I recently met Elena through a coaching program we are both in and I immediately knew I wanted to ask her to come on the show.  She has an incredible story that she shares so generously.  And her message is of the utmost importance.

- Sara Dean

Pride and Joy Foundation founder, Elena Joy Thurston recently had a chat with Sara Dean on The Shameless Mom Academy podcast. In the episode entitled, 'Living Out Loud After Enduring Life-Threatening Conversion Therapy', Elena Joy shared her about coming out and ultimately owning her sexuality.

Listen in to hear Elena Joy talk to Sara Dean about: 

1. Her journey through marriage in the Mormon church, to growing a family of 4 children, to realizing she had built a life that was not true to who she was

2. Her experience of coming out as a lesbian as a Mormon mom of 4

3. How Mormonism encouraged Elena to disconnect from her body

4. How she was able to give up control over her body and actually step into her...

October is just right around the corner, and with National Coming Out Day drawing near, we want to do something special for you.

As a foundation, our goal is to encourage and lift you up. So this October, we want to bring visibility and validity to every queer experience - we believe that all coming out journeys are valid and need to be shared. If you let us, we'd love to share yours with the world.

Whether you've JUST come out, are thinking about coming out or have been out for years, we want to share your story in whatever medium or form of expression comes most naturally to you.

Every story is different, some experiences are unexpectedly easy and some have unexpected and lasting consequences. Whatever your journey is like, it's definitely worth sharing and deserves to be in the spotlight.

That's why we organized Emergence, to celebrate the different coming out stories from the community and bring attention to queer experiences. Share your...

Editor’s Note:  We first published Jake’s story in July 2020.  It is now a year later, we felt (and Jake agreed) that the timing was right to share his story again.  Jake is one year into having “fired” his homophobic side and if you’ve followed him on Social Media, you know just how amazing his life has become.  If you’re new to his story, have a read and then check him out.  It’s a beautiful journey.  

It Was Time For Him to Go

I’m coming off a high. I just fired someone, and it was one of the crowning achievements of my adult life. I made sure to make a scene of it too by gathering everyone into the conference room, laying out a long list of offenses, and walking him out of the room and building to never return. It was awesome!

Nine months earlier I came out as gay to my wife of 13 years. I married her with the best of intentions, desiring to do all that was expected of me as a man in...

As a lot of you know, I am a pretty open-minded individual. I would go as far as saying that I am probably one of the more socially progressive people in most of the local groups I volunteer with, my small circle of local friends, my lifelong friends from childhood, and even my immediate family. I mean, one of my favorite shows on TV right now is "We're Here". It's a series on HBO about three drag queens traveling around to small, conservative communities with hopes of opening the minds and hearts of the folks who live there, to be more accepting of people within their communities, who feel like they don't belong. It has ALL the feels and the best cast! I'm also an empath, I'm learning how to be a better ally, and I always pull for the people who feel like they don't really fit in. Mainly, because I know that feeling all too well.

I have very short hair, I have broad shoulders, not much to speak up for hips, I wear a t-shirt or hoodie every day and I rarely go without...