The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project has announced the recipients of its 2026 BeSeen Awards, recognizing four individuals whose decades of leadership, advocacy, and community-building have helped shape LGBTQ life across Wisconsin.

This year’s honorees are Rita Adair of Madison, Jim La Rock of Keshena, Rachel Maes of Green Bay, and Bob Jansen of Superior. Each is being recognized for making historic contributions to LGBTQ visibility, equity, and community in their respective regions and beyond.

The annual BeSeen Awards celebrate individuals whose work has left a lasting impact on Wisconsin’s LGBTQ communities. While recipients are selected by the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project’s Board of Directors, community members are encouraged to nominate future honorees throughout the year.

Among this year’s recipients is Rita Adair, a longtime Madison organizer, activist, social worker, and business owner. Adair is the operator of Bernell’s, Madison’s first and only women-centered sports bar, and has spent her career advocating for women, families, and communities of color while creating affirming spaces for LGBTQ Wisconsinites.

Jim La Rock, a Two Spirit elder and Menominee historian from Keshena, is being honored for preserving Indigenous history and culture through education, storytelling, public speaking, and community events, including the Wisconsin Two Spirit Pow Wow. His work has helped strengthen connections between Indigenous and LGBTQ communities while ensuring cultural traditions continue to be shared with future generations.

In northeastern Wisconsin, Rachel Maes has emerged as a prominent civic leader and advocate. The Green Bay resident made history with her election to the Brown County Board and has served in leadership roles with Green Bay Pride and the Bay Area Council on Gender Diversity, while advising organizations including the Neville Museum, YWCA, and the State Bar of Wisconsin.

The fourth honoree, Bob Jansen of Superior, is recognized for founding The Main Club in 1983, the first openly gay bar in the Northland. Over the decades, the venue became far more than a bar, serving as a gathering place for organizing, activism, and community support. The Main Club helped give rise to both Duluth-Superior Pride and the Greater North AIDS Project, and today Duluth-Superior Pride is the longest-running Pride festival in Wisconsin.

“In these challenging times, we all must give thanks to those who continue to light candles instead of just cursing the darkness,” Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project President Michail Takach said in announcing the awards. “The BeSeen Awards are just one way our organization can thank people who give everything they have to build a better world for us all. Through their generosity, courage and commitment, these people have changed countless lives.”

Launched in 2025, the BeSeen Awards are part of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project’s broader mission to preserve, document, and celebrate the people, places, and events that have shaped LGBTQ history throughout the state. By honoring contemporary leaders alongside historic preservation efforts, the organization seeks to ensure that Wisconsin’s LGBTQ legacy remains visible for future generations.