Tucker Steinmetz was born in 1941 near Little Rock, Arkansas. He knew he was not attracted to women, but as a boy, he didn’t yet know how to express his affection for men.

Steinmetz recently visited the StoryCorps booth at the Chicago Cultural Center with his friend Jeremy Haggard. 

He tells Haggard that he didn’t know many gay people growing up, but there was one person who was important to him. Someone he still thinks of.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.