On June 28, the Pleasanton Weekly in the diocese of Oakland carried the story “Same-sex couples celebrate in Pleasanton.”

Some excerpts:

“My partner Tim and I have been together 18 years,” said Roy Cook, a longtime Pleasanton resident. Cook and Tim Roach have been married twice, once in 2004 when San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom permitted gay marriages, and again in 2008 when gay marriage was permitted briefly after an earlier Supreme Court ruling.

Sandra J. Wing said she was glad she and her partner Gracie Santos would “receive the 1,100 federal benefits that were denied us.”

Not mentioned in the story was another couple included in a photograph with the print version of the story – Regina Stoops and Diane Berry.

There is more on Stoops and Berry from the GayintoStraightAmerica website, May 4, 2006.

“….From there we headed to the home of Regina Stoops and Diane Berry, a committed couple for 16 years.  Regina is the “Catholic comedian,” whose humor kept Dotti in stitches at WOW 2000, the “Welcome our Witness” conference of 1200 people from welcoming and affirming churches from around the United States.  Regina’s website is www.GLBTcoach.com/comedy. Regina’s humor connects with a wide range of audiences and has led to event performances as diverse as Catholic Diocese Fundraisers, Teacher’s Workshops, Gay and Lesbian Film Festivals and Corporate Retreats.  With Diane “bearing the babies” and working the corporate scene, and Regina being the “stay at home” mom…

“Regina and Diane have two beautiful children, Ryan (3 years old) and Jack (18 months).  They also have another baby on the way!  This child is due in July. What can we say…being Catholic, they don’t believe in birth control! (:

“Seriously, the donor is a magnificent man named Roy.  He and his partner, Tim, who got married in San Francisco and have been a couple for 12 years, came over for dinner on Saturday evening.”

Most relevant to Catholics, is the fact that Regina Stoops is still listed on the website of the Catholic Community of Pleasanton as a coordinator of the Faith Formation Program. Stoops’ affiliation with the Catholic church in Pleasanton goes back at least 15 years, when her pastor, Father Dan Danielson, intended to perform a lesbian wedding for her and her partner on May 9, 1998. (A protest by local Catholics kept this from happening.) Father Danielson was elected by diocesan consultors to run the diocese after Bishop Vigneron was appointed to Detroit.