The Collective
We seek not to be an organization or a corporation but an interconnected (and interdependent!) collective yearning for God's Kingdom, on earth as it is in heaven, and called to particular ministry and outreach around LGBTQ issues. As such, we see ourselves as an inclusive group and invite any who resonate with our mission to identify as “part of the Sanctuary Collective.” We also recognize that different individuals may desire varying levels of commitment and engagement with Sanctuary Collective. We've developed the following groupings to help folks make sense of their roles within the Sanctuary Collective.
Leadership Team | Support Team | Prayer Team | NYC Community | Discipleship Program
Support Team
The support team contributes to Sanctuary Collective in a variety of ways. They may serve as advisors to the leadership team or other Sanctuary Collective participants. They may also contribute prayers, sermons, Bible studies, songs, or other resources to the program on an on-going basis. They are available to work with the leadership team or with young adults as needed, but do not necessarily participate in the day-to-day operations of Sanctuary Collective.
Abby Reikow
Philadelphia, PA
Donor, Support Team
Abby is a fantastically fierce ally from the city of brotherly love. She is a fast and loyal friend, and was our first donor to Sanctuary Collective. She also put together one of our best resources - the guide on how to start a QSA - on our “How do I make it bigger” page.
Amanda Harris
Brooklyn, NY
Support Team
Amanda lives in Brooklyn, but is forever connected to her southern heritage after growing up in Arkansas. She teaches us all a lot about gender and femme identity, and is always quick to respond when a call for help goes out to the Collective.
Andrea Cofino
New York, NY
Support Team
A recent graduate of Pace University, Andrea wants to continue a career in LGBTQ activism through the arts (specifically spoken word) and nonprofit work. She has a strong passion for equality and an interest in queer theory and gender politics, and is looking forward to spending a lot of time in the field of LGBTQ activism and working to create a safer space for youth through Sanctuary Collective.
Brandy Daniels
Durham, NC
Support Team
Brandy is a third year graduate student at Duke University and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, pursuing a dual-Masters degree in social work and divinity. She plans to do doctoral work in areas of faith and sexuality, primarily looking at how post-structuralist philosophy impacts a theological ethics of sexuality.
Brandy has been involved in a slew of progressive activism, largely centering around gender and sexuality. She was media director for the 2006 Soulforce Equality Ride, and is currently serving as the co-coordinator of the Duke Divinity Women’s Center and Sacred Worth, the divinity school LGBT group.
“Oh, and I’m queer!”
Cait MacIntyre
Austin, TX
Donor, Support Team
Cait is a queer-parented lady and considers that a major part of her identity. She thinks Sanctuary Collective is so fabulous because she feels like it recognizes that all of our liberations are tied up together, and takes a stance of working together to free all of us from oppression.
Cameron Whitley
Lansing, MI
Support Team
Cameron started his masters in pastoral ministry a few years ago at the Iliff School of Theology, but left school in 2005 after the United Methodist Judicial Council’s decision (1032) that UMC pastors have the authority to decide who is acceptable as a church member, meaning they could reject (outright) members who were open about their sexual orientation. In spite of this, he has always felt called to pastoral care/counseling and ministry, and is excited to offer his skills to the Sanctuary Collective.
Cat Moran
Tappan, NY
Support Team
Cat has been doing organizing work for a long time - she led the GSA at her high school, and has also given a workshop through GLSEN at a Catholic high school that had no resources for LGBTQ kids. She’s not particularly faith-oriented, and thinks that the work that we’re doing is extremely important for people who are. For that reason, she’s happy to be on the support team.
Charlie Solidum
Tappan, NY
Support Team
Charlie is a spiritually-minded recovering ex-catholic who likes to help queers of any persuasion find peace within their lives. He has an unwavering belief and commitment to the happiness and fortitude of the LGBTQ community, and thinks that Sanctuary Collective fills a very valuable niche within the spectrum for supporting our LGBTQ young folks.
Crystallee Crain
Oakland, CA
Support Team
Crystallee’s passions are in the LGBT & Racial Equality movement, but she also realizes and supports the intersectional relationships that all social justice movements experience. She supports the Sanctuary Collective because she feels that there is still a large need for people of faith of be organized in non-secular and secular circles.
Cylest Andaloro-Brooks
Milwaukee, WI
Support Team
Despite a deep connection to God from an early age, Cylest’s beliefs were turned upside down through higher education within western Christianity. After years of suppressing a queer identity, and after cycles of fear, confusion, self-hatred, hatred with God, hatred with the Church, and anger, Cylest has reclaimed her relationship with God. She is involved with Sanctuary Collective so that others may not need to experience the same struggles she did and she hopes to bless LGBTQ young people with a model of healthy faith.
Enzi Tanner
Minneapolis, MN
Support Team
Enzi is pursuing his MDiv in peace and justice and is passionate about many different social justice issues. He believes that it is important for queer communities to be reconciled to their faith community where desired and he believes that Sanctuary Collective has that same goal in mind.
Jess Kalup
Philadelphia, PA
Support Team
Jess is another of our fantastic allies who devotes much of her time working for queer and trans safety and equality. She’s also a true blue friend, will tell it like it is, and will make you laugh at things you never thought could be funny.
L. Maxx Andreas
New York, NY
NYC Community, Support Team
Leo has been a friend of Sanctuary Collective from the beginning. He began participating before anything was formalized and lends his help in all areas—organizing volunteers, spreading the word, and even helping to cut and collate. His candor and humor are infectious and invaluable for the work of LGBTQ organizing. He has served as a peer-educator and is currently studying to be an EMT.
Laura Hadden
Brooklyn, NY
Support Team
Laura is a progressive powerhouse, and she uses video and digital media to tell people’s stories. She’s very excited to engage with others through the Sanctuary Collective about the unique & complex intersections of faith and LGBTQ identities, and collaborate on strategies of making both communities more welcoming of one another.
Nicole Garcia
Denver, CO
Support Team
Nicole works for Lutherans Concerned - a team of folks working to make the Lutheran denomination more inclusive of LGBTQ people. She was the first to offer us her personal story to share on our site, and is a great resource for Sanctuary Collective.
Peterson Toscano
Hartford, CT
Support Team
Peterson is a theatrical performance activist using comedy & storytelling to address social justice concerns. He spent 17 years and over $30,000 on three continents attempting to change and suppress his same-sex orientation and gender differences. Since 2003 he has traveled in North America, Europe, and Africa performing and speaking in the media. Having spent a decade detoxing from years of repression and misinformation, he began to go beyond his own experience and write plays that explore sexism, racism, the environment, violence and gender. His newest play is about transgender Bible characters.
Roman Rimer
Brooklyn, NY
Support Team
Roman is super nice, and doesn’t identify as male or female. Roman also grew up in the Bay Area and suburbs of Chicago, and loves art, improv, performing, and awesome vegan food - and more than anything, giving love to people. Roman sees the good in everyone, and thinks we’re all the same regardless of our beliefs and the bodies we were born into.
Sam Lundquist
Los Angeles, CA
Support Team
Sam Lundquist is a West Coast transplant from Iowa trying to bring a little bit of the heartland to Los Angeles. He followed his heart to Thinkwell Group where he created, directed, and produced theme parks, attractions, shows, resorts, and exhibits. Two years in, he walked away to work with non-profit and faith-based groups—including some spiffy design work for Sanctuary Collective—and founded The Hope Chronicles. We are thankful that Sam shares his passion for design and his evangelical zeal with us in pursuit of justice for LGBTQ people.
Taj Smith
Santa Cruz, CA
Support Team
Taj is a supporter of Sanctuary Collective from the west coast who’s working to create safe spaces for young people to talk about faith and how it relates to their LGBTQ identities. He was the first person we didn’t already know that volunteered to be a part of our support team, and he’s excited to bring his passion to Sanctuary Collective.
Vincent Cervantes
Riverside, CA
Prayer Team, Support Team
Vincent is a gay Christian activist with a dedication to theatre, music, and performance art. As a religious studies major, he spends much of his time exploring and researching different walks of faith and their interactions with the LGBTQ community and he plans to pursue ordination. He was a rider on the 2007 Soulforce Q Equality Ride, serves on the board of the Reconciling Ministries Network (United Methodist), and is a survivor of the “ex-gay” movement.