Jake Reitan
Equality Ride Co-Director
While Jake was a student at Northwestern University, he met a young man from Wheaton, a Christian college near Chicago, and was taken aback by what this young man had to say. If people at Wheaton discovered he was gay, he would be expelled from school.
Jake was shocked to learn that not only is it against Wheaton school policy to be openly gay, but, in fact, hundreds of colleges across the country have a similar policy. Something needed to be done, so he approached Soulforce about creating the Equality Ride.
Jake is an intense, passionate, outspoken leader who never backs down from a fight. But will his passion for justice motivate those around him, or will he alienate them by being overzealous?
Haven Herrin
Equality Ride Co-Director
Haven’s own spirituality differs from many riders in that she believes in a mix of Christianity and Buddhism. Her experience of growing up in a progressive family outside Dallas, Texas gives her a unique perspective on the challenges the riders will face.
An artist by training rather than an activist, she approaches people and situations thoughtfully and carefully, bringing a calm, gentle poise to her role. However, her lack of leadership experience often leaves her self-conscious about her own abilities.
Jarrett Lucas
Equality Rider
Raised by his strict Mexican, Jehovah’s Witness grandparents after the death of his mother, Jarrett was kicked out of this home at 14 when his grandfather discovered he was gay.
Jarrett is Mexican, Cuban and Moroccan, speaks three languages fluently, and is only 32 credits away from his masters degree in architectural and computer engineering.
He is an intense scholar of the Bible, able to debate passages with even the most staunch right-wing conservative.
Kayla Bonewell
Equality Rider
Life as a graduate theology student at liberal, San Francisco-area Pacific School of Religion is a far cry from Kayla's conservative Christian family in Oklahoma. Knowledgeable about all facets of Bible scholarship, Kayla is a devout Christian...an identity which she struggled to hold on to while coming out. Now, embraced by her faith community, she boldly states her case that being gay and Christian are not mutually-exclusive, but will her own faith be tested due to conflict with her family, making Equality Ride too heavy a burden to bear?
Alexey Bulokhov
Equality Rider
Growing up in Russia where speech was neither free nor really speech, Alexey learned the value of meaningful dialogue around important issues. As he embarks on the Equality Ride, he is enthusiastic and believes he's ready for anything, but soon learns the road to equality can be an exhausting one. Will he have the stamina to deal with the internal and external drama that plagues the Riders?
Pam Disel
Equality Rider
From rural Shawnee, Oklahoma, Pam was a victim of a brutal gay-bashing. Pam knows that the one-day presence of open and affirming LGBT Equality Riders on these campuses will not immediately change their policies. But she is driven by a sense of moral responsibility to make a stand, share her story, and be a supportive force for those that cannot stand on their own.
Katie Higgins
Equality Rider
Katie grew up with a distrust for Christians that only intensified as she grew older and came out. She questions whether Christians really want to embrace LGBT people or continue kicking them out of their homes and churches. Along the way, will this line of questioning push her farther away from Christians, or will it give her a new-found faith in humanity...and in God?
David Coleman
Equality Rider
A devout Pentecostal, David was expelled during his final semester at North Central University for refusing to seek counseling intended to change his sexual orientation. Before he left the campus, students laid their hands on him to cast out the demon of homosexuality. When the Equality Ride visits North Central how will David be received at his former university?
