Judd Proctor

21 April 1950-1 June 2026

by Charles McGuigan 06.2026

In the early morning hours of June 1, as Judd Proctor lay dying with his husband Brian Burns at his bedside, a full blue moon rose, peeked through the window, and was witness to this man’s final breath. Seventeen months earlier, Judd had been diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia, an extremely debilitating disease that robs the patient of memory and causes extreme anxiety, confusion, hallucinations, even mobility issues. It is the same illness that struck down Robin Williams.

Judd Proctor was so many things to so many people, it would be impossible to enumerate them all. He was a fighter for human rights who armed himself with words and logic, and spoke with a Southern drawl that carried with it a distinctive flourish of refinement.

For 35 years Judd served as an elementary school teacher in Henrico County. In every classroom he ever taught in, he insisted on having an upright piano, and he would lead his charges in sing-alongs. Beloved by his students, he had the rare ability to make learning fun. This, too: he was known for turning kids around, even those with severe behavioral issues. And in 1986, Judd was honored in Washington, DC as one of the top science teachers in the nation.

During his years as a student at Henrico High School, Judd was a joiner. He was on the track team, painted sets for school productions, wrote for the school newspaper, and at basketball and football games, he was a fixture in the stands, cheering until his voice was hoarse. In 1968, during his senior year, he was proclaimed most school-spirited. After high school he received a bachelor’s in business from University of Richmond, and went on to earn a master’s in education from VCU.

A long-time Bellevue resident, Judd, in the late 1980s, came out as gay and proudly flew the first rainbow flag in the neighbor. As a firm believer in justice Judd became a tireless advocate for equal rights and gay pride. He often said, “If we’re not all free, none of us is free.” So, he marched. He picketed on Capitol Square, formed alliances, developed a rapport with his representatives and held them to account on their votes. Judd also rubbed elbows with the movers and shakers of the LGBTQ+ movement— folks like Candace Gingrich, Barney Frank, Bishop Gene Robinson, and Gilbert Baker, the designer of the rainbow flag. Also, around this time, Judd was profiled in Dan Woog's book, “School’s Out: The Impact of Gay and Lesbian Issues on America’s Schools.”

In September of 1993, Judd brought together about 100 gay and lesbian educators from across Virginia to discuss the challenges of being who they were in the state's education system. He hosted the gathering at his home in Bellevue. When the press got wind of the event, a representative of Richmond’s Family Foundation fumed. She warned that validating "this lifestyle" would be “the demise of western civilization.” To which Judd quipped,  “Ridiculous, it was just a potluck."  

A month later,  Judd met Brian at a cookout on Monument Avenue hosted by a group of gay volleyballers. From that moment on, the pair were almost inseparable. Two years later, they held a commitment ceremony in their backyard, with friends and family in attendance.

In 2006, Judd married Brian in Massachusetts. At that time, Massachusetts had adopted marriage equality; Virginia had not.

In that era, barbaric politicians were spouting anti-gay rhetoric steeped in a fundamentalist interpretation of Christianity. So Judd and his partner launched The Rainbow Minute, a community radio segment devoted to LGBTQ+ history and culture.  They took aim at hate and homophobia.

Over the next ten years, he and Brian wrote, recorded, mixed and aired over 2,000 episodes on WRIR-97.3FM in Richmond. A few were broadcast internationally through Pacifica Radio in Los Angeles. By their tenth year of production, Judd and Brian had amassed a diverse roster of about 200 volunteer readers. They included Tom Miller, Dustin Richardson, Viola Baskerville, John DeBoer, Mary Gay Hutcherson, Miss Heaven-Leigh Kennedy, Frank Kameny, SONiA disappear fear, and many others. For several years, Brian and Judd allowed NORTH of the JAMES to run a monthly feature called Rainbow Minutes, which featured three episodes of their radio show, linked by a common thread.

In 2015, Judd and Brian left Richmond and settled in Silver Spring, Maryland. Judd continued his research on LGBTQ+ history at local museums and libraries. He organized a tour of Congressional Cemetery, highlighting the LGBTQ+ notables buried there.

Dedicated to the concerns of sexual minority youth, Judd organized the first local teacher/counselor training program for the Henrico Education Association. It was dubbed, Developing an Understanding of Sexual Minority Youth.

In retirement, Judd collected Converse High Tops. He amassed over 300 pairs, which more than filled a closet. On his wedding day he wore his green pair, which are now displayed at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture.

At his retirement ceremony in 2004, he encouraged the assemblage to “celebrate diversity in all that you do."

Judd Proctor had such an impact on our culture, moving us toward a more perfect union, that the ripples of his life will outlast us all.