He spent 10 days there, sitting at Studds' bedside and making complicated medical decisions about his care until the day Studds died.

NPR: Looming Legal Fight Clouds Gay Marriage Milestone

When Dean Hara married his longtime partner, former Massachusetts Rep. Gerry Studds, he wasn't thinking about the rights, benefits and protections of marriage that advocates always talk about.

NPR: Looming Legal Fight Clouds Gay Marriage Milestone

Dan Crane (R-IL) and Gerry Studds (D-MA) were revealed in 1983 to have had sexual relationships with teenage congressional pages, they were censured by the full House.

NPR: Will Mark Foley End the GOP Reign?

Studds, a liberal Democrat who was involved with an underage male, was defiant in his actions, refused to apologize, and repeatedly was re-elected in his liberal district until he retired in 1996.

NPR: Will Mark Foley End the GOP Reign?

But if Hara got to experience the benefits of gay marriage, he also got to see its limitations when he applied to the federal government for survivor benefits such as health insurance, Social Security and Studds' pension.

NPR: Looming Legal Fight Clouds Gay Marriage Milestone