Zak Stowe's Friend from Martin Luther College - WELS. Sam Birner To Become "Amber Noel Birner" - And Says to Zak Stowe, "I Caught Your Gay."

Sam Birner, WELS college student, Martin Luther College

Zak Stowe - his MLC friend.

The change began before he graduated from Martin Luther College -

dating a boy and getting hormone treatments.

What did Schone say about that?

WELS GLBTQ and Allies on Facebook

I am transgender and once this status is a couple of days old I will be changing my name on here to Amber Noel Birner.

I know it’s a confusing thing for some people, and most of you probably have never talked to a trans person. So, first of all, please feel free to ask me questions to help you understand, I’m always open to educating people 

I know people tend to skip over statuses if they don’t look interesting, so I wanted to make the point very clear and the first thing seen, and now for explanation.

I have been hiding for far too long in my life. Not just from all of you, but from myself. The feelings have always been there. I can recall feelings all the way back to 5 years old. I have had a lot of grief over the issues. I have faced harassment and depression because of them. I have been driven to the brink of suicide multiple times, both in high school and in college. And finally, I realized that if I don’t do something about the feelings, they will literally kill me.

I have never felt aligned with my gender, I have always felt uncomfortable in my body. I never knew quite why, but I just did not ever like what I saw in the mirror. It horrified me every day. I would spend nights lying awake, crying, and just self-loathing over the thoughts. It wasn’t a “gay phase” or that I’m just gay. This is nothing to do with my sexuality, this is to do with me. And it took me until a year and a half ago to finally admit to myself what was going on.

Since I have accepted this, things have improved significantly. Just the admittance itself gave me great relief and confidence. When I first came to terms with it I started exercising, I was sleeping better and more “on schedule” and was generally happier. I have had a boyfriend for the past year who has supported me every step of the way in this journey. And now, exactly 13 weeks ago, I began hormone replacement therapy so my body will produce less testosterone and run more on estrogen and progesterone. Never have I felt more like myself. It is the happiest, most confident, and just generally most content with myself I have ever felt. It was like something clicked in my brain, and it all made way more sense.

And so, it is with that that I tell you I will no longer be lying to you all, or to myself, about who I am. I will change my name on here to Amber Noel Birner. I am not a confused man, or a gay man, or someone afraid to be gay, I am not a man becoming a woman or pretending to be a woman. I have always been a woman. The only difference now is that I am one that is finally accepting who she is.

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Requests from Sam Birner, sent to Ichabod

35 people like this.

Sam Birner Also, people I tagged in this, I tagged you because you all are just a few of the amazing support I've had this past year, and I can't thank you enough for that 

4 hrs · Like · 4

Aaron Pretzer You're welcome! 

4 hrs · Edited · Like · 1

Segun David Delu So i only have two questions. One why did u decide to have noel be ur middle name? And two does this mean ur no longer going to be in the WELS?

4 hrs · Like

Sam Birner 1. I just like how it sounds  Like, honestly, that's literally the only reason, it just sounds nice
2. Correct

4 hrs · Like · 1

Segun David Delu Very well then..... Actually now i have a follow up question. Do u still consider urself a believer in Christ?

4 hrs · Like

Sam Birner Yeh

4 hrs · Like · 1

Zachary Bambach I'm so happy for you!!!

4 hrs · Like · 2

Segun David Delu Well. Ok then. I wish u the best! I hope u find more peace in ur life with this decision. 

4 hrs · Like · 2

Laura Natalie Hogg Okay, now I'm all teary-eyed. I'm so incredibly proud of you, Amber, and it's a privilege to know you. 

4 hrs · Like · 3

Sam Birner If I get bigger boobs than you I'm gonna have back problems O.O

4 hrs · Like · 2

Scott Cooper I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!! Nothing in the world can be better than being who you truly are. You are a beautiful person, and loved by many. Never ever forget that

4 hrs · Like · 2

Nathaniel Birner Seriously?! Not Samantha?!

4 hrs · Like · 3

Sam Birner Haha, sorry to disappoint 

4 hrs · Like · 1

Sam Birner But really though, the reason I didn't go with "Samantha" is because "Sam" is still kinda really tied to "guy me" which was making it harder to move on from

4 hrs · Like · 2

Nathaniel Birner Makes sense

4 hrs · Like

Vaun Niklaus Christiansen hell yeah buddy 

3 hrs · Like · 2

Ryan Palone Very nicely spoken! I wish I could be so eliquent in my speeches!  you know im rooting for you hun!  i pretty much abandoned this account for my alt one..tho i should probably come out on this one too..

3 hrs · Like · 2

Joy Fay Salzwedel Woot!!

3 hrs · Like · 2

Joshua Hendricks We used to talk a lot more than we do now Amber, but I still stand with you.

3 hrs · Like · 2

Celia Eats Tacos I dont know you, but I know a friend of yours and I just wanted to say YAY! Good for you, Amber. You deserve happiness and there will be support for you every step of the way!

3 hrs · Edited · Like · 3

Celia Eats Tacos Oops. tagged wrong. Haha

3 hrs · Like

Sam Birner Gah, Everyone's gonna make me cry! My boyfriend's sitting here with me watching the comments come in and I'm like "Ahhhhhh "

3 hrs · Like · 4

Rick Scharf I have seen you grow up and I think it's hard for a lot of people to understand. I also know people couldn't understand my decisions all the time either. I think we all spend so much time trying to fit in and do what other people think we should do. At some point you lose yourself. Life is a great struggle and especially when you struggle with yourself. Im just glad you have found and accepted who you are. God still loves you and so do your friends and family.

3 hrs · Like · 8

Sam Birner And a bunch of people I don't or barely know and people I haven't talked to since gradeschool! Ahhhh! Everyone's so awesome!

3 hrs · Like · 1

Jordan Blythe Proud of you my friend

3 hrs · Like · 1

Alex Sorkin

3 hrs · Like · 1

Sandy Lane Sam, as long as you are honest with yourself and true to God that's all that matters. We all have different paths to take and different journeys to go on and, imo, shouldn't judge each other on the steps that are taken. They are your steps, and yours alone, and only you and God know what's best.  As an accepting friend of yours for a few years now I wish you all the best and peace.

2 hrs · Edited · Like · 1

Celia Eats Tacos Oh my god. I want to cry. I see all of these REAL Christians being accepting and honoring your choices brings me peace. I am so freaking happy. You are all amazing. With all this Justice for Leelah Alcorn talk, it makes me so happy to see so many positive people. Please keep loving each other, because all you have is each other. Stuff goes away, but people stay. Kudos.

2 hrs · Like · 2

Kaitlyn Lavaun Bannister THAT'S MY GIRL!!! I'll love you no matter what. And you'll always be the same person I went to highschool with. Your gender won't change how much i love you as a person. And i'll be here if you need me. I am so proud of you for being true to yourself.

1 hr · Like · 1

Patrick M. Hayes 

34 mins · Like

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WELS Martin Luther College Plagiarizes Jerry Kimmel Show

Did Jimmy Kimmel copy WELS verbatim - or - did WELS do it again? When a WELS member sent me the MLC link, I googled the title and got the Kimmel original.

Kimmel is one of the least funny men on TV, substituting gross porno jokes for satire.

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Cease and Desist Letter from Joel Osteen Ministries - Re: The Mark Jeske Post

Rev Victoria Osteen and Rev Joel Osteen

Dear Ichabod,

I am a positive person, as everyone knows, and I wanted to ignore your blog, which nobody reads. But my attorneys and my wife urged me to demand a cease and desist.

You compared me to Mark Jeske, which is cruel, slanderous, and unfair. You did not sit down with me and share your concerns with me. And why drag my name through the Wisconsin Synod mud? Or is that Missouri mud?  Vickie and I cannot figure out where this Jeske comes from. But we are all going to the same place, right?

First - I do not use my position to sell insurance. Nor would I ever use my newsletters and worship materials to promote a business like that. Can you imagine me thanking Thrivent for $14.57 in matching funds? We had $600,000 stolen from our safe. You know what we said, "There goes coffee hour for a week!"
Second - Your Thrivent people invited The Wolf of Wall Street to be a motivational speaker at their big meeting. They loved listening to a coke addict, stock fraudster, liar, adulterer. I would never sink that low or be on their governing board. I have principles.
Third - I would never beg a bunch of businesses to donate stuff we could sell, and hire attorneys to arrange it for us. And your Mark Jeske already has his schools supported with taxes. You know what we say in Texas? "How many trotters can you stick in the feeding trough? Not more than four? Haha."
Fourth - I teach and live prosperity. Your guy advocates urban ministry but lives in a luxury house away from his church. I am consistent, even though I borrowed a lot of my tips from your Wisconsin people. Talk rich, live rich - my motto.

All I need is for you to apologize for the post and stop comparing me to Mark Jeske. I will never sink to that level, I promise.

Yours In Making Every Day a Friday,

Rev. Joel Osteen.


PS - My dear husband Joel is too busy doing positive and uplifting things to write a letter to a blogster nobody reads, so I composed the letter and signed it for him. His lifelong quest is to keep me out of jail, so don't go and make me really mad.

Love,

The Reverend Victoria Osteen

Funny Sassy Stories

Christmas lasts until the Day of Epiphany, Sassy reminds you.

Sassy is getting older, but that only makes her more skilled in managing her household. Yesterday she began wagging her tail...more like thumping her tail against the bed. She looked at me, "You know what I want."

It was time for her walk, so I suited up and grabbed her leash. Our current deal is she goes without her leash on our block only. When we get back to Letha, she stops moving until I take the leash off.
She rewards my correct responses with smiles.

I did some grilling and we were going to save bones for later, since Sassy gets scraps from us and meat juice from the tray. I was cleaning up when I heard "crunch, crunch" in the living room. Sassy is not one to steal food, but this time she quietly took a bone from my plate when my back was turned. I invited her outdoors to hide the evidence of her crime and not implicate my lax supervision.

She knows how to work the whole crowd when Team Jackson is over for a cookout. Afterwards she sleeps all day.

Sassy loves car trips and knows our stops quite well. She saves her happy bark for the turn into our neighborhood.

When I buy something at the meat market, she inspects the bag with her nose. She holds it over the bag and takes an olfactory inventory of everything inside. She knows all our familiar routes, so she gets yowly when we head into the industrial part of Springdale for the meat market.

The sad look is good for starting guessing games.
The correct answer is - "Let's go for a walk."

Sassy assumes her job is to watch over us. When our helper came to the door at the end of his work, Sassy headed outside and set up a watch of our cul-de-sac. She carefully scanned everything going on, something she does if I sit and visit with neighbors on our walks. However, if I stand and talk to someone, she soon begins barking at me to get going. "Do you have an appointment somewhere, Sassy?"

"Bark, bark."

"Are you in a hurry today?"

"Bark!"

Sassy knows every sign of a potential walk, and she observes carefully. She hears me quietly sticking my feet into loafers. A walk! So I was brushing my teeth and she appeared in the bathroom doorway, laughing. I said, "You guessed it." She disappeared for a few minutes and came back, laughing again. "OK, Sassy, let's go."

Then the barking began and did not stop until we were outside the door.

Sassy has the intelligence and independence of her parents - a Cattle Dog and a German Shepherd. She is remarkably intuitive, a mind-reader and emotion-reader.

Our grandaughter tilted the easy-chair backwards and laughed.
I asked Danielle to hold the post for a photo.
Sassy walked into the frame to photobomb Dani.