The Cayman Islands is mourning the loss of LGBTQ advocate Noel ‘Nolly’ Cayasso-Smith, who founded the Cayman AIDS Foundation and organised the islands’ first Pride parade. He was 57.
He passed away on Christmas Eve, following a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.
For several years, Cayasso-Smith had been a leading voice in raising awareness of HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ issues in the community, both as CEO and president of the Cayman AIDS Foundation and founder of the Cayman LGBTQ Foundation.
His sister Wendee Miller, speaking to Compass TV, said her brother was a powerhouse of an advocate for those living with AIDS and HIV, helping people receive healthcare and community assistance, and staunchly promoting the importance of testing, while all the time battling to de-stigmatise the diseases and educate people about them.
“He never stopped working, never,” she said, not even from his sick bed as he spent his last months battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, an incurable motor neuron disease.
She said her brother had long worked to answer questions for “those that were unsure about … what steps to take, because of the stigma” surrounding AIDS and HIV.
She described him as “passionate and compassionate” when dealing with individuals who had contracted the disease, answering their questions and ensuring they had as much information as possible.
“He had all the information that needed to be given to those who needed it. And he made sure that those who needed it had that full-on support, whether it was him personally” or directing them where to find it, she said.
From private person to public voice
Despite being a private person, he put himself forward as an advocate and spokesperson for his community.
“He was very private with his life,” Miller said, “but at the same time … with all of the stigma, all the things that no one wanted to step up and speak out on, because he was just so outspoken … he knew that a voice had needed to be heard.
“And him, being the individual that he was, and especially how our mom raised us, he saw fit to be that individual, to be able to step into that gap, to speak out, whether it’s the LGBTQ community, whether it’s for the Cayman AIDS and HIV Foundation, or just even for those in the community in Windsor Park, where he was living, he was always advocating, being the middle man, to speak on behalf of the people and to also filter to those … friends in distinguished positions in the government and so forth.
“So, he would have been that spokesperson and, to be honest, I don’t think anybody could do it any better than he could.”
Challenges growing up in conservative community
In an interview with the Cayman Compass in 2020, shortly after he founded the Cayman LGBTQ Foundation, Cayasso-Smith described the challenges he had faced as a young gay man coming to terms with his identity in a conservative island society.
“Back then, you didn’t want to come out to your friends, your parents or anyone, not knowing what would transpire. So I grew up trying to live a double life,” he said.
Despite this early anxiety, he had long accepted his identity and had received support from family and friends.
He set up the LGBTQ Foundation in a bid to ensure others could live the lives they wanted to live in their own country.
He said at the time, “I want to see us grow to where, if anyone needs anything, we are there to help them. And if we can’t help them, we find someone who can help them. We want the community to know that they can confide in us.”
‘Nolly’s’ legacy
He went on to organise Cayman’s first Pride Parade in July 2021, which has now become an annual event.
His sister Wendee described the parade as one of her brother’s “babies”, but one that he fought hard to establish.
“Doing that first Pride Parade was a fight, but it was well supported at the same time too. I guess there were a lot of people who believed and who would see with the same eyes. … Instead of the negative, he led on the positive responses that he received,” she said.
She said the family had become closer in the last months of her brother’s life, as he battled ALS.
“I just hope that people will continue to see him as a power path for the Cayman Islands, as the Nolly that was gifted and loved by so many people, that he made a difference within the Cayman Islands. I know as a family member, as a sister, that I am absolutely proud of him and all that he has done in the community, something that would go on to generations.”
She added that she hopes her beloved brother’s legacy can continue and that her family will work to take up his mantle to carry on the work he started.
She thanked the community for “all the love and support that they have given” her brother.
Remembering ‘Nolly’
Outside of his advocacy work, Cayasso-Smith was an entertainer and ran his events company, called Nolly Brown Entertainment.
In 2022, he was selected to appear in Britain’s Got Talent. He had previously hosted a local version of the show in Cayman.
Vicki Wheaton, who worked with Cayasso-Smith over the years on a number of events he’d organised, said, “Nolly was an unmistakable presence, performer, personality and trailblazer, who made a huge impact on the local community.”
She described how, in 2020, he’d asked her to emcee his ‘Dinner, Drinks & Drag’ fundraiser for the Cayman AIDS Foundation, “a riotous affair that was equal parts barely controlled chaos and joyful celebration”.
“The run-of-show was basically thrown out the window from the beginning, as impromptu musical acts and fashion runway competitions took to the stage,” she said.
“Attendees were jumping out of their seats and dancing by halfway through the night. An international drag queen would be in the spotlight, whilst Nolly was frantically transforming into his red satin clad alter-ego, Miss Delicious, behind the scenes.
“Those nights always took on a life of their own, in the absolute best way.”
She added, “When I look back at the wonderful events he organised, and the tireless work he did to make the first Gay Pride parade a reality, I realise what an utterly fearless person Nolly was.
“It takes someone like him to change people’s perceptions and be a voice for the vulnerable. He truly was a rare tropical bird.”
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