Daniel Pierce Joins Board of Homeless LGBT Youth Organization

Daniel Pierce was 19-years old when he came out as gay to his parents; he decided to videotape the process; it didn’t turn out well. See my post about that HERE.

At the start of the video — which you can search out because I don’t need that kind of thing on my blog — you can hear Daniel’s mother say “I love you” but before it’s all over she has attacked him, beaten him, and kicked him out of her home, all in the name of her Christian faith. She calls his sexual orientation a choice, despite his assertions that it is not and her assertions that she knew he was gay from when he was a small child. In the end, Daniel’s entire family joins in on the Good Christian Gay Bashing calling him a “disgrace” and saying “You’re a damn queer!”

Naturally, the video went viral, and Daniel Pierce became a household name; his boyfriend created a GoFundMe page to help Daniel raise enough money to live on his own and soon the page raised over $100,000.

That’s a nice chuck of change upon which to get your start, but Daniel didn’t need all that money. He opted, instead, to donate most of it to Lost-n-Found Youth to build a new shelter for LGBT homeless youth that will triple the capacity of the organization's current shelter.

But he didn’t stop with just a donation.

Daniel Pierce is now the first former client of Lost-n-Found Youth to join the organization's Board of Directors. His appointment is part of a larger effort to bring broad perspectives and skills to the organization's leadership.

"Lost-n-Found was there for support from the earliest moments and they stepped in before I ever got to the first critical 48 hours of homelessness. Their quick response is proof that there is a safe place in Atlanta for youth like me to turn to for support. Even though my personal story was extreme, I hope my experiences can continue the dialogue about GLBTQ youth homelessness and get people off the street by engaging the community." — Daniel Pierce

Funny, though, his parents raised a kind, considerate, helpful, thoughtful young man, but all they could see was someone their “faith” told them was evil and damaged and wrong when, actually, it was the other way around.

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