with 20+ years experience, Dr. Paul has served a variety of agencies to promote individual and cooperative development. Recently Dr. Paul was the Chief Diversity Officer for RESTORE-Louisiana, supporting small, disadvantaged and minority owned businesses in a $1.7 billion disaster recovery program. His dissertation examined federal HIV/AIDS policy with an intersectional focus on Black Gay Men (MSM) where he performed a quantitative analysis from 300 participants, as well as qualitative analysis of interviews conducted with White House Directors’ among others. Dr. Paul is fully committed to his raison d’etre: the development, empowerment, freedom and respect for hmanity, particularly those throughout the LGBT and African diasporas.