Kirk Myers-Hill

Kirk D. Myers-Hill wrote his own obituary, but not in the metaphorical sense. Rather, he lived what he believed—so descriptions like friend, listening ear, warrior, uncle, brother and son were not mere words. In fact, what mattered most to Kirk were those relation words; and none more so defines him than “son.” Comically, Kirk would even tell people: “I was Born to Irene H. Trigg-Myers Only!” to be sure that she (and God) alone got the credit for the majestic man he would become.

Kirk singled out his Mama for a reason; and no account of his legacy, his impact, and his voice would make sense unless Irene H. Trigg-Myers was properly fixed in the narrative. Interestingly, however, June 25, 1968 should not be where anyone starts their story. It’s actually 2008.

In 2008, Kirk was an independent consultant. He had a contract as an ATP Training Lead. He had a contract as a Lead Training Medicare Specialist. He also was doing consulting as well as training for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) out of Atlanta. You would think that any mother would be proud to have a son with multiple streams of income and a work ethic that never quit! But Mama Myers had a problem with how he was spending his time because you see Kirk had founded AP, Inc. three years prior back in 2005. So, three years later he was still depending on other people paying him instead of himself; and, calling him to task, she challenged her son to make a choice—either he was the founder of Abounding Prosperity, Inc. and pursuing his calling from God or he wasn’t. If it were not so cheesy, the story could end there as “the rest is history!”

A 1986 graduate of Dallas ISD’s Business Magnet, Irene’s son is most known for his fearlessness in the face of hatred, ignorance, and bigotry. The very existence of his go-to agency, Abounding Prosperity, Inc. evidences this fight. With its mission to: provide services that address health, social and economic disparities among Black Americans with a particular emphasis on gay & bisexual men, cisgender women, transgender women, and their families,” Kirk’s day-to-day life crossed paths with elected officials, millionaire developers, unsheltered and/or addicted persons, PhDs, business owners, single fathers, formerly incarcerated/ex-offenders, preachers and everyone in between. If you read his resume backward, i.e. starting with the latest date and moving forward in time, you see that the first page gives 2005 as the start date for Abounding Prosperity, Inc. with an unbelievable list of the agency’s achievements. What is startingly and at first sight maybe even unbelievable is the entry:

1997-1998 Mark Stiles Prison Unit Beaumont, Texas Peer Educator Provided HIV prevention information to incarcerated men.

Irene’s son had spent one year as the “property” of the State of Texas. While he was there, he did what made Kirk so fierce and so favored—he forgot about his circumstances and committed himself to addressing the needs.

Irene’s son was the master of the win-win, learning how to live well by serving well. Herein lies the secret of his success, a compassion and commitment that always centered on the good which his circumstances had positioned him to do. Kirk’s good deeds made it possible for him to reject the cave of shame that most men would find protective. He was not like most men, in other words. Irene’s son did not hide his HIV status or the fact that he had been imprisoned. Irene’s son turned what most men would have hidden into jumping off points for his greatest. Irene’s son lived before all his truth that “no weapon,” not even HIV or prison would prosper; and his choices proved that the condemnation would come from his greatness not from their judgements (Isaiah 54:17)

Irene’s son dedicated his every waking moment to passing on the fearlessness that AP, Inc. embodies. He hired staff like Ms. Tamara Stephney and others who put the requisite “skin in the game” to drive systemic changes that could be measured by positive legislative policies, academic and scientific research, and community as well as public health initiatives. A tireless and outspoken influencer, one quintessential example of Kirk’s advocacy comes from 2012 when he opted to testify during the Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee (AVDAC) hearings for the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. During that meeting, Kirk provided expert testimony on behalf of Gilead Sciences Inc. about the benefits of Pre­Exposure Prophylaxis or “PrEP” which uses the drug TRUVADA (emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV-1 infection. This partnership resulted in Abounding Prosperity Inc. receiving one of the first community education grants from Gilead Sciences to support increased awareness and utilization of PrEP. The project was overseen by Mr. Myers-Hill and was evaluated by Kimberly Parker, PhD; thus, producing data that allowed Dr. Parker to successfully apply for additional resources to support a subsequent project targeting Black women; and, over the last few years, Kirk continued to inform the national research, advocacy, and service delivery system's agenda as a PrEP Advisory Board member for Gilead Sciences, AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition's (AV AC) PxROAR Program. Kirk’s local, regional, and national efforts to end HIV within the Black community ultimately led to the development of a Texas State-wide plan to increase PrEP awareness, literacy, feasibility, and utilization.

Advocating the use of PrEP which meant partnership and trust with clinical trials conducted by a global pharmaceutical company confirmed Kirk as a maverick, contradicting a historical propensity within communities of color to avoid participating in scientific research. A maverick whose mother encouraged him to see good futures beyond bad circumstances, Kirk would spend the following ten years from his FDA 2012 testimony to 2022, building the infrastructure of AP, Inc., acquiring the best talent, and expanding the capacity of the agency by acquiring a fleet of service vehicles, a pharmacy and several other commercial as well as residential/multi-use properties.

Over the course of those ten (10) years, he also made specific social and cultural investments. He was most proud to serve as the Business Advisor for Dallas Southern Pride, Dallas' Official Black Gay Pride Event and as the founder of the Black and Latinx Ball/House and Pageant (B/HAP) Communities Leadership and Health Disparities Conference, Juneteenth Festival, and other Black Gay Pride Events, educational campaigns, capacity building and technical assistance trainings which all targeted YOUNG men who have sex with men (YMSM) to ensure that his footprint would position generations to come to avoid having to reinvent the wheel as far as dismantling disparities and ensuring equity are concerned when it comes to gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals as well as their identified families.

Summarily, Kirk’s professional accomplishments cannot be pulled apart from his public persona. The following triumphs are testimony to that fact:

* His founding agency, i.e. Abounding Prosperity, houses the only transgender health center in the South that services Black and Latinx trans people;

* Founding Board member for the Muhlaysia Booker Foundation

* John Beckwith Business Award

* Unveiled first "All Black Lives Matter" crosswalks in the country, throughout South Dallas

* Infused almost $10 million dollars into the Dallas economy annually as President of Dallas Southern Pride

* Grand Marshall of 2022 Dallas Pride

* LGBTQ+ Heroes of Texas Playing Cards Deck Representative

* Albert Santana Humanitarian Award, People of Color in Crisis

* Ball/House & Pageant (B/HAP) Activism Award, B/HAP Communities Health Disparities and Leadership Conference

* Bayard Rustin Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letter, Greatest Ball on Earth

* Champion of Change Award, IMPACT Washington, DC

* Community Legend Award, Anthony L. Jordan Health Center

* Dallas Leadership Award, Mayor Pro Tem Adam Medrano

* Heritage Legacy Award for Outstanding Career Achievement, New York City Black Pride

* Jon Michael Harrington Humanitarian Award, Gay Men's Health Crisis House of Latex Project

* Kiyoshi Kuromiya Award for Prevention, AIDS Education Committee at Philadelphia FIGHT

* Kwame Ferragamo Banks Lifetime Achievement Award, COLOURS Organization, Inc.

* Ronald T. Ramashala Memorial Award for Community Development and Consumer Advocacy, Lincoln University

* Unsung Heroes of HIV, United States Conference on AIDS

* Widely published with numerous abstracts, papers, and commentaries, many related to HIV infection and prevention.

On Thursday, April 13, 2023 from 5-8 PM, visitors gathered at The Hall of State of Fair Park to pay their last respects to Irene’s son. While a few might be surprised that he would lie in state at such a prestigious location, usually reserved from elected officials. Irene’s son had earned that honor.

Kirk’s final stroke of genius on the canvas of his life well lived was for his Mama. In September 2022, he commissioned Rev. Dr. LaTrese Adkins, the first among several PhDs who he had hired, to create a compelling narrative about his mother’s profound career as an equity champion on behalf of persons experiencing housing insecurities. Collaborating with Rev. Dr. Adkins, Kirk spearheaded the renaming of Kimble Park in South Dallas to the Irene H. Trigg-Myers Prosperity Park to create generational green spaces less than a mile from the founding agency, its pharmacy and other properties. So during the last year of his life on this side, he was able to drive through the ‘hood and literally look upon not only the greatness from his own labors, but maybe for Kirk the GREATEST of all he had seen in his life—the sign that his mother’s love had made him that great man who feared no evil, no haters, no weapons, and who had learned that being a Child of God meant to “walk in the Light” all the while constantly transcending circumstances which most other men would have used as excuses to hide instead of shine.

Kirk met the love of his life, Ricky Hill and on Friday, October 22, 2021, at half after six o'clock in the evening, they became Kirk and Ricky Myers-Hill.

Yes, Kirk D. Myers-Hill himself wrote this obituary. In his own words…..

Shine on Star Boy! Shine On!

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On Tuesday, April 04, 2023, Kirk D. Myers-Hill, star shined bright as he entered into his eternal home, reuniting with his champion, Mother Irene H. Trigg-Myers.

He is survived by husband, Ricky Myers-Hill; siblings, Michael Myers (Renita), Kenneth Myers, Kelvin Myers (Brandy), and Michelle Myers-Stephens (Andrew); nephews, Michael Nicholson (Vanessa), Donielle Nicholson (Morningstar), Kyron Myers (Lauren), Kyle Myers (Kristen) and Xavier Myers; five great nephews and two great nieces; one great aunt, Virginia McIntosh; first cousin, Jason Trigg (Kenyatta); mother-in-law, Regina Jefferson-Hill; sister-in-law, Haji Hill; and a large extended family. Kirk’s surviving adopted family members

include, Joe “Joe-REE” Glover, Darwin Thompson, Damon Johnson, Ahmad Goree, Darrin Wayne Robertson and Marcus Paris along with a host of other adopted family members.

Lastly, Kirk leaves behind to further the AP, Inc. legacy his “work wife,” Ms. Tamara Stephney, his confidante, friend, and muse who worked closely with him to build an organizational empire in the South Dallas community, one block at a time.