The following is an alphabetical list of the professionals, facilitators, and parents who took part in the various sessions for the 2021 Philly Family Pride conference. This conference would not be possible without their commitment to improving the lives of LGBTQ+ led families.
Jon Argaman (he/him) is a Lecturer in Critical Writing at the University of Pennsylvania. He, his husband, and their son Solomon live in West Philly.
Suz Atlas (she/her) and Mary Groce (she/her), partners since 1994, are both advocates for women, progressive causes, and the LGBTQ+ senior community. Suz (pictured right) and Mary are both writers and artists. Between them they have seven children and six grandchildren. Suz is a retired medical massage therapist, and Mary is a retired harpist and vocalist. Suz and Mary produce the monthly newsletter for the John C. Anderson LGBTQ-Friendly Apartments community (in the heart of the Philadelphia Gayborhood), where they’ve been residents since 2017.
Michaelina Bendig (she/her) is an Adoption Caseworker who has been employed with Adoptions From The Heart for 21 years and has a total of 31 years of experience in the adoption field. She is an adoptive mom of three grown daughters and a graduate of Holy Family University with a Bachelors in Education.
Marquita Bolden (she/her) is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing mental health therapy, specializing in helping people manage issues related to anxiety, grief, life transitions, depression, and traumatic experiences. In addition to being in private practice, she also serves as the Executive Director of the Therapy Center of Philadelphia (TCP). More about Marquita.
Tariem Burroughs (he/him) is a PFP parent and completing his term as the group's Chair of the Board of Directors for PFP this year. Tariem is in the process of completing his PhD in Sociology at Temple University.
Tiffany Byrd, MSW (she/her) is a director of permanency with A Second Chance, Inc. She was born and raised in Philadelphia, prior to moving to West Virginia to study social work at West Virginia State University. Tiffany later obtained her master’s in social work locally at West Chester University. Tiffany is the oldest of nine siblings and values family and the kinship triad. Tiffany is a PFP parent and a member of the Philly Family Pride board of directors. More about Tiffany.
Dr. Damon Constantinides (he/him) is a clinical social worker, sex therapist, and trainer in private practice. He is a queer, white, trans man and parent who works from a social justice frame and his approach is influenced by intersectionality, transfeminism, relational, narrative, and trauma informed therapists. Damon is a dad to a 7-year-old who shares his love of camping, gardening, and musical theater in addition to her love of gymnastics and learning about animals.
Sarah Craig (they/them) is a Black nonbinary queer femme based in Philadelphia, PA. They are a warm, powerful force in their classes in accessible vinyasa flows. Sarah aspires to bring yoga to marginalized communities to cultivate space for rest, strength for resistance, and knowledge of accessibility tools and methods for a suitable practice for any body. Follow Sarah on Facebook and Instagram.
Sana DelCorazón (she/her) is a seminary student pursuing an MDIv at United Theological Seminary. She is a member of Tabernacle United Church, a queer mom, meditation and yoga practitioner, and Philly native. She currently resides with her family and two fur babies in the Twin Cities.
Erica Desper (she/her) founded Confident Parenting in 2011, as a certified baby and child sleep consultant offering group and private counseling for families struggling to get their baby or child to fall and stay asleep. Since then, she and her team of consultants have supported over 1,300 families in and around the Main Line and Philadelphia area and internationally to improve the quality of their families’ sleep and have brought together a village of additional family resources. More about Erica.
LaRoyce Miles Fulton (she/her) is a financial screener who lives in Philadelphia. She has four children and seven grandchildren.
Galia Godel (she/he) works at Jewish Family & Children’s Service as the program manager of the LGBTQ Initiative. She leads queer Jewish program across greater Philadelphia, and lives with her partner, three cats, and a variety of tchotchkes.
Shannon Graves (she/her) and Paige Davis (she/her) have been foster parents in Philadelphia since 2015, especially for teenagers. Paige is the owner of a child care center and Shannon is a nurse at RMA of Philadelphia.
Dr. Jackie Gutmann (she/her), who completed her medical training at Yale University, has devoted her career to helping people create their families of choice. She practices at RMA Philadelphia and is on the faculty of Jefferson University. Dr. Gutmann has published numerous articles and has lectured extensively on topics including LGBTQ+ family building, third party reproduction, and the use of complementary and alternative medicine in infertility. She has held leadership positions in many professional organizations and is on the advisory board of several patient advocacy groups. She is the recipient of many awards, though the one she values most is the Joyce M. Vargyas, M.D. Visionary Award for her impact in the fields of fertility, reproductive health, and family building within the LGBTQ+ community.
Robin Hornstein, PhD (she/her) is a co-founder of Hornstein, Platt and Associates and has been a Licensed Psychologist and counselor for over 30 years. Follow her on Instagram @robinmindfulcounseling. More about Robin.
Lucinda Megill Legendre (she/her) is an educator and parent at a Philadelphia charter school. She is also a member of the Tabernacle United Church in West Philadelphia. She has lived in Philadelphia since 2009.
Miss Brittany Lynn (she/they) is the creator and founder of Philly’s Drag Mafia, the city’s Miss Fancy Brigade and Philly's Drag Queen Story Time. She's been dubbed Philly's "Hardest Working Drag Queen" and PGN's "Drag Queen of the Year" many times.
Andrea McAfee (she/her) is the Founder and Director of the Surrogacy Center of Philadelphia. She has been assisting others in building their families through surrogacy for over a decade. Andrea resides in Manayunk with her husband, two daughters, and giant Bernese Mountain Dog.
April Murdock (she/her) has been an activist and advocate for the LGBTQ+ & Disabled communities for many years. April is also a proud grandparent of two grandchildren.
Rebecca Nayak (she/her) is a partner with Jerner Law Group, P.C. whose practice is focused on assisted reproduction law, adoption law and family law. Rebecca also handles cases involving legal parentage issues. Rebecca is a PFP parent and serves on the PFP board of directors. She lives with her blended family in Mt. Airy. More about Rebecca.
River Nice (they/them) is the owner and financial planner of Be Intentional Financial, a remote, independent financial services firm based in Philadelphia. River approaches financial planning through an anti-capitalist lens, and seeks to reduce the harm done by capitalism to specifically trans and queer individuals and families by providing education, tools, advice, and a place to talk about money. More about River.
Michelle Ottey (she/her) is the Laboratory Director and Director of Operations at Fairfax Cryobank Inc., Michelle is responsible for managing the labs of the Cryobank which includes staff and donor management, working with Client Depositors and Directed Donors, and the storage program for semen, embryos and reproductive tissues.
Adam Podowitz-Thomas (he/him) is a legal researcher for the Princeton Gerrymandering Project and Electoral Innovation Lab and is a PFP Board Member. He lives with his husband, Stephen, and their two adopted kids, Edith (5) and EJ (6 months) in Wynnewood, PA.
Ray Rachlin, LM, CPM, CLC (they/she) is a midwife and founder of Refuge Midwifery, an inclusive midwifery practice providing fertility counseling and home IUI, home birth midwifery care, and community education throughout the greater Philadelphia area. More about Ray.
Anthony Rodriguez, MD (he/him) and Michael Williams, Esq (he/him) met in 1984 before Tony started medical school. They had a commitment ceremony in LA in 1986 and were legally married in 2008. They adopted their two boys who were teenagers at the time, now in their mid-30s. They have one granddaughter. Tony started the medical center at Mazzoni, worked for 10 years as the diversity dean at the Drexel College of Medicine, now a family doctor in Lansdale. Michael, who experienced homelessness for a period during his first time at college, worked at Community Legal Services after attending Penn Law, worked as deputy finance director with Mayor Street and in the Law Department for Mayor Nutter. (Photo from Christmas, 2019 with their granddaughter.)
Lorenzo Shedrick (he/him) has been in working in child-welfare for roughly 7 years with non-profit organizations doing work surrounding Resource Family Recruitment, programming for aging out youth, and services for older youth with mental health diagnoses. Lorenzo currently works with the Philadelphia Department of Human Services continuing Resource Family recruitment work and program development with Foster Care agencies throughout Philadelphia.
Basha Smolen (she/her) is a School Social Worker working with adolescents in the School District of Philadelphia. She grew up in Boston, the child of a lesbian couple who used anonymous sperm donation to conceive both her and her sister. Basha and her partner used a known donor to conceive their 3 year old Ruth.
Kat Steele LPC, MeD (they/them) identifies as a non-binary individual. Kat uses their lived experience and counseling training to support families as a Licensed mental health therapist at Arrive Therapy. More about Kat.
Alexander Stefanini MS, LPC (he/him) has been working with kids, teens, families and adults since 2004. Alex received his Master's degree in Counseling from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and has been a Licensed Professional Counselor since 2004. He is the owner of Arrive Therapy in Paoli. More about Alex.
Skott Stotland (he/him) is a writer, a student, a stay-at-home dad and a PFP board member. He lives in South Philly with his wife, Heather, and their daughter, Beatrix.
Marina Patrice Vare (she/they/MP) is an IAYT certified yoga therapist and trained Daring to Rest™ yoga nidra facilitator. MP serves folks who are feeling disconnected, disengaged, or disembodied as they learn to (re)inhabit their bodies and lives. Her private practice, Sweet Perfection Yoga Therapy, specializes in serving folks working through transitions and milestones, healing from interpersonal trauma, and during their fertility journeys from trying to conceive through postpartum. (MP conceived her son, born in 2020, using IVF with donor eggs.)
Naomi Washington-Leapheart, M.Div. (she/her) is a faith organizer and PFP parent. Naomi was our conference keynote speaker in 2018 and a part of the PFP keynote conversation in 2020. More about Naomi.
Kris White (he/him) is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio and moved to the Philadelphia area in 2014. Kris is married to Dr. Oscar Holmes IV and they adopted their son July 14, 2020.
Sherry Wyche (she/her) is a very PROUD wife and mother of 1 human and 3 dogs residing in Greensboro, NC.