Pride in the Puplit
West End Church is excited to be continuing in our long-held commitment to the LGBTQI community and celebrating Pride Month this June.
Join us for Pride in the Pulpit every Sunday as we worship with guest preachers:
6/6 — Rev. Stan Sloan
6/13 — Rev. Jennifer Aull
6/20 — Rev. Ashley DeTar Birt
On Thursday, June 24th: Pride Talent Show at 7:00pm
West End’s LGBTQ+ adults are invited to share in a virtual salon. Whether it’s a joke, anecdote or showtune we invite you to bring a talent to share.
On Pride Sunday, 6/27, join our 2nd (virtual) Annual Pride Contest
Check back for details, links and more programming on our calendar.
Guest Preacher, June 6
The Rev. Stan J. Sloan
The Reverend Stan J. Sloan began serving as the Managing Director of Collegiate Church of New York in December of 2020, having most recently served as the Senior Strategist for Auburn Seminary, a position that he still holds part-time. Prior to his time at Auburn and Collegiate, Sloan served as the CEO of Family Equality Council, the nation’s organization for LGBTQ families and for those who want to form families, including LGBTQ youth in the child welfare system who need parents. During Sloan’s tenure at Family Equality Council the organization has more than doubled in revenue and program offerings.
Prior to his work at Family Equality Council, Sloan was the longest-serving CEO in the history of Chicago House, a homeless service organization for LGBTQ. During his time at Chicago House, the organization pioneered the TransLife Center, which at the time of its opening in 2018 provided the nation’s most comprehensive services for the Transgender community. With national partners at the UCLA Williams Institute, the Center for American Progress in Washington DC and the Vaid Group in NYC, Sloan helped to found the LGBTQ Poverty Collaborative to work on poverty issues affecting those in the LGBtQ Community. Together, the partners led both US Congressional Briefings and a US Treasury Summit of the US Executive Agencies on the subject of LGBTQ Economic Disparity.
Stan is also an Episcopal priest and currently serves on several Boards including Union Theological in New York City. For over ten years Stan served as the Chaplain of St. Gregory’s Episcopal School, an inner-city school serving K-8 for which he was also a board member. In 2006, he was presented with the Human Relations Award by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations for his work in the LGBT, homeless, and religious communities. In 2010 he was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. In 2019 Sloan was named as one of the Out 100 LGBTQ leaders in the nation by Out Magazine, and was named as one of the Pride Power 100 of the State of New York by City and State New York.
New to the New York City area in 2016, Sloan now splits his time between New York City and El Paso, Texas, where his husband, Jan Lopes, is completing his cardiology fellowship.
Guest Preacher, June 13
The Rev. Jennifer Aull
Rev. Jennifer Aull serves as the minister for Congregational Care at the Greenpoint Reformed Church in Brooklyn. Her previous pastoral work was as a hospice chaplain. Jennifer is the owner of a private practice, North Brooklyn Marriage and Family Therapy, which serves both individuals and couples.
She holds a degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Hofstra University. She holds two other degrees, an BA in English Literature from San Francisco State University, as well as a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary. She is also an AASECT certified sex therapist.
She lives wife her wife, Rev. Ann Kansfield and their two children John, 12, and Grace, 10, in Hell’s Kitchen.
Guest Preacher, June 20
The Rev. Ashley DeTar Birt
Rev. Ashley DeTar Birt is the Program Coordinator for Beloved Arise and an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She obtained her Masters of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary, an MA in Theater Arts from the University of Pittsburgh, and a BA in Creative Writing from Carnegie Mellon University.
During her time at Union Theological Seminary, she received the Malcolm Boyd Veritas Award which recognizes promise for the work of social justice on behalf of the LGBTQ community. She was named one of 2016's New Faces of Ministry through The Center for Faith and Service. An outspoken advocate for youth ministry and social justice, Ashley serves as the Co-Moderator of the Board of Directors for More Light Presbyterians and has written for the NEXT Church blog, Believe Out Loud, and the Progressive Youth Ministry Blog on Patheos. She lives in the Bronx, NY with her wife, Rev. Emily DeTar Birt, on Munsee Lenape land.
