Courageous Love: Helen Bishop

The second award goes to Helen Bishop. She was one of the people who worked tirelessly to produce workshops sponsored by Love Welcomes All. In these workshops, people of faith learned how to welcome GLBT people, and how inclusion helps to spread the news of God’s love for everyone. As a member of Love Welcomes All, she helped to establish and support the “Feed the Kids Coalition,” which provides a nutritious meal to children who attend the Hendersonville Boys and Girls Club – a program to help meet the needs of disadvantaged children. She has served on panels to educate our community about issues faced by people with different sexual orientations and gender identities. She has just been elected to the Human Relations Council, where she will use her skills and resources to insure equality and justice for all residents of Henderson County. She served a year as a consultant for a national organization called the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptist. Helen works to end discrimination for any reason. She “stands on the side of Love” in a world where hate is often the order of the day against people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, or anyone different than the “norm”. I have asked a member of her church, the UUFellowship, to share a little more about how Helen lives out being on the “Side of Love”.