[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 196 (Friday, December 1, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1642]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            HONORING BISHOP S.F. MAKALANI-MAHEE (1972-2017)

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, December 1, 2017

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, today it is my privilege to honor 
the life of Bishop S.F. Makalani-MaHee, a minister and transgender 
activist from Oakland Park, Florida, who was the youngest pastor ever 
commissioned by the Unity Fellowship Church.
  S.F. was born on July 5, 1972 to Barbara MaHee and the late Adisa 
Makalani. The family's Sundays were spent in church, where S.F. enjoyed 
serenading the congregation with gospel renditions of ``Jesus Can Work 
It Out.'' S.F. found his love of Broadway at the Julia Richman High 
School in New York, where producer Cheryl Weisenfeld cast him in a 
production of Grease.
  After moving to Atlanta with family, S.F. began teaching theater 
courses, as well as lecturing for Georgia State University, Soapstone 
Center for the Performing Arts, and Spelman and Morehouse Colleges. He 
also founded the Heart Theater, a youth theater troupe, where he wrote 
and directed Journeys, an educational play focused on HIV/AIDS.
  Bishop S.F. Makalani-MaHee came to South Florida in 1997 where he 
found his community, his congregation and his purpose. S.F. began 
working at the PRIDE Center in Wilton Manors, as well as many other 
non-profits. He founded Black Gay Pride South Florida and co-founded 
BLACKOUT, South Florida's first African-American LGBTQ Film Festival. 
S.F. was the first transgender person to be appointed to the Broward 
County Human Rights Board. He was also an active member of the Dolphin 
Democrats, the longest continually-operating LGBTQ advocacy group in 
the South.
  Bishop S.F. Makalani-MaHee spent his life loving others 
unconditionally. Before his untimely passing, S.F. served as the 
Coordinator of the Transgender Program at the Broward County Department 
of Health, where he advocated for fellow members of South Florida's 
transgender community. S.F. passed away on November 20, 2017, this 
year's Transgender Day of Remembrance. He is survived by his mother 
Barbara; his siblings Darcy, Jeffrey, Justin, and Marsha; and several 
nephews. He is also survived by a community of friends across South 
Florida, Atlanta, and New York who he considered his family.