Members of the Hawaii Island LGTBQ+ community are mourning the loss of fellow advocate and leader Greg Lupton.
Lupton, 64, passed away on Friday, Feb. 16, at the hospital surrounded by his community of trusted loved ones
Beverly Tese, who has called Lupton a mentor and father figure, was one of those trusted friends who knew about his health problems.
“Greg didn’t want a lot of people to know he had been having medical issues,” Tese said. “I can’t describe how appreciative and honored I am that he trusted me to be by his side during his transition. There was a group of us all doing our part and showing him how loved he was the entire time.”
Lupton moved to the Big Island in 2014 and got involved right away with the Hawaii Island LGBTQ+ Pride organization as a volunteer.
Through his experience successfully raising money for various charities and organizations in Los Angeles, Lupton brought a wealth of knowledge to the Hawaii Island LGBTQ+ Pride board and quickly found himself in leadership positions.
“He has always been a leader and amazing mentor for those around him,” Tese said. “He helped us grow, he showed up and supported a bunch of nonprofits, and he volunteered with the other members of the Pride board to offer more to our LGBTQ+ community.”
Lupton served on the Pride board at different times as president, vice president, treasurer and secretary.
According to Palehua, a Hawaii Island drag queen and former Pride board member, Lupton was willing to put in most of the heavy lifting for the Pride Parade and Festival every year.
“To anyone who has experienced Pride on the Big Island in the last five years, a huge thank you is due to Greg,” Palehua said. “He was happy to be the leader for all of it, and I’m very thankful for all the time and effort he put into making sure our community had something to celebrate every year.”
Lupton was a retired teacher who “brought that sense of infinite patience and understanding to the Pride board,” said Phill Russell, president of Hawaii Island LGBTQ+ Pride. “As much as he liked to talk, he always made sure that everyone had the chance to be listened to and understood.”
With Lupton by her side, Tese gained the confidence to run for a leadership position and now serves as the secretary alongside Russell and Ash Magallanes as vice president.
Outside of the Pride board, Lupton guest-lectured at University of Hawaii at Hilo, attended protests and tutored kids, among other things.
In 2021, Lupton and Tese brainstormed the idea to create the Prizma Hawaii LGBTQ+ Center, which provides a safe space and outreach.
“Greg and I both talked about doing more for our community while working together, and I approached him about the possibility of opening a center, and we ran with it,” Tese said. “We would tag team most programs we offered, but one in particular he loved and handled on his own was the youth origami.”
In the last 10 years of his life, Lupton made an impact on Hawaii Island’s LGBTQ+ community and left a legacy through the people he worked with as a tireless volunteer.
“… Greg knew he wanted to continue to help our community,” Tese said. “He wants his legacy to keep on through everyone. He wants all of us to keep pushing, doing better and striving to make connections.”
Russell, Tese and the LGBTQ+ Pride organization hope to coordinate with some of the other groups Lupton was active with to hold a memorial service or event in his honor. When a date, place and time are set, it will be shared to Lupton’s and Prizma Hawaii Island LGBTQ+ Center’s Facebook pages.
“Greg had lived through some of the darkest moments of the AIDS epidemic, rampant discrimination and violence against queer people,” Russell said. “And he still kept this positive vision about the future of the LGBTQ+ movement and humanity in general.
“We are going to keep Hawaii Island Pride alive, keep it the family-friendly, fun event it’s always been, and continue our advocacy to make the world better and brighter for all people.”
Lupton will be honored at this year’s Pride Festival on Saturday, June 29, in downtown Hilo.
To volunteer, donate or learn more about Prizma, email prizmahawaiicenter@gmail.com, and for more information about Hawaii Island LGBTQ+ Pride, visit hawaiiislandlgbtqpride.org
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.