A church in Lakewood, Colorado has yet to answer demands for an apology, after its pastor canceled a funeral service after the woman’s family provided a tribute video that showed her kissing her wife.
Pastor Ray Chavez of New Hope Ministries reportedly gave the okay to shut down the service for Vanessa Collier, who passed away on December 30. The announcement came at 10:15 a.m. on Saturday -- fifteen minutes after the service was scheduled to begin. Friends and family members picked up flowers, programs and Collier’s casket and moved across the street to Newcomer Funeral Home.
“We had to walk out of the church and walk by his staff,” said Jose Silva, who organized a protest Tuesday afternoon to show support for Collier’s family and demand an apology.
“They sat there and glared at us with this disgusted, disdained look. It was a walk no one should ever have to go through.”
Protesters walked along the sidewalk in front of the church, carrying signs and chanting: “Only God can judge!”
At one point, a woman pulled over to defend Pastor Chavez.
“I used to be a gay woman for ten years,” the woman said. “That’s not a lifestyle to live!”
A protester shot back: “You’re still gay.”
Silva said New Hope Ministries accepted $400 from the family to pay for the funeral, and had not yet returned it. But a church official reportedly handed the money over to Newcomer Funeral Home after the protest.
Collier is survived by her wife Christina and her two daughters, aged 8 and 12.
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