JUSTIN YODER

Founder & CEO | He/Him

Justin was raised in Missouri on his grandparents’ farm, which is where he developed a love for the outdoors. Throughout his childhood, summers were often spent barefoot exploring creeks in the woods, camping, or with a fishing pole in hand. As he grew older, his passion for the outdoors continued, and would soon become an even bigger part of his daily life.

In addition to his passion for the outdoors, Justin held a deep passion for the health and wellbeing of children located in Africa. As such, in 2003 he founded and ran for seven years a nonprofit intended to combat HIV/AIDS. It is this monumental passion as well as his own personal journey that led to another discovery- the inherent lack of diversity present in the outdoor space for LGBTQ+ people. After “coming out” in 2010 and taking some time to find himself, he knew there had to be a remedy, so he founded LGBT+ Outdoors, a safe haven for other members of the LGBTQ+ community that share a love for the outdoors.

Justin and his husband Patrick currently reside in Texas, the birthplace of LGBT+ Outdoors, and manages LGBT+ Outdoors along with staff and ambassadors in multiple states across the United States.

Since starting LGBT+ Outdoors in 2019, Justin and his team have helped the organization grow into what it is today. With a social media following of over 25,000 and events held across the U.S. each month, LGBT+ Outdoors has truly become the community Justin envisioned.

Outside of the organization, Justin has been a guest speaker to groups such as the U.S. Forest Service, U.S Securities and Exchange Commission, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the Texas Travel Alliance, and The Adventure Summit, just to name a few. As the reach of LGBT+ Outdoors and Justin’s work expanded, LGBT+ Outdoors began to gain notoriety, as it was featured in a national Facebook commercial for Pride month staring Lavern Cox, as well as USA Today, The Dallas Voice, Bussle, and others.

Follow Justin on his adventures on Instagram @iamjustinyoder