As a proud AfroRican, who is an outspoken theologically progressive Christian, The Rev. Elivette (Elly) Mendez Angulo serves as the Program Manager of Franklinton Center at Bricks.  FCAB allows her the privilege of engaging with the works of local, national, and international Justice Advocates.  She is excited to be able to engage with youth of all ages using the history of the site to exercise the lived reality of what it means to do and be about justice.

Elly served as Summer 2018 co-Coordinator of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America’s Summer Conference with the theme Decentering Power & Privilege: Becoming a Peculiar People (1 Peter 2:4-10).  During that time, Rev. Elly spoke about living on a spectrum of truths that are affected and infected by many cultures… where by the very act of choosing to be followers of Jesucristo (the Divine made flesh)… by choosing to follow a Palestinian Jew who turned water into wine…  who freed the captives from all the binds of oppression by allowing his healing blood to be shed as a public sacrifice for all…  by believing – even just a mustard seeds worth – we become a peculiar people.  Strange.  No longer fitting into the expected societal norms.

From 2015-2019, Rev. Elly served as the National Coordinator of Encuentros de Gracia y Bienvenida, an initiative of the United Church of Christ that engaged the faithful in prayerful dialogue regarding the intersection of sexual orientation, race/ethnicity (as it pertains to the Latinx identity) and faith. She offered workshops and training opportunities to engage in sacred conversations of grace and welcome, while using a multicultural, multigenerational exercise she created called “Identity Bowling” to discuss ways in which intersectionality affects each of us, and how – event through the difficulties – we can build a more just-filled world together.

Under the Magnolia Tree, FCAB Area of Remembrance

Rev. Elly has served as co-pastor and teacher of Manantial de Gracia “Spring of Grace” United Church of Christ in West Hartford, Connecticut since 2015, when she graduated from Andover Newton Theological School with a Masters Degree in Divinity. She enjoys traveling, photography, blogging and talking about her love of the all God’s creation. Since 2017 she has been serving on the Board of Parity and is proud of the work that they do!

She is a committed queer woman of faith who loves and serves both her partner and the Divine, having responded to the call to minister and serve all of God’s creation beginning at home. You are invited to follow her journey here on www.thruelly.com.