In the light, Fall 2000

              Fall 2000, Volume 3, No. 1
In The Light
Piedmont     Friends     for     Lesbian     and     Gay     Concerns
We Two Are Gathered
By Robert Mers
We, Joyce and Robert Mers, were considering marching in the Gay Pride Parade in Durham on
June 10, 2000, carrying the banner "Quakers for
Equality." We had marched with members of PFLGC
(Piedmont Friends for Lesbian and Gay Concerns)
with this banner in Pride 1999 in Greensboro. But
this time there was distance to travel and multiple conflicts. Robert got the word out to the Durham Friends
Meeting, a liberal unprogrammed congregation, and to
Robert and Joyce Mers represent PFLGC
in the Gay Pride Parade
their own congregation, New
Garden Friends Meeting. But
there was no direct response
to these announcements.
We decided to go to
Durham anyway to see what
happened. We were prepared
for anything, including
marching alone or just watching the parade. We noticed
see Gathered
page 5
Inside this Issue
Life at Guilford College
for the Bookstore Ladies
2
Book Review-
Pastor, 1 Am Gay
3
Meet the PFLGC Board
3
Reform Jews and Same-
Sex Marriage
4
Upcoming Events
6
Rick Frye—Family Values Personified
By Carol Cothern
Rick Frye, an identical twin,
was born with a severe hearing loss. Because of his
handicap, Rick was enrolled
at the North Carolina School
for the Deaf in Morganton, N.
C. at the age of five. Being
250 miles from home in
Goldsboro was a traumatic
experience for both Rick and
his family. Since he could not
hear, he did not learn to talk
until he went to Morganton.
His first word was "cookie."
He was a resident at the
School for the Deaf from the
ages of five to nine and was
permitted to go home only
once a month. At the age of
nine, with hearing aids but no
interpreter, Rick attended a
private school in Goldsboro
for a year and then went into
the public school system in
Goldsboro where his father
was    pastor    of   Goldsboro
Friends
Meeting.
Although
Rick had a
small
amount of
hearing in
his right
ear, he was
classified
Rick Frye with his
dog, Spike
see Values
page 2
Why I Support
Same-Sex Unions
By Willie Frye
Willie and Agnes Frye, with son
Rick (in middle—no Spike)
On Saturday, September 9, 2000, several hundred people gathered in Wait
Chapel on the campus of
Wake Forest University to
celebrate the union of Wendy
Scott and Susan Parker in a
brief, simple ceremony. I was
honored to be one of the six
ministers who participated.
The others were Richard
Groves, senior pastor of
Wake Forest Baptist Church,
Lynn Rhoades, assistant pastor of Wake Forest Baptist
Church, Stewart Ellis, pastor
of Trinity Presbyterian
Church in Winston-Salem,
Carlton Eversley, pastor of
Dellabrook Presbyterian
Church ( a black congregation), and Christine Oscar,
pastor of the Metropolitan
Community Church of
Greensboro.
The ceremony was a
landmark event as it was the
first on the campus of Wake
Forest University and is believed to be the first in any
Baptist Church in Winston-
Salem.    It was the culmina
tion of a long and sometimes
painful journey as the couple
waited first for a decision by
Wake Forest Baptist Church
and then by Wake Forest University, a process that took
three years. Some have wondered why Susan and Wendy
would endure such an ordeal.
Their answer was simple:
"This is our spiritual home."
Susan and Wendy are both
see Unions
page 5