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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 6, 2004)
m TTîTIÏÏŒŒTlnewsbriefs Continued from P age 1 1 ship, which honors the early Portland PFLAG activist and mother of the late Lady Elaine Pea cock and Misty Waters. Board members of Port land PFLAG and the scholarships will he donat ing extra items to help make the weekend event a huge success for all the charities. For more information call 503-286-1752. P ortland S tudent R eceives S cholarship ortlander Matthew Vail is among the 25 students who were announced July 13 as 2004 Point Scholars. The Point Foundation awards the multiyear schol arships each year to support academic achievement in higher education among disenfranchised queer youth who have been marginal ized, abandoned or rejected by their families because of Matthew Vail their sexual orientation or gender identity and unable to find support and community. The students must demonstrate leadership, scholastic achievement and a pas sion for social change. The average scholarship is $14,000. More than $500,000 will he awarded this year. Vail was horn and raised in Portland with his identical twin, who is heterosexual. While his brother’s girlfriend attends family events, he says he is not allowed to have even a gay friend come over to the house. “List year, my brother invited his girlfriend to spend Christmas Eve with my family,” Vail said. “Everyone was curious about the girl who had made my brother so happy. I was also in love, but great care was taken to never mention his name.” Despite a less-than-desirable family situa tion, Vail is a high achiever academically, earn ing a membership in the National Honor Soci ety and graduating from high schixil with per fect grades after spending three years on the honor roll. He is also the co-founder and presi dent of his schixil’s Gay Straight Alliance. He is attending Sarah Lawrence College to work in public education and stKial services. Tlie foundation selects a range of students who are racially, ethnically, geographically and acade mically diverse. They are matched with mentors from the professional world who serve as positive role rmxJels and provide personal support, en suring that scholars build a foundation of leader ship skills they can use throughout their lives. “ Because of homophobia and transphobia in their hometowns, and often within their own families, Point Scholars lack access to tradition al sources of college funding. The Point Foun dation acts as a lifeline for outstanding LG BT students and is the only organization that covers the cost of tuition, txxiks, supplies, room and hoard, transportation and living expenses in a substantial manner,” executive director Vance Lancaster said. Q ueer A dventists M eet in O regon S eventh-day Adventist Kinship Internation al, a support organization for queer members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, will hold its 25th annual conference from Aug. 15 to 22 at the Menucha Retreat and Conference Center in Corbett, 20 miles outside Portland. It is the fifth time the event has been held at this venue. “While planning where to celebrate our 25th gathering, we soon decided to return to Ore gon,” said kinship president Bob Bouchard of New York City. “Oregon has been one of our favorite locations, and we are excited to return to celebrate this anniversary." The conference, which the kinship tradi tionally calls “kampmeeting,” is mcxJeled after weeklong, regional retreats the church has held for its members since the mid-1800s. For many years the gatherings were held in rural areas under large tents with church members camping outdoors; the event soon became known as “campmeeting.” Kinship members have gathered annually since 1980 throughout the United States, Cana da and Europe. In addition to Christian faith and spirituality, guest speakers discuss health, well-being, civil rights and other topics. Music also plays an important role throughout the week, especially during the closing events. Among this year’s speakers, Ron Oden will speak Aug. 20 about his journey as a black gay man with Adventist roots. Oden, who in 2003 was elected mayor of Palm Springs, Calif., is a graduate of Oakwocxl College, an Adventist lib eral arts school in Huntsville, Ala., where he studied to he a minister. He also holds master’s degrees in theology and ethics studies with post graduate courses in marriage, family and child counseling. Kinship members attend the conference for various reasons, including spiritual rejuvena tion, support in coming out to their families and comradeship with others who share a similar experience of growing up in the church and then realizing they are gay. “ Kinship provides a safe and supportive space for our members who need us for various rea sons,” Bouchard said. “We have members who are very interested in creat ing change within our church and others who feel t(x> hurt by their church’s rejection to remain very connected. When we all get together, though, it’s very clear we’re a supportive fam ily that share cultural and spiritual ties to Adventism.” Ron Oden The church, like other conservative Christ ian denominations, believes homosexuality is immoral. This creates a conflict for kinship members, who often feel hurt and betrayed by their church’s rejection yet value Adventist beliefs and their history with the church. Injured? ...Call me No Fee Unless You Recover Hala Gores, P.C. 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Portland \ Salem \ Vancouver W e s t L inn 19343 Willamette Drive • C L A C K A M A S 1631 7 S E 82nd Drive T ig a r d 13500 SW Pacific Hwy B e a v er t o n 14292 S W Alien Bivd 8 2 nd A v E N E 3150 NE 82nd Ave N ewspaper S potlights “ E x *G ay ” M inistry Compiled by JlM R a d o s t a • Auto & Motorcyle Accidents • Bicycle & Pedestrian Accidents • Medical Malpractice • Wrongful Death • Defective Products • Insurance Claims Free Consultation To register call 866-732-5677, e-mail office@sdakinship.org or visit sdakinship.org. he July 28 cover story in Willamette Week spotlighted Portland Fellowship, an “ex- gay" ministry that attempts to “cure” 50 queers annually through its two-year "reparative” ther apy program. The article focused on ministry assistant Drew Berryessa, a 27-year-old who believes a weak father figure kept him from learning to play sports and relate with other boys. “Instead, he bonded with girls and gossiped with them about TV shows and school,” the report said. Berryessa married a woman six months ago. Fellowship executive director Jason Thompson refused to detail the ministry’s success rates, claiming that’s not the point. “Portland Fellowship exists to draw people into a closer relationship with God,” he said. “A byproduct is that you regain the heterosexual orientation." j n Proudly serv ing our community since 1989 in personal injury claims including: 'D avid W. O wens • • • • (503) (503) (503) (503) (503) 635-3115 657-9225 670-9707 641-9151 546 1044 mmmm P. 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