07/01/2025
A message from Florida Magazine Association board member and vice-president, and founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of Embrace Magazine.
Today marks the 6th anniversary of Embrace Magazine. On the 5th anniversary, I launched a one-year campaign to find a buyer or partner, offering each of the 12 published issues once per month in order of publication. I did not find a buyer or partner. That is OK. I am proud of what we accomplished with Embrace, a start-up magazine I created from nothing, and produced an award-winning publication that set records in its five years of existence.
Because of Embrace Magazine, we have achieved the following:
JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR Finalist — 2024 by Society of Professional Journalists Florida (SPJ Florida Pro)
EDITOR OF THE YEAR Finalist — 2024 by SPJ Florida Pro
MAGAZINE OF THE YEAR — 2023 by Florida Magazine Association (FMA) for Embrace (MOTY)
NEW BUSINESS OF THE YEAR — 2022 by Pride Chamber for Embrace (Orlando)
MAGAZINE OF THE YEAR — 2021 by FMA for Embrace (won as a startup, made history)
We are a history-maker:
• 2021 & 2023. In Jan 2021, became the 1st LGBTQ+ mag member of FMA, est. 1953. In July 2021, FMA awarded Embrace with Charlie (1st pl) Best New Magazine, Best Overall Mag, & MOTY. 1st & only startup to achieve that. Won a total of 22 awards. In July 2023, became the 2nd magazine to win twice. Total 24 awards with 15 of them Charlie
•Nov 2020, 1st LGBTQ+ member of Associated Church Press (ACP), est. 1916
•1st person to be a finalist for both EDITOR OF THE YEAR & JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR by the SPJ
•Tied record for most 1st place awards by a writer in a year, Florida Press Club, est. 1950 — 6
We received NATIONAL awards:
•2024 GLAAD Media Award Nominated Journalist — Outstanding Print Article
•NLGJA: Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists 2022 Excellence in Journalism — Excellence in Photojournalism
Because of Embrace, I have 105 Florida Magazine Association awards and 302 awards overall. Those are staggering numbers, completed over an 18 year run.
I also had the opportunity to serve as your FMA board member, secretary, and vice-president over the past 3 years, which comes to an end on July 31, 2025. The next night, I attend my final Charlie Awards banquet to receive the final eight awards of my media career.
Embrace Magazine has fulfilled a sense of purpose for me, that still continues. I will find a way to transfer that drive toward a different medium. Ultimately, Embrace Magazine will endure in my memory, and hopefully our collective history, as a tremendous accomplishment for the LGBTQ+ community, and for a simple man with lots of heart.
Thank you, all!
To view the magazine, visit: https://www.embracemedia.us/
