Joe Valentine: Growing Up With Two Moms, The Story of a Professional Pitcher - Saturday February 4th, 3 - 5 PM Calvary Methodist Church, 801 S. 48th Street
He is straight, but his moms aren't. Joe Valentine, pitcher for the Houston Astros (formerly with the Cincinnati Reds) is the first public sports figure to come out about having lesbian mothers and the first professional baseball player to broach the topic of homosexuality. Philadelphia will host Valentine's first public event celebrating his family.
Although Valentine has faced very little discrimination on account of having two moms, he knows it isn't that easy for everyone. "I did it for the kids" Valentine told Mountain Meadow's Executive Director, Carolyn Thompson. "I want to make it easier for other kids growing up in families like mine. I don't know how they find me, but I get e-mails from kids all the time who have two moms or two dads. I write everyone back. That is why I did this (come out publicly about having two moms)."
To buy tickets, please visit http://www.mountainmeadow.org/ticketorderform.pdf. All checks and credit card payments for sponsorship and tickets should be made payable to Delaware Valley Legacy Fund. All proceeds of the event will go to support programs of Mountain Meadow. Mountain Meadow is a progressive and diverse community that offers children of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other non-traditional families and their allies, regardless of income, programming dedicated to recognizing and challenging different forms of oppression and intolerance.
Valentine has become a role model to youth with gay and lesbian parents throughout the country and will make his first public appearance in Philadelphia on February 4th. Mountain Meadow ill dedicate one of their athletic fields to Valentine during his special appearance. For more details about the event, please visit http://www.mountainmeadow.org/valentine_postcard.pdf
Growing Up with Two Moms: The Story of a Professional Pitcher is co-sponsored by eight gay and lesbian family and sports organizations: Mountain Meadow, Delaware Valley Legacy Fund, Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere, Philadelphia Family Pride, PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), Gay Community Night at the Phillies, Outsports.com, and Team Philadelphia, a program of the William Way Community Center.