Man's Attempt to Raise Money for Christian Bakers Falls Short of Goal
An attempt to raise money for a Christian couple from Oregon who refused to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple has reportedly failed to raise a significant amount of funds.
Back in October, Matt Stolhandske, a board member of Evangelicals for Marriage Equality, announced his intention to start an online fundraising event for Aaron and Melissa Klein, the owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa Bakery in Oregon.
Earlier in the year, the Kleins had been accused of refusing to bake a wedding cake for a lesbian couple due to their Christian religious beliefs. The Kleins were subsequently taken to court and ordered to pay a $150,000 discrimination fine to the couple.
The couple, who also have children, then said they were facing tough economic times due to the hefty fine. In response, Stolhandske started a fundraiser online to help the Kleins pay off their fine. Stohandske wrote in an Op-Ed for The Washington Post that he was starting the fundraiser to show the Kleins the importance of unconditional love.
Now, however, Stolhandske told The Washington Post in a recent email that his fundraising plan has fallen flat, with only 334 donors participating in the campaign with small monetary donations.
"While I am disappointed that we did not meet our admittedly aggressive financial objective, I'm encouraged by the outpouring of support from Christians all over the world who joined me in extending an olive branch to the family," Stolhandske wrote in the email. "This fundraiser wasn't singularly focused on raising money: I also wanted to send the Kleins a message of kindness and compassion in an effort to change the tenor of our faithful conversation about marriage equality from one of intolerance to one of love."
