Coming out: Oct. 11 is national day for gays, lesbians to go public

'I realized I needed to do some soul-searching,' recalls Nicole Kent of Oceanside, who eventually 'came out' as a lesbian. Here she is with her daughter Marleigh, 3 months. <br><small><B>BILL WECHTER </B>Staff Photographer</small> <br><A HREF="https://secure.townnews.com/nctimes.com/forms/photo_services/linkorder.php?des= BILL WECHTER Staff Photographer / ‘I realized I needed to do some soul-searching,’ recalls Nicole Kent of Oceanside, who eventually ‘came out’ as a lesbian. Here she is with her daughter Marleigh, 3 months." target="new">Order a copy of this photo</A> <!— <br><A HREF="XXXXXXXXXXXXXX">More of this story</A> —> <br> <A HREF="http://www.nctimes.com/news/photogallery/" target="new">Visit our Photo Gallery</A> <br> <hr width="250">