Jill R. Russell has been a congregational pastor for over 27 years and has served as co-pastor at Hope Church, RCA in Holland, Michigan since 2008. Jill has been an advocate for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the church since the very beginning of her ministry in the mid-1990s (even though the list at that time barely included her own identity as bi-sexual let alone the rest of the beautiful queer rainbow we celebrate today). She enjoys her multi-generational family here in Holland which includes her partner in life, Andrew Bunnell, their two children and Jill’s mother. Sara A. Showalter Van Tongeren, LCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the states of Michigan and Virginia, and is a graduate of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social Work. Sara has more than a decade of clinical social work experience in settings such as private practice, foster care, in-patient hospitals and outpatient medical clinics, domestic violence shelters, and behavioral health. She is a co- author of the book, The Courage to Suffer: A new clinical framework for life’s greatest crises, which is published by Templeton Press and is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold. Currently, she works in a private practice in Holland, MI where she provides therapy to individuals, to help them cultivate a sense of meaning and develop narratives of resilience following trauma and unexpected life events. Sara specializes in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness, Narrative Therapy, Brainspotting, Acceptance Commitment Therapy, Existential Positive Psychology, and Liberation Psychology. She is a contributor as a blogger for Psychology Today and also provides consulting to therapists helping them connect their insurance billing to the software Simple Practice. She won the 2020 Social Justice Award given by the City of Holland for her work in helping to pass the city’s first Non- Discrimination Ordinance. Currently she is serving as a board member of Out On The Lakeshore. You can find out more about Sara’s work at saravantongeren.com and follow her on Instagram @theexistentialtherapist.D.L. McKinney, MPA Director Milton E. Ford LGBT Resource Center is a Detroit native turned GVSU “Laker for a Lifetime” Grand Rapids resident. With a work history that is everything but orthodox, they currently support LGBTQIA+ students in higher education. D.L. boasts a hefty career in laboratory science, leadership, and social justice change. They have earned degrees in Business Administration Economics and a master’s in public administration and Health and specialize in lean management, conflict resolution, and change implementation. They serve as support to QTPOC folks as a member of various West Michigan community committees focusing on wellness, homelessness, equity, and social change. D.L. continues to work from a lens of racial and social justice to support individuals and communities in building their capacity to challenge internal and external systems of oppression to create sustainable change.
