Jeff Dutton & Kei Koizumi

​About Jeff

 

I was born and raised on a cattle farm in western Arkansas, near the "town" of Vandervoort (population 120). I attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and spent summers studying in Spain and Mexico and a year as a student at Waseda University in Tokyo.  I did my master's in international relations at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. Since 1998, I've both worked for the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce and been with my husband, Kei. Because of Kei and his family, I've learned to ski, which has allowed me to experience my true passion: snow.  Among my favorite DCFR memories are the snowy Saturday runs during the historic snowstorms of December 2009 and February 2010. 

 

 

About Kei

 

I’m from the Midwest. Columbus, Ohio, to be exact. I knew I didn't want to stay in Ohio, so I headed east the first chance I got and went to Boston University for college. I was hooked on the urban East Coast life so I moved down to Washington, DC, in 1993 to go to George Washington University for my masters. After that, I didn't want to leave, especially after I met Jeff in DC in 1997 and we started dating in 1998. Then we bought a place in Logan Circle and moved in together in 1999, so DC is home. I've been an out gay man since 1985 and I've been dancing to Madonna nce 1983 (those two are related, I'm sure). My favorite things? A few come to mind: a dance floor. A well-written play. A stroll through the neighborhood. Airplanes to faraway places. Jeff.

 

 

 

​Questions

 

 

Why do you like to run?

J: To relieve stress. After a really stressful day at work, I can go for a run on Tuesday or Thursday and forget all about it and feel much better about life. It’s also a way to stay nice and trim and good-looking - even as you grow older.

K: I run because Jeff runs! At least that’s why I started.

 

Who’s the better runner?

J: Kei looks better when he’s running but I run a lot faster. I’ve recently registered for my first ever marathon - in Cologne for the Gay Games this August.

K: I’m not running a marathon – ever. It’s too much. Maybe a half some day.

   

Does running together cause tensions?

J: No, because we don’t run together. We don’t go to hang out with each other. You’ll rarely see us sitting together over coffee at Starbucks, even though Kei may want to.

K: I do!

J: I go to hear the perspective of others - I’ve heard Kei’s perspective for nearly twelve years.

 

What is your favorite part about the club?

J: It’s an automatic way to reconnect with all my friends. If I stop running due to injury for a few weeks I really start to miss it.

 

Do you have a clear first memory of the club?

K: I remember trying to run in Rock Creek Park and making it to the Massachusetts Avenue bridge and turning back. It was painful - that was the first time I tried to run more than a mile.

 

How did you two meet?  

J: At the Washington DC pride festival. I saw Kei marching with the ‘Asians and Friends’ group. I found their group booth, and asked them if they had any Japanese members - I figured he looked Japanese. We had lunch soon after but he was not interested me then - he thought I was still pretty fresh off the farm!

 

What is your favorite distance to race?       

K: 10k. But I don’t like the race environment of getting up early and being in a pack of people and feeling obligated to do the entire distance.

J: Half marathon. Because I can mess up for a mile or two and make up for it later on. I adore racing. I love the feeling of finishing a race and reflecting on it with my fellow Front Runners.

 

What other sports do you do?

K: Swimming, skiing and biking. I like swimming the most. It’s less painful for me than running and I’m better at it.

J: I feel about swimming the way Kei feels about running. Swimming is painful but I do it because it’s good cross-training and a good way to stay trim.

 

How do you feel about becoming DCFR’s first First Couple?

J: Anti-climactic. We’ve been together for nearly twelve years. We had a commitment ceremony in August 2002 so the ceremonial and celebratory part has already taken place.

K: It’s important because it’s the last piece of legal paper we’re finally able to get.

 

Will, Grace, Jack or Karen – who are you?

J: Karen because I love to drink vodka!

K: Will - by process of elimination. I don’t drink like Karen, I’m not as neurotic as Grace, and I’m not as flighty as Jack.

 

Jeff, can you confirm you are a Weather Channel addict. Kei, how do you cope with being a Weather Channel widow? 

J: Yes I can confirm. I watch the weather channel more than any other. I’m obsessed with snow. I kept weather records back on the farm in Arkansas. I felt people were exaggerating their memories of significant weather events and I wanted to have the data to settle arguments.

K: I’ve stopped listening to maybe 60% of Jeff’s weather talk.

J: I often criticize Kei’s choice of attire. I’ve kept him dry on more than one occasion. Because, as Benjamin Franklin said, some are weather wise and some are otherwise.

 

As U.S. federal government workers, do you feel a responsibility to speak out on LGBT issues?

K: There are still too few openly LGBT people in the federal government and it’s important to have people working to make a change. I’m still trying to figure out the best way to make a difference.

J: From 2001 to 2005 I was co-chair of the Commerce Department LGBT group. The Bush administration prohibited the Office of Civil Rights from sponsoring gay and lesbian pride events. We filed a formal complaint but we lost. With the Obama administration, things have changed - our Office of Civil Rights sponsored a pride event in July.

 

What is your most cherished memory of the club?  

J: The Cherry Blossom in 2008 when I ran on a team with Eric and Craig Sonnenschein. I ran by far the fastest 10-mile time I will ever run because Craig and I were pushing each other. It was so euphoric afterwards.

K: The annual party in 2008. I got a running certificate for the first time, I could review the year with my fellow Front Runners, and I could socialize without actually running. 

 

What advice would you give to new people joining?  

J: Do the race circuit. It’s not as hard as it seems and is very fulfilling.

K: Come to Front Runners and hang out at the back of the pack with me! Then you’ll get faster and be running with Jeff in no time.

 

  

Interview by Brian Beary, Design by Marcel Acosta

April 2010