Vendors
Page 6
Answers to puzzles on page 15
April Harrison
BY LEONORA KO
S T A FF W R IT E R
amily is im portant to April Harrison,
and she has had to make hard choices
for herself and h er loved ones.
April grew up in Utah and cared for h er
father until he died as a result of diabetic
complications. She was caring for h er ailing
m other until conditions made it unbearable
for April to stay in the state.
“I was bom and raised in the LDS
religion. My whole family is very, very
staunch M ormon,” April said.
“My soon-to-be wife is transgender.
I’m bi(sexual). I knew I was different
a long time back, and I’d been
hiding it from my family. It was
really hard because being raised in
th e M ormon religion, (my situation
was) a sin in th eir eyes.”
April came out to h er family with
mixed results. H er grandparents
disapproved, but h er m other’s
reaction was different
“I told my mom: I want
youto understand, I love
you to death, b u t this
is who I am. I’m in
love w ith this
person (who
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Street Roots •
transgender) and it’s not going to change. ...
My mom gave me h er blessing. I was
shocked. She said, ‘I want my daughter to
be happy. So if being with a woman makes
you happy, do it.’”
Last year, The Church of Jesus C hrist of
Latter-day Saints announced a new policy
th at could result in excommunication of
M ormons in same-sex marriages. In
addition, th e children of these marriages are
barred from joining th e Mormon church
until they turn 18 and only if they disavow
same-sex cohabitation or marriage.
The new policy is distressing to April for
more than one reason.
She sighed. “I also have two children who
are being raised by a male-to-male gay
couple in Utah.
“I had th e hardest
choice,” April said. “I had
, to give them up
I because I didn’t want
I to raise them in this
E f t life. I didn’t want
■ them going from
E hom e to home to
I f home. So it came
M a y 2 7 -J u n e 2, 2 0 1 6
down to giving them the life they deserved.
Those two m en may be gay, yes, but they
have been the best parents to my children.
“So if my children ever decide to be
baptized in the Mormon religion, they
would have to disown m e and their adoptive
parents'.”
April and h er fiancee came to Portland
for the tolerant atm osphere and support for
h er fiancee’s gender transition.
“We decided to come up here and make a
fresh start,” she said.
Before the couple left Utah, April had a
full-time job at Walmart and a place to live.
“I’ve done it before; I can do it again,”
April said. “I have faith in myself.
“B ut In the meantim e, I am a vendor
here at S treet Roots, which I love doing. I
love people. I’m a people person. I also love
volunteering for Sisters of the Road. Both
have given m e great work experience.
“My next step is trying to find a full-time
job so I can get us from the shelter and into
a stable place. And then gradually I w ant to
get back into college.”
April still feels tugs from home.
“I’m still a little homesick from tim e to
time,” she said. “We may have our
differences, but family is family. If
my m om o r my
grandparents
Bw
ever needed
N gE
| m e to
come
R
home, I
i
would be
W £
^ 1Cre i11 3
HB?*
■ ft?
heartbeat,
B ut this has
been a good
i| ' RR
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i p ' decision for my
life and Tina’s life,”
■ B P * P \A p ril said. “I think
I I P there was a reason that
? the man upstairs brought
us together.
“This is who I am. This is
PFw hat my life has been about, and
I w ant to make my life better.”
CORRECTION
Holistic • Self-Empowerment
Physical & Emotional Well-Being
Curiosity • Engagement »Choice
The photo caption for May 20 “Housing is
Health Gare” article incorrectly identified
the clinics in the pictures. The clinic
pictured are from the Downtown Clinic in
Nashville, Tenn. It is a Health Care for thé
Homeless, or HCH clinic.
o
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