061: Montgomery Family Part 2, where Tom and Wendy talk about their church experience dealing with this issue

Wendy and Tom Montgomery are devout Mormons from California who have five children. They were part of the movement of many LDS members who pounded on doors in 2008 to support the passage of Proposition 8, the state referendum that overturned the ruling that allowed same-sex couples to marry in California. They did so not knowing that their oldest son Jordan was gay and that he was struggling with suicidal ideation due to the position his church had taken that homosexual behavior was sinful. He was also worried his family would cut him off if he told them what he was struggling with. He was 13 when he came out to his parents.

This podcast interviews not only Wendy and Tom, but also Jordan (15) and his sister Susannah (14) who has become an advocate for him within the church and her community. They discuss the struggles of loving their faith and wanting to continue with their Mormon heritage while simultaneously going through many hurtful experiences as they try to educate themselves and others and stand in unity as a family structure. It is a wonderfully vulnerable and open window into the types of issues so many LDS families are struggling with as they grapple with the implications of our Mormon beliefs and their LGBT loved ones.

They have been recently interviewed by a wide variety of media outlets.

Oblivion (A Mormon Teen Speaks Out for Others, Part 1 of 2) by Susannah Montgomery on No More Strangers: LGBT Mormon Forum

Lifesaver (A Mormon Teen Speaks Out for Others, Part 2 of 2)

mormonsandgays.org

Family Acceptance Project: Families are Forever

NPR interview: Keeping the Faith, and Loving Your Gay Son

ABC interview: Mormon Mom Who Fought for Prop 8, Now Fights for Gay Son

Huffington Post did an article called Gay Mormons: Wendy and Tom Montgomery Lead Push to Change LDS Church Stance on Homosexuality.

Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons

Daniel Parkinson is the main moderator at Gay Mormon Stories

Many thanks to The Lower Lights for the beautiful bumper music and to James Estrada of Oak Street Audio for audio production of this podcast.

Thanks to Natasha Helfer Parker for sharing this interview from her Podcast Mormon Mental Health