Pine Street Plaza was aglow Friday night with candlelight and the warm memories of a woman who attendees said lived as her authentic self and empowered others to do the same.
It was something Rikkey Outumuro was already doing at 8 years old, when she and her best friend made a game of raiding the Olympia Food Co-Op’s “free” box and putting together wild outfits for drag shows they’d throw in the parking lot.
“She made it look good,” added one vigil attendee as Anna Schlecht, a longtime mentor of Outumuro’s and former chair of Capital City Pride, recounted one of her earliest memories of Outumoro.
“She made it look good,” Schlecht agreed. “More importantly, she made it look right.”
The two kids voguing and calling for passing cars to turn up their radios drew an audience.
“And they were just so taken because Rikkey had that megawatt smile, even at 8 years old,” Schlect said. “And even at that tender age, she was making the
world safer for LGBTQ kids. Or just for kids who, regardless of how they identify or how they would eventually identify, they just weren’t like a square peg that could fit into a round hole. She made it safer for people to be who they are.”
She got into trouble, as all kids do. One of her childhood friends, Nichole Sellards, recalled the two of them joking around with a pair of handcuffs and ultimately having to call the police to unlock Outumuro from a stop sign after Sellards accidentally lost the keys.
“That was 25 years ago and we were still friends,” Sellards said in a written statement. “Rikkey was one of a kind and she was loved by everyone who knew her.”
Outumuro kept the passion for performing she had at 8 years old and eventually started performing under the drag name Tru Starlet.
“Rikkey was always an exceptionally fabulous drag queen,” said Schlecht, recalling a year Outumuro decided she wanted to ride in Olympia’s Pride parade on a gold lamé bicycle with flames coming out the back.
She had what Schlecht described as “a hulking, rusted bicycle with no gears” to work with, but Outumuro was determined to make it work.
“I don’t think it quite met her dreams of what it would be, but she was in the parade and she made it a point to be there,” said Schlecht.
Performing was one of Outumuro’s biggest passions throughout her life, second only to her son. “The love she had for him was so unconditional and above and beyond,” said longtime friend Stephanie Terry in a written statement.
Outumuro attended Centralia College and was president of the school’s Gay Straight Alliance. She was crowned the first Miss Gay Lewis County in 2008.
“I’m considered fearless by many of my friends but I would have been terrified to do that,” Schlecht said. “Once again, that 8-year-old spirit was shining through and she was going to make the world a safer place for everybody.”
Orion Block, one of Rikkey’s good friends, remembered being a driving force behind Outumuro’s coronation.
“I forced Rikkey to get dressed up and put on a crown as Miss Gay Lewis County because she wanted it so bad and I told her I was going to make her a queen, so I did that,” said Block, who is working with Outumuro’s family to create a grant for LGBTQ+ youth at Centralia College as a way to keep Outumuro’s legacy alive.
“We’ve been kind of mulling this around for a little while but after talking with Hope (Schumacher), I think the best thing to do with this is to create a grant in her name,” said Block.
The grant would not only be for money for college, but for internships in the community.
Anyone interested in helping Block create the grant is encouraged to contact Block at orionblock@gmail.com or 323-877-7904.
Outumuro’s impact was on display at Pine Street Plaza as roughly 100 people gathered to support each other and pay respects to Outumuro.
“Rikkey was a bright shining star among us. She was an inspiration to so many people and life won’t be the same without her. We will miss her so very dearly,” said Sara Leffew, a friend of Outumuro, in a written statement.
Outumuro was found dead at a Centralia address on Oct. 31. She was 39.
Her boyfriend and suspected killer, Cristopher Allen Gaudreau, 28, of Centralia, is being held without bail at the Lewis County Jail while awaiting a competency evaluation to determine whether he’s mentally able to stand trial for Outumuro’s murder.
While the vigil was focused on Outumuro’s life, activism and legacy, the circumstances of her death weighed heavily over the community in mourning.
“Domestic violence is something that cuts across all communities. The LGBTQ community is not immune,” said Schlecht, adding that many people, including those in the LGBTQIA+ community, think themselves and their community as “better than” domestic violence and perhaps do not catch the signs.
“We have to ask questions. We have to be there. We have to support fabulous organizations like the Hope Alliance,” she said.
Hope Alliance, which hosted Friday’s vigil, is a nonprofit providing free, confidential support service for English and Spanish-speaking domestic violence and sexual abuse survivors.
Director Kris Camenzind took an opportunity at the start of the vigil to share Hope Alliance’s message to the LGBTQIA+ community.
“We stand with you at Hope Alliance. We’re here to support and advocate for you, whether you’re experiencing domestic violence or sexual assault. We understand that it is difficult to ask for support when you may be feeling isolated, fearful and perhaps judged. We care about you. We care about your wellbeing and we care about your safety and autonomy.”
Hope Alliance’s crisis line — 360-748-6601, or toll free at 1-800-244-7414 — is active 24 hours a day, seven days a week. More information is available on the nonprofit’s website, hopealliancelc.org. The site is equipped with a “quick escape” button that lets you quickly leave the site if needed.
Schlecht thanked Hope Alliance for its work supporting those affected by Outumuro’s death and its acceptance of the LGBTQIA+ community.
“I want to applaud you because for years, the LGBTQ communities didn’t feel welcomed by the mainstream nonprofits and I don't think you took a breath. You were there,” she said.
Outumuro’s mother, Hope Schumacher, spoke at the vigil to thank the community for its support.
“I just want to tell everyone that I know Rikkey would be so happy that you’re all here. I know she loved many of you, if not all of you, and all I can really say is I know our community, our family, we are at a loss. We have lost a precious, beautiful soul,” she said.
Terry recalled speaking to Outumuro on the phone a couple of days before Halloween, talking about the weather, Halloween costumes, and how they were both feeling better since pandemic restrictions loosened and they were able to get out more.
The two had long been each other’s “‘positivity buddies,’ lifting one another up with positive affirmations or stories, along with honesty, truth and of course some laughter in between,” said Terry.
Outumuro wasn’t able to perform like she wanted to due to the pandemic, but would brainstorm with Terry about numbers she wanted to try when things reopened.
“Rikkey was always the charismatic, witty, intelligent, woman who carried herself with poise and purpose no matter what time of day, or what she was doing, this was genuinely Rikkey,” Terry said.
In their last moments on the phone together, Terry took the chance to tell Outumuro she was an inspiration to her.
“She was brave, had courage and fortitude to get through anything to accomplish her passions, and positives in life. She didn’t do this only for herself, but for others behind her, wanting to be who they are meant to be without having to worry about what others think. … And that is who Rikkey is, an inspiration to anyone she came into contact with. She enlivened people with her glamorous light that sparked happiness (in) others, as well as inside herself.”
Another friend of Outumuro’s, Brian Keith Wilson, said Outumuro was a major support for him after he attempted suicide last year.
“Rikkey was different from most people. She was special in a lot of ways. And I am very grateful for what she’s given me and I feel that I can grow again where before I wasn’t,” he said at the vigil.
Those who spoke at the vigil encouraged attendees and others who knew Outumuro to find ways to continue Outumuro’s legacy in their own lives and communities.
“If she touched your life, please find other ways that you can carry that on and affirm people to make this a safer world for people. Make it more welcoming,” Schlecht said.
Capital City Pride has started a fundraiser on Facebook to aid Outumuro’s family with funeral expenses. For more information or to donate, visit www.facebook.com/donate/2961499287433080/.
