Local
High tech sales engineer Steve Collins dies at 66
A longtime LGBTQ marching band member

Steven Lee Collins, a technical sales engineer for high tech companies in the Northern Virginia area and an active member and supporter of the local LGBTQ marching band DC Different Drummers for 30 years, died March 23 at Virginia Hospital Center from complications associated with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, according to his husband Mike Merena. He was 66.
Merena said Collins, who had a master’s degree in engineering administration, worked in a discipline known as microscopy, which, among other things, is used to manufacture high tech scientific laboratory and engineering tools and machinery.
Collins most recently worked as a technical sales engineer since 2012 at the Northern Virginia office of ULTRA TEC Manufacturing, Inc., a firm that manufactures and sells precision equipment and other products to high tech companies in the U.S. and abroad.
Merena said that in addition to his many years of work in the high-tech industry Collins enjoyed performing as a percussionist with the D.C. Different Drummers, the local LGBTQ organization that includes several types of bands, including symphonic and jazz as well as its most well-known Marching Band.
“He was a percussionist and participated in D.C. Different Drummers productions of all types,” Merena said. “From marching in the Pride parades in D.C., Baltimore, New York City, and other cities in the Mid Atlantic to the symphonic concerts held here in D.C., the jazz combo and band, Steve was always happy to be involved and did a lot to help younger members participate in these activities as well,” Merena said.
Merena said Collins was especially honored to have performed with D.C. Different Drummers when it was included in both of President Barack Obama’s inaugural parades, which marched along Pennsylvania Avenue from the U.S. Capitol to the White House.
According to Merena, Collins was born and raised in Elkhart, Ind. He graduated from Concord High School in Elkhart in 1972 and attended Indiana’s Ball State University, where he received his bachelor’s degree in communications in 1976. He received his master’s degree in engineering administration at George Washington University in D.C. in 1985, according to his LinkedIn page.
That same year he participated in a Fairfax County continuing education program in the study of the Japanese language for business, his LinkedIn page says.
Prior to joining the ULTRA TEC firm Collins worked from 1997 to 2012 as a technical sales engineer for the South Bay Technology firm in Arlington, Va. And prior to that, his LinkedIn page says, he served as president and sales manager of the tech firm Plasma Sciences, Inc. from 1989 to 1997. Merena said Collins and his partners in the company sold it to another company in 1997.
“Steve was a very kind, loving, and caring person,” Merena said. “He was a wonderful husband, father, and brother.”
Merena said Collins loved to entertain. He said his husband helped organize parties at the couple’s house for the D.C. Different Drummers’ awards ceremony as well as events for other organizations, including the local Brother Help Thyself LGBTQ charity group and the semi-annual banquet for the bowling league the two were members of.
Collins is survived by his husband Mike Merena, his daughter Nichole Collins, his son Matthew Erin Collins, his sisters Linda Miller and Tracy Eash, and numerous nieces and nephews, friends and loved ones, Merena said.
A celebration of life for Collins, who was cremated, will be held at a time and place yet to be decided, Merena said.
Donations in Collins’ name can be made to D.C. Different Drummers at dcdd.org.
World Pride 2025
Episcopal bishop to speak at WorldPride human rights conference
Trump demanded apology from Mariann Edgar Budde over post-Inauguration sermon

The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde is among those who are scheduled to speak at the WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference that will take place from June 4-6.
Budde, who is the bishop of the Diocese of Washington, in January urged President Donald Trump “to have mercy” on LGBTQ people, immigrants, and others “who are scared right now” during a post-Inauguration service that he and Vice President JD Vance attended at the Washington National Cathedral. Trump criticized Budde’s comments and demanded an apology.
The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde speaks at the Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 21, 2025. (PBS NewsHour clip)
A press release the Washington Blade received notes Icelandic Industries Minister Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, UK Black Pride founder Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, and Bob the Drag Queen are among those who are also expected to participate in the conference.
The conference will take place at the JW Marriott (1331 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) and registration is open here.
World Pride 2025
Pabllo Vittar to perform at WorldPride
Brazilian drag queen, singer, joined Madonna on stage in 2024 Rio concert

A Brazilian drag queen and singer who performed with Madonna at her 2024 concert on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach will perform at WorldPride.
The Capital Pride Alliance on Thursday announced Pabllo Vittar will perform on the Main Stage of the main party that will take place on June 7 at DCBX (1235 W St., N.E.) in Northeast D.C.
Vittar and Anitta, a Brazilian pop star who is bisexual, on May 4, 2024, joined Madonna on stage at her free concert, which was the last one of her Celebration Tour. Authorities estimated 1.6 million people attended.
District of Columbia
$3.7 billion RFK stadium proposal draws support from Team DC
Washington Commanders ‘proud’ to champion LGBTQ community

Miguel Ayala, president of the D.C. LGBTQ sports organization Team D.C., has expressed support for the $3.7 billion deal reached between Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Washington Commanders football team to bring the team back to D.C. in a redeveloped site on the grounds of the city’s long shuttered RFK stadium.
With the deal calling for the city to provide $1 billion in taxpayer funds for infrastructure related costs for the massive redevelopment project — and with the Commanders to provide the remaining $2.7 billion — as of this week the deal did not have majority support on the D.C. Council, which must vote to approve it.
Ayala’s support for the project on behalf of Team D.C. raises the question of whether members of the city’s influential LGBTQ community might play some role in urging the D.C. Council to approve the project.
The proposal comes at a time when the Washington Commanders team includes a message of support for the LGBTQ community on its website. The message follows its hosting last October of its 4th annual LGBTQ Pride Night Out at the Commanders game against the Cleveland Browns.
“The Washington Commanders are proud to champion the LGBTQ+ community and its allies,” the team states on its website. “Through the unifying power of sports, we aim to create a culture where all feel welcome and celebrated.”
In a statement released to the Washington Blade, Ayala points out that the Commanders are among every D.C.-based professional sports team that hosts a Pride Night Out event, which Team DC helps to organize.
“Each year, our events have grown stronger, with vibrant tailgates, on-field celebrations, and powerful moments that shine a spotlight on our community,” Ayala said. “We can’t wait to kick off our first Night Out at the Commanders Stadium in 2030.”
He was referring to plans by the Commanders organization and the D.C. mayor’s office to have the stadium deal approved by the D.C. Council in July, with construction of the new stadium to begin then, and with a planned completion in time for the 2030 professional football season.
Ayala also points out that the RFK stadium grounds currently serve as home to LGBTQ-related sports activity, including the D.C. Gay Flag Football League and the D.C. Front Runners group. He added that the RFK grounds will serve as the playing fields for this year’s WorldPride Capital Cup sports competition, where LGBTQ rugby and soccer teams from around the world will compete.
“This new stadium will be more than just a field – it will be a powerful new addition to the vibrant, diverse, and proud communities we champion every day,” he said in his statement.
At an April 28 news conference, Bowser, Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris and other city officials provided details of the stadium project, noting that it includes a massive development of the new stadium and the surrounding 180 acres of land.
In addition to the 65,000-seat domed stadium, officials said the project would include 5,000 to 6,000 residential housing units, with 30 percent designated as “affordable” for low- and moderate-income residents. They said the project would also include parks and recreation areas, hotels, restaurants, retail, and neighborhood amenities.
“As we focus on the growth of our economy, we’re not only bringing our team home, but we’re also bringing new jobs and new revenue to our city and to Ward 7,” Bowser said in a statement
Opponents of the project, including D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), have said they don’t believe the city should use its own funds for a stadium and the related development.
So far, just four Council members have expressed support for the project. Mendelson and two other Council members have expressed opposition, and the remaining five have not yet said whether they would vote for or against it. The project needs seven of the current 12-member Council for it to be approved.
Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), the Council’s only gay member, who initially had not taken a position on the proposal, this week said he was looking at the project more favorably, according to news media reports.
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