Graduation: April 1990, cum laude
Degree: BS, Chemistry
Activity: Student Advisory Council Chairperson
Mission: Paraguay Asuncion
Occupation: Environmental Consultant
Current Location: Washington D.C. area
Howdy BYU! Congratulations on getting to wear shorts. I did my share of shorts donning after graduation -- I went to work on an island 800 miles southwest of Hawaii in an environmental monitoring laboratory. They were burning chemical weapons there, so it was good that we were monitoring. The best perk of the job was receiving a two-week paid vacation every two months - I visited ten foreign countries. There even was an LDS branch on island, complete with a patriarch.
After the island life, I did graduate school at Harvard, receiving an MS in Environmental Science. I now work for an environmental consulting firm and get to do a variety of risk assessment projects for the Environmental Protection Agency and other clients.
So, how do I handle being Gay and Mormon? Well, while at BYU it helped me to do a couple of reports on the subject. One was a book report on Carol Lynn Pearson's Good-bye, I Love You. Her story of being married to a Gay LDS man is powerful, compassionate, and insightful. The second report was on Gay fathers. These two reports, prayer, and plenty of pondering helped me arrive at honesty with myself, my family, and those around me. Last year I was given the opportunity to deliver a Sacrament meeting talk on same-sex orientation to my ward in Boston. The message was simply to love and serve everyone regardless of perceived differences.
BYU gave me the safe space to grow and be honest. I wish the same to all students at BYU today.
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