Open and Affirming PDF Print E-mail

We are an Open and Affirming church in the United Church of Christ

No matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here!

For more information about Open and Affirming (ONA) and the United Church of Christ (UCC) please see http://www.ucc.org/lgbt/ona.html.

Rev. Rick King, Rev. Luke Grobe and many members of First Congregation are part of the St. Vrain Valley Safe Schools Coalition. Join them on Facebook at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Vrain-Valley-Safe-Schools-Coalition/147382388625558.

Our church hosted a film and lunch event on Sept. 17, 2011 - "Out In The Silence." 

Millions of students return to their schools for the start of another school year. For most students the start of a new school year is full of excitement and anticipation. For many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students, however, the start of a new school year marks a time of dread. They will return to environments where they are tormented by their peers. Some schools will blame the bullying on the victim.

After school many LGBT studens will return to homes where they don't receive much-needed support from their families, and on Sundays many will attend churches that condemn them. The start of a new school year is indeed a trying time for LGBT students, and last year we saw several highly-publicized national news stories that told us about the tragic suicides of LGBT students in the U.S. that have been far too common for many years.
 
The St. Vrain Safe Schools Coalition - with support from Out Boulder, PFLAG of Boulder County, and One Colorado - hosted an event to address these concerns. The documentary "Out In The Silence" is about a teen who was bullied out of his high school when he revealed that he was gay. The documentary filmmakers Joe Wilson and Dean Hamer were in attendance to answer questions about the film and about how to mobilize toward making our communities safe and inviting for all. Following the film and Q&A session, were breakout sessions for those who wished to stay and find out more about how change can happen in our schools, churches and homes.