By Karen Ocamb

Note: This is the first of a two-part interview with and story on Lynn Cothren, Coretta Scott King's openly gay personal assistant for 23 years. Part one deals with Cothren's meeting with Mrs. King before her death and his attendance at the funeral. Part two will look at their time together, Cothren's relationship with the rest of the King family, and an interview with poet Maya Angelou, who also calls Cothren her "son."

The nation lost a legend with the passing of Coretta Scott King, but Lynn Cothren lost a woman who called him "son." The exquisite pain illuminated his strained face as he fought back the tears and escorted poet Maya Angelou to her place on the stage during the Feb. 8 funeral in the Lithonia, Ga., New Birth Missionary Baptist Church.

"Ten thousand people. And it was a long day. And it was a long journey to get to that day," Cothren told IN Los Angeles magazine a few days later from his administration offices at Girl Scouts of the USA in New York. Cothren had been called back to Atlanta when it was clear that Mrs. King was not doing well. Cothren, 42, who has been openly gay since high school, had been Mrs. King's personal assistant for 23 years, and currently lives in New York with his partner of two years, Elenton Williams, 38.

"It was a very hard day; I lost my best friend. Over the past year, I'd left and moved to New York and I've working for the Girl Scouts over the past year. Mrs. King and I were together about three weeks ago, and I knew then that that would be the last time that I saw her. I knew about the ovarian cancer. I knew that her time was limited. She gave me a great gift -- I was working on a project for her and [she] just said, 'Thank you, Lynn. Thank you,' and she affectionately put her hand under my chin and I had her other hand and she told me she loved me. And then she said, 'I'm proud of you, Lynn.' Mrs. King had had a stroke and her talking was very limited and it was very hard to get anything out. And as I walked out of the room, I knew it was the last time.

"And the night before, she had given me a great gift. Security had come and gotten me for her last public appearance. I was at my post -- standing outside, waiting on her and when they pulled up and she saw me standing there, she just turned her head and she got real bright. The minute they got her in her wheelchair, she grabbed hold of me and didn't want to let go. I walked her backstage and I gave her the same pep talk I did whether it was at HRC (Human Rights Campaign) or all these other events over the years -- I said now make sure you don't frown and smile and walk out there and stand in the middle before you go to the podium -- giving her last minute little instructions: 'You go break a leg, now.' Of course I told her I loved her. I said, 'You look beautiful.' It was very hard for her to do that, but it was important for her to say thank you to everyone. Everybody there, of course, was wanting to thank her. But I think in her mind, as giving as she is, she wanted to give us something.

"And after it was all over with, I was with my partner and we were in the ballroom. And they had planned to take her and I had planned to see her the next day. But she stopped the show, I understand. The person in the hotel said, 'They've got 25 people in security around her and got her coat on her and back in the wheelchair' and she said, 'No!' No! Get Lynn.' So that gave me another great gift. She stopped the whole show. She wasn't going to leave until she said goodbye to me. I said, 'These people are here to take care of you. I've made sure everything is worked out.' She had met Elenton and I said, 'He takes good care of me like these people take good care of you.' She just nodded at Elenton, and he had an opportunity to say thank you and how proud he was of her.

"And you know, she's gone now, and that was a very hard day because of memories and good times and knowing her pain. Knowing she's with her beloved Martin -- when she spoke of him, her eyes would twinkle and her voice would kind of go up an octave like she just hung up the phone with him. You know I'm happy about that. But I am going to miss my friend. It was such a unique and special relationship. My family -- particularly my mother -- has called me every day to make sure I'm OK. I didn't understand, until probably the day of the funeral, why she had been checking on me since the day Mrs. King passed. She's still continuing to call me. It's a great loss. I know it's a great loss to the world and the country because she was such a great advocate for everyone's rights -- not just gay and lesbian, but for the rights of all human beings. She was for health care for all Americans -- and that's important for gays and lesbians, particularly those who are suffering from breast cancer and HIV. But personally, it's a great loss. I miss my friend and one of my greatest inspirations -- my s/hero."