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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 6, 2007)
APRIL 6 200 JUStlOUt 7 outstanding A League of Her Own ary Schütten has varied accomplishments. She works with youth as a consultant for the state; she serves on several hoards and recently patented a new product she invented. Schütten is organizing an event for University of Washington to acknowledge the accomplishments of female athletes from 1895 to the present. The event, which will be held April 7, sold out in March. Schütten took some time out to talk with Just Out about history, family and her hopes for the future. My name is Mary Schütten. years on the pro level. When 1 realized I wasn’t going to be beating Martina Hingis, I left. 1 always knew I’d be doing something in sports. My first same-sex crush was on Sherry Overton in the first grade. My heart would go 100 miles an hour when the teacher would let us sit together; she looked just like Snow White. 1 like to spend my downtime with my grandson. He’s 20 months old. He makes the world look like it’s in Technicolor. He’s just starting to acquire language. I wish we could adopt some of his words because they’re so perfect. I am known for putting events out into « the world. That’s one of the things people My proudest moment was being attribute to me. I organized Pink Flamingo with my family when Cathryn Bingo for several years and organized ICushing] and I got married by events for the Africa AIDS Project. 1 enjoy Multnomah County. We have three getting friends together and putting on an children, and having them all stand up Mary Schutten uncovers the history of people event, and they’re always sold out. Most for us was definitely the proudest. It was whose stories are rarely heard. recently 1 am organizing the University of really wonderful to have the opportuni Washington Pre-Title IX celebration to recognize the contribution ty to make our life congruent with our culture, even though they took it that women have made in sports. I see it as creating resources, and away. We have been together for a dozen years and will be together for there are never enough. When I moved to Portland I knew no one. the rest of our lives. It’s not like now that our marriage is invalid, we’re Then 1 organized Pink Flamingo Bingo and it was a huge under going to break up or anything, but it was definitely nice to have that taking; 500 people showed up. recognition. Our family is my biggest accomplishment. Raising three thoughtful, intelligent, good people is something to be very proud of. My cause is history. History is dependent on who’s writing it, and the more people we can get to write it, the deeper our histori cal sense of self is. Dominant culture has a deep sense of self, be it in sports or business or history, and unfortunately minorities don’t. History is only as complete as the people who tell it and as we make it, and the more people we can get involved in that, the richer it is. For example, the history of women’s sports—an area 1 care deeply about, the 1920s and 1930s—were a golden era. Women were playing hardball. Then they got shunted back into their gender roles. That history deepens our sense of self. I am 50 years old. I feel 30, but not emotionally 30, which is good. I’m definitely a lot more mature. I feel every decade gets better; you start asserting yourself more and more. When 1 was in my 20s and 30s, I was raising a family, and in my 40s and 50s, 1 am making my life look more like I want it to look. My childhood ambition was to be a professional baseball player. Then I learned that option wasn’t open to me. 1 was heartbroken. Then at 161 took up tennis. I played tennis through college and then had two A perfect day in Portland would be drinking coffee, reading the paper and spending time with my family. We live on a houseboat, so it’s really nice to sit out and read and drink coffee. I jealously protect my Sunday mornings. My inspiration is people who reject the cultural norms. Althea Gibson, who was the first African American to win Wimbledon, even before Arthur Ashe, she went from Harlem to Wimbledon. Amelia Earhart, she’s another inspiration. So is Billie Jean King. I’m inspired by anyone who acts on the world to make it better, anyone who tries to improve a situation. My last queer philanthropic event was an event with the Africa AIDS Response; I’m on their board as well. It’s nice to give money, but it’s really great to be able to give both time and money. My highest hope is that everyone's history is recorded, their stories are told and their contributions acknowledged. —Alex Baldino Just Out hung out at the Oaks Park commissary to ask Gay Skate Night attendees, "Would you take advantage of civil unions if they were legal in Oregon?" L onnie M artinez The Midget “Yes. I’m in a monogamous relationship for 13 years, and 1 think it’s important to get the same legal protections as everyone else. We used the marriage processes, and unfortunately it wasn’t worth anything and it took forever to get our money back.” B en L orz Gaysion * “Yes. Marriage is nowadays not as sacred as it used to be. Civil unions are something gays can cherish, and we’d hold it with more respect than straight couples are now with the rate of divorce.” B rittany M c D onald Improv Artist “1 would because we’d be given more benefits, but the downfall is it’s not the same as real marriage, which sets us back a little.” G abrielle A ppert Gabreality “1 would definitely take advantage of it, and I think a lot of my friends would because it would benefit a lot of people in Oregon. It’s not the same as marriage, but it’s a step in the right direction.”
