Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion Council

Charles A. | he/they

Embracing my identity as a queer Black Filipino, I've journeyed from self-doubt due to colonial mentality to healing through grace and reconnecting with my roots. Raised by a resilient immigrant mother facing abuse, my coming out resulted in experiencing homelessness. These trials deepened my insight into the moral complexities and the impact of tough choices on loved ones. I dedicated my early career to supporting HIV-impacted, resource-deprived communities, transitioning from volunteer work to state-level advocacy before changing my path due to burnout. Today, I'm a Prosci-certified change practitioner within the financial industry; I focus on continuous improvement cultures and lean management.

I want to build bridges between queer people of Abrahamic faiths and have my faith unlearn dominance. Believing in kindness towards oneself as a foundation for extending love to others, I champion love and fierce resilience for a world where we embody the dynamic goodness our faith calls us.

Lindsey Holt | he/she/they

Lindsey enjoys discovering ways to make a harmony out of differences among diverse groups of people. Pulling from personal experience as well as professional experience as a DEI consultant, Lindsey’s core desire for every new engagement is fostering belonging. They believe that creating communities of belonging is a critical part of meaningful relationship, and a keystone of God’s call for the Church. Because of this, Lindsey approaches every idea with an eye towards who is being overlooked and seeks to create space for everyone to share their own experiences. On occasion, Lindsey also enjoys speaking and writing on the intersection of faith and LGBTQ experience.

Morgan Hummel | she/her

Morgan is located in Phoenix where she loves spending time with her wife, child and family. On the weekends, you can find her watching a soccer game or trying to find a new coffee shop.

She’s a former pastor and currently a DEI training & design specialist with a few ventures in between. She also has her graduate degree in Sociology with an emphasis in education.

Above all, she tries to keep life about kindness, love and creativity. We are all human by birth, and the rest is history.

Lin Melone | she/her

Lin Melone (she/her) has been a member of the Side B community for more than a decade, and has spoken at conferences such as Revoice and E3 as well as several previous Q Christian conferences. Lin participated in Q Christian's Side B Advisory and currently serves on the EDI Council. After a long career as a teacher, Lin currently works in nonprofit administration and is part of the preaching-teaching team at Church of the Sojourners in San Francisco, an intentional Christian community. She identifies as a cis gay female on the asexual spectrum (gray/demi) with a Side B theological perspective, and has an adult son from a previous mixed-orientation marriage. Lin also worked in children's ministry and Christian education for many years, and is the author of the chapter "Welcoming Rainbow Kids" in _Faith Forward: A Dialogue on Children, Youth and a New Kind of Christianity_ (Czinos and Bray, eds., Wood Lake Publishing, 2013)

Cassandra Whisenant | she/her

Cassandra Whisenant (she/her) is an English doctoral student at West Virginia University working at the intersection of Latinx identity, gender, and adolescence. A military brat from Harpers Ferry, WV, she grew up all over the world- from Houston, TX, to Budapest, Hungary, to rural Alice Springs, Australia.

Cassandra is a post-homeschool exvangelical who still embraces Veggie Tales as high culture. With a bachelor’s in journalism and a master’s in children’s literature, Cassandra believes in the power of education. In her free time, she volunteers at The Trevor Project, travels, drinks black coffee, and burns baked goods made from box mix.

Matthew White | he/him

Matthew White (he/him) is an advocate, author, and facilitator dedicated to teaching self-liberation and leading with kindness. For over a decade, he has trained, organized, facilitated, and coached unions, change organizations, and individuals to bring equity and transformation to their spaces. Matthew is the author of “The Owl Who Didn’t Who,” a children’s book focusing on the power of understanding our “why” and illustrating his lessons learned from community organizing. Matthew is an Education Coordinator for AFSCME, focusing on creating pathways for education, equity, and engagement for union members across the United States. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Public Administration and minored in music at the University of La Verne, attended the Savannah College of Art and Design for his Masters in Arts Administration, and is now pursuing a Doctorate in Ministry from the Pacific School of Religion.

Shani Wilson | she/her

Shani Wilson is a Physician Associate with 10 years of internal medicine experience, specializing in LGBTQ+ health and addiction medicine. Community activism and engagement have been especially important to Shani; she is passionate about giving a voice to the underserved people. She uses her experiences working in medicine to lecture and teach on the intersectionality of social justice and medicine, which she uses in her everyday life to serve the people of the 46th ward of Chicago as their Public Safety Director. She recently served as Rochester Black Pride's inaugural Board Vice President and continues to put her skills to use advocating for Physician Associates as the current President of the LBGT PA Caucus, one of the oldest Caucuses in the Physician Associate profession.

Are you looking to apply to be on the EDI Council or to see what other volunteer opportunities are available? Click the link to see more!