LGBTQ+ Ministry Summit

UPDATE 3/18/25: THIS EVENT IS FULL. CLICK HERE TO BE PUT ON A WAITING LIST

Join others in the Diocese of Southern Ohio for a time to coalesce around our mission of inclusion and support for our LGBTQ+ community at a weekend summit and retreat, March 28-29 at Procter Center.

Together we’ll celebrate and learn, worship and fellowship, share stories and organize diocesan-wide efforts for inclusion and affirmation. This event is for the LGBTQ+ community and their allies.

Our keynote speaker is the Rev. Beckett Leclaire. Beckett is the first trans deacon ordained in the Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes. He currently serves as ministry developer for the AuSable Inclusion Center, a New Episcopal Community serving folks marginalized based on their gender, sexuality, and/or socioeconomic status in rural northern Michigan. He served on The Episcopal Church Taskforce to Study Household and Relationship Diversity and was named a 2024 Episcopal Church Foundation Fellow.

Our chaplain for the weekend is the Rev. Phil Hooper, rector serving St. Anne, West Chester. Phil came into The Episcopal Church in his 20s after a long journey of integrating his faith and his sexual orientation; he is passionate about spiritual formation, theological discourse, and the intersection of contemplation and personal and social transformation. Phil has led church retreats and workshops in a variety of settings and is a contributing author to several Episcopal publications & projects including Sermons that Work, Earth & Altar, and the Prophetic Voices preaching podcast. He and his fiancé, Matt, live in Liberty Township, OH.

Our musician is Brianna Kelly, a multimedia artist, musician, and community song leader born and raised in rural Kentucky and living in Cincinnati, OH with her spouse, Stephen, and their dog, Slam Dunk. She has spent the last decade in various roles exploring the intersection of the arts, contemplative spirituality, and community building, while performing, recording, and touring in several bands in the Cincinnati music scene.

Learn more about the Diocese of Southern Ohio’s efforts around LGBTQ+ inclusion here.

SCHEDULE

Arrival between 4-6 pm on Friday
Departure by 4:30 pm on Saturday

REGISTRATION

The cost to participate has been subsidized to $100 per person. Scholarship help is available. Overnight accommodation and meals from dinner Friday through lunch Saturday are included. Space is limited.

Questions about this program? Contact our program leads, Drew Abbott, Canon Katie Forsyth, and Canon Julie Murray at LGBTQ@diosohio.org.