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Fired over love
Charlotte area organist loses job for marrying his long-term partner
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by O'Neale Atkinson :: oneale@goqnotes.com
If you had not heard of Steav Bates-Congdon prior to January, you surely
have at least seen his name in the past month. Bates-Congdon has received a
lot of attention in the news, both local and national, for being fired from his job.
Bates-Congdon was fired from St. Gabriel Catholic Church in Charlotte for
marrying his partner of 23 years Bill Bates-Congdon. The two were married
In October following New York's June decision to legalize gay marriage.
Between the time of the marriage and his firing, Bates-Congdon was never
notified by the church oftheir direct opposition to his marriage nor the ramifi
cations he would face for his decision to marry.
After exchanging emails with Laurianne Flemming, a former student of
Bates-Congdon, I met up with him for coffee and was surprised when he
walked in with a dog at his side. Bates-Congdon suffers from young onset
Parkinson's disease and for years has been raising chocolate labs as
service animals to help him. As we introduced ourselves to one another,
Bates-Congdon received a call on his cell phone. He apologized
and answered the phone. It was Bill.
Bill, Bates-Congdon's partner, was on his lunch break and was calling
to check In. While I only heard one side of the conversation, I didn't need to
hear what Bill said to know what was going on. It was one
of those conversations I have everyday with my own
partner. A few "I love yous" and some talk about needs
around the house, idle chat about the other's day and the
two were off the phone again.
see Organist on 14
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