Rev. Danny Cortez

Pastor at Long Beach Christian Fellowship

Danny Cortez (he/him) pastored New Heart, a church dismissed from the Southern Baptist Convention for becoming an inclusive space for LGBTQ+ people. He founded Estuary Space, a non-profit that helps people and churches navigate the complexities of faith, gender, and sexuality. He now pastors at Long Beach Christian Fellowship in Long Beach, CA. He authored The Clergy Guide for QCF, a manual to help churches navigate conversations to become fully affirming of LGBTQ people. He is on the board of Bridges in Africa and PFLAG SGV API.

Myles Markham

Director of Development at Trans Lifeline

Myles Markham (he/him or they/them) is a queer and transgender Native Hawaiian/Japanese American born and raised in the Deep South. Myles has worked in LGBTQ+ advocacy across religious, non-profit, business, and education sectors for the last decade and currently works in documentary film as an impact producer, in non-profit management as the Director of Development for Trans Lifeline, and serves on the board of directors for Transmission Ministry Collective

Micah Melody Taberner

Co-Executive Director of Community Engagement at Transmission Ministry Collective.

Micah Melody Taberner (she/her) is the Co-Executive Director of Community Engagement for Transmission Ministry Collective. As a transgender and bi-racial Latina follower of Jesus, her greatest passion is helping individuals and communities explore the intersection of their identities and faith. In all her work, Micah Melody loves using art, music, and storytelling to build relationships and stir cross-cultural dialogue. She is currently finishing her Master of Arts in Social Transformation and Master of Divinity at Pacific School of Religion, and was a recipient of the On Being Social Healing Fellowship for her work in the gender-expansive Christian community. When not at work, Micah Melody can be found exploring the San Diego culinary scene with her wife, getting into late-night theological discussions with her friends, cuddling with her cats, and playing piano.

Bill White

Co-Pastor at City Church

Bill co-pastors a diverse church, City Church of Long Beach. He also leads a non-profit, Small Church Big Table, which coaches evangelical church leaders on how to be more inclusive of the LGBTQ community. He loves board games, hiking, and spending time with family.

Katy White

Family Practice Physician

Katy White serves as a family practice physician in a community clinic in Long Beach, California. She has served in leadership and clinical care roles in community health centers in Urban Los Angeles over the past 25 years, and has also been involved in a national organization championing Christians serving missionally through health care in underserved areas, Christian Community Health Fellowship (CCHF.org). She and Bill have been married for 32 years and they have 2 adult children aged 23 and 25.

Jeremy & Hannah

Philosophy Professor at the University of California & Piano Teacher

Hannah and Jeremy have been married for 26 years and live in Long Beach, CA.  They are the proud parents of three children ages 20, 17 and 14.  Hannah and Jeremy found QCF after their oldest child came out 6 years ago as gay and 4 years ago as non-binary.  Jeremy is a philosophy professor at the University of California where he has been teaching for the last 17 years.  When he's not reading, writing, or teaching he enjoys cycling and following the Cincinnati Reds.  Hannah is a piano teacher and teaches piano from her studio in their home.  Hannah loves knitting and is passionate about working with young people in their community.  Both Hannah and Jeremy are followers of Jesus and feel called to raising their family in the city and sharing the love of Jesus with their neighbors.   

Lindsay and Susan Flaming Yeats

Flaming Yeats Consulting

Lindsay and Susan Flaming Yeats were both born and raised in conservative Christian families and each accepted Christ at a young age. Susan, one of seven children, grew up deeply involved in the Brethren Church and later attended Biola University. Lindsay was raised internationally, as her parents served in full-time ministry with Campus Crusade for Christ (now Cru Global), and she went on to attend Grove City College, a small private Christian school in Pennsylvania.

Each of them began the journey of understanding and processing their sexual orientation at different stages in life—a path that involved years of reconciling their faith with their sexuality. Throughout that process, both Lindsay and Susan remained in relationship with their parents, navigating the complexity of everyone being in different stages of their own journeys.

They met in late 2016, several years after coming out to their families, and first became friends. As their relationship progressed—through dating, falling in love, getting engaged, and eventually marrying in April 2018—they encountered new opportunities and challenges for growth and connection within their families, friendships, and faith communities.

In February 2022, they met their son, Ryan, and officially adopted him in March 2024. Now three years old, Ryan is bursting with personality—rascally, affectionate, and endlessly curious. His current obsessions include dinosaurs, reading, and going on treasure hunts.

Lindsay and Susan love living in Long Beach, CA, where they’ve launched Flaming Yeats Consulting—a boutique executive leadership consultancy focused on the holistic development of underrepresented leaders.

Candice Czubernat

Founder of The Christian Closet

Candice Czubernat has been a therapist for 20 years and is the founder of The Christian Closet, an LGBTQ+ affirming counseling and coaching practice, as well as the nonprofit Affirming Therapy. She and her team of LGBTQ+-identified clinicians provide online telehealth services to queer individuals worldwide, helping them navigate the intersection of their queer identity and Christian faith.

Candice holds degrees from The Moody Bible Institute and The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. She identifies as both a lesbian and a Christian. She lives in a small mountain town in Southern California with her wife, Crystal, and their 10-year-old twins, Deacon and Dylan. When she’s not working, she enjoys spending time with her wife, cheering on her kids at their sports games, or cuddling with their dog, Charlie Bonz.

Samantha Hasty

Q Christian Fellowship Program Manager

Pastor Samantha Hasty (she/her) grew up in Southern Baptist fundamentalism as a queer, neuro-spicy, outspoken woman and found her people along the way as she healed from spiritual traumas and reclaimed a faith that is all her own. She graduated from Earlham School of Religion in 2018 with a Masters of Divinity in Pastoral Ministry and is currently working on her Doctor of Ministry degree. Samantha is the very proud mama to Micaiah and wife of Kellie. She is the founding and current pastor at Pitch in Theology. Samantha is excited to journey with the QCF community as the Program Coordinator.

Kelli Mechelke

Q Christian Fellowship Parent Team Member

I grew up going to church in a small town in Indiana in the late 80s. We were taught it was a sin to be queer. Then my dad came out as gay. Since then, I have been on a journey for the last 25 years as my heart and mind have changed towards the queer community because of my relationship with my dad and best friend. I have undergone a personal transformation from judgment to acceptance and finally to advocate.

The question I consistently come back to as a writer and thinker is, “How do I/we love better?” I am currently writing my first book, a memoir, about my transformation and changing my mind. My son came out as gay a year ago and now I have the amazing opportunity to offer him the acceptance and encouragement my dad never had.

However, none of these changes in my life would have occurred without continuous dialogue with trusted friends about places where I was judgmental, had blind spots, and couldn’t see past my own heteronormativity. My desire is for all Christians to do their emotional work to see where we’ve been wrong and to say I’m sorry.

Grace Thomas

Q Christian Fellowship Parent Team Member

Grace Thomas is a retired pastor with 30+ years in ministry. She raised two gay sons and one straight daughter. She has been married to Cindy for 49 years.  Grace came out as transgender in 2016.  5 years into their journey they began experimenting with their “shared sacrifice” with Grace living and functioning as a woman part of the time while living and presenting as Cindy’s husband in shared spaces.  Two years ago, Grace and Cindy made the decision for Grace to transition fully.  They both remain committed to each other while now walking through the experience of separation.  Grace supports parents of LGBTQ kids through various support groups as well as pursuing community and inclusion for LGBTQ individuals in the church.

Linda Robertson

Q Christian Fellowship Parent Team Lead

Linda Robertson (she/her) wrote a short essay that went viral in 2013 (Just Because He Breathes) about her own culpability in the death of her gay son. She continues to speak and write about what she has learned from Ryan’s life and death.

Linda’s been involved with QCF since 2014 when she and her husband keynoted at the Chicago conference. She leads the QCF Parent Team and W-Dig, a virtual drop-in group for parents of LGBTQ kids. She is passionate about her own personal growth so that she can better show up with authenticity and Love in her world.