|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
||||||
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
STAFF Bethany Lockhart, Program Coordinator
Bethany is brand new to the Bay Area and spent the last 10 years in sunny San Diego. She graduated from UCSD with degrees in Theatre, Dance, and Ethnic Studies. After college, Bethany continued her work in non-profit organizations with missions focusing on the performing arts and empowering youth through arts and/or education. Bethany loves being an auntie to her beautiful niece and is excited for the upcoming arrival of #2! When she is not working with COLAGE, Bethany is training for her very first half-marathon, rearranging her Netflix queue, reading design blogs, and exploring her fabulous new city. Monica Canfield-Lenfest, Kids of Trans Fellow
Beth Teper, Executive Director
Joining COLAGE over a decade ago, Beth has been an active participant and leader in the LGBT family movement ever since. Prior to being COLAGE's Executive Director, Beth served on the COLAGE Steering Committee and as chair of the COLAGE Board of Directors for almost seven years. A San Francisco native and Oakland resident--Beth attended public schools in San Francisco and graduated from Brandeis University with a B.A. in Sociology, Latin American Studies and Women's Studies. Beth's career in community organizing began at age 9 - stuffing/sealing/stamping envelopes and selling buttons for the SF chapter of National Organization for Women. Since then, for over twenty years, Beth has worked for women's health and reproductive rights, an end to US military action and occupation, LGBT liberation and environmental sustainability. Beth brings a strong background in and passion for popular education, social, economic and environmental justice, and youth empowerment to her work with COLAGE. Immediately preceding her tenure on COLAGE staff, Beth thrived as a leader of outdoor adventures and activism: leading wilderness expeditions, teaching environmental ethics, and sharing the wonders of food and nature with urban youth and families. The highest peak she's climbed is Mt. Whitney and the biggest waves she's rafted are on the Colorado in the Grand Canyon. Beth loves to read, dance, travel, spend time with her sweetie Anna (and their dogs Lily & Sadie) and is currently obsessed with playing double-15 Dominoes. Meredith Fenton, Program Director
She brings to COLAGE a diverse array of experience working with youth. Prior to joining the staff at COLAGE, she acted as the Youth Services Coordinator at the Richmond Village Beacon, a community center based at a large public high school in San Francisco where she facilitated a diverse array of programs including a queer youth group, young women's programs, outdoor education trips, social justice advocacy groups, leadership trainings and more. She has enjoyed being a camp counselor, youth group facilitator, high school group teacher, camp songleader, and more. In her spare time, Meredith enjoys being involved with a San Francisco Performance Troupe called Burlesque-Esque, organizing with a Jewish activism group in the Bay Area, working with the 5JANETS collective, and being a fairy princess. Jamon Franklin, Operations and Finance Manager
Jack Ryder, Development Manager
Lauren Wheeler, Interim Special Projects Coordinator
|
 |
Bethany grew up in Long Beach, California. When she was 11, her mom came out to her after her parents' divorce and let her know that if she began dating again, it would be with a woman. Once her mom did start dating, Bethany realized it did not always feel easy to explain who 'that woman with your mom is' to her classmates and friends. Even though dialogue was open with her mom, Bethany wishes she had known about COLAGE when she was growing up so that she could have learned how to communicate with her classmates and start celebrating her family openly (which she happily does now!!!).
Monica grew up in Vermont and attended college in Boston before coming to the West Coast for an 8 month KOT fellowship with COLAGE. She discovered COLAGE while writing her thesis "She's My Father: The Social Experience of Children with Transgender Parents" and has been involved as a Family Week facilitator, COLAGE Boston co-coordinator, and the coordinator of the Kids of Trans program ever since. Monica was in high school when her father transitioned and is excited to be writing a resource guide with COLAGE that she had wished was available then. Monica graduated from UMASS-Boston with a degree in Anthropology. Monica has presented about children of transgender parents at a number of conferences, including: Trans Politics, Social Change, and Justice at CLAGS, City University of New York; International Foundation for Gender Education's annual conference; Southern Comfort Conference; and Tiffany Club New England's First Event.
Beth was ten when her mother came out as a lesbian and twelve when her best friend and many other 'friends' abandoned and harassed her after finding out about her mom. It wasn't until Beth was 24 that she found a community of other young people with families like hers. 
Meredith first became involved with COLAGE when she interned in our office the summer after her mom came out as a lesbian. For the next three and a half years she served as a member of our National Board of Directors and Bay Area volunteer. Originally from Illinois, Meredith graduated from Wellesley College in 1998 where she played rugby, DJed for the campus radio station, served as the Director of On Campus Affairs (meaning she planned campus-wide concerts, parties and fairs), and worked with the Wellesley LGBT organization. 
Jamon grew up in Cleveland, Ohio with one brother, one straight mom and two gay dads. From there she moved as far away as possible to Santa Cruz where she graduated in 2001 from UCSC with a degree in Women's Studies. During her time in San Francisco, she has volunteered with various social justice organizations in the Bay Area and enjoys riding bikes, hiking, reading and pretending that she likes the rain. After participating in the Felicia Park Rogers Summer Internship with COLAGE she signed on as our Operations Manager. In this capacity she will oversee COLAGE's bookkeeping and finances, office management, Human Resources, technology - basically serving as a "Jamon of all trades."
Jack Ryder, 34, was born in New Mexico, where he spent summers hiking and camping (hiking, camping, and horseback riding are still among his favorite activities). Raised in Phoenix, Arizona, he majored in Communication at Arizona State University, and worked 8 years in the corporate world as a marketing specialist for the financial services industry. As a way to nurture his creative aspirations he built a thriving interior design business building relationships with clients whom he challenged to do more to contribute to their communities... to support positive change, and empowerment, instead of oppression and bigotry.
Lauren Wheeler joins COLAGE as a Special Projects Coordinator. She'll be working on outreach, communications, and PR, as well as helping to develop a new training manual for COLAGE facilitators. Lauren's parents split up when she was a baby, and she was raised by her grandmother and by her mother, who came out as a lesbian when Lauren was five years old. Lauren was raised in Chicago, the Bay Area, and Miami Beach, FL and attended Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Lauren is a DJ, dancer, and poet, having competed twice at the National Poetry Slam and had her work appear in Lodestar Quarterly, Other Magazine, and 365 tomorrows. After spending the last four years as a video game producer, Lauren is excited to move onto greener pastures at COLAGE.