Pre-event interviews contact: Laura Barnes Coney 925-837-6944 or email revlaurabc@earthlink.net
10th Annual Witness Our Welcome (WOW) Community Event in Danville
Rebel Presbyterian Pastor to Be Honored for Support of Marriage Equality
(As seen in NY Times, LA Times, Huffington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, KGO-TV)
Find out what's happening in Danvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Rev. Jane Spahr, San Francisco, drew national media attention last year when her denomination, the Presbyterian Church USA put her on trial for officiating 16 weddings of same-sex couples. The marriage ceremonies took place in 2008 when same-sex marriages were legal in California. Spahr was found guilty Aug, 27, 2010 of misconduct by a regional commission of the Presbyterian Church USA in Napa. The commission did not revoke her ordination but censured her with a rebuke. Sphar will receive the WOW Spirit Award for her work on education and embodying marriage equality for the LGBTQ Community.
Spahr has continued to officiate at marriage ceremonies in New York where same sex marriage is now legal despite her reprimand from the church.
Find out what's happening in Danvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Maverick Mormon Fighting Religious Bigotry Toward Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, and Transgender People to Speak!
(As seen on Oprah, On the Road with Charls Kuralt, Good Morning America, and in People Magazine)
Keynote Speaker: Carol Lynn Pearson, devout Mormon, author, actress, activist, and Walnut Creek resident will be the keynote speaker the annual Witness Our Welcome event in Danville, Saturday, October 15.
Pearson has written more than 40 works including her book “Goodbye, I Love You (About her life with her gay husband). In 2006 Pearson published her book “No More Goodbyes” written to help people who have been part of broken marriages and broken families as a result of gays and lesbians in the church being pressured to marry a members of the opposite sex.
Pearson married her husband Gerald Neils Pearson in 1966. During their engagement Gerald expressed his attraction to men but they thought their faith would change his feelings toward the same gender. After 12 years the Mormon couple but remained friends. When Gerald was diagnosed with AIDS in 1984 Carol Lynn welcomed him back into her home, caring for him until his passing. www.clpearson.com
Both women will speak at Witness Our Welcome, an interfaith/community building event. This 10th annual event takes place to let individuals in the LGBTQ community and their straight supporters know that there are people of faith who welcome them with open arms.
This year’s theme is “Baby You Were Born This Way.”
When: Saturday, October 15, 2011 at 4:00 PM
Where: Beth Chaim Congregation, 1800 Holbrook Dr., Danville, CA
Admission: FREE TO THE PUBLIC (Reception to follow!)
Donations will be collected to benefit Gender Spectrum, a non-profit Gender Spectrum which provides education, training and support to help create a gender sensitive and inclusive environment for all children and teens. Gender Spectrum is especially geared toward supporting the struggles of transgender and intersex youth.
