I wrote earlier about the plight of Laurel Hester and Stacie Andree. Hester is dying of lung cancer and when that happens it’s likely that Andree will lose the home the couple has shared because she will not receive Hester’s pension benefits. The situation could be alleviated if the county passed domestic partnership legislation as state law has permitted since New Jersey’s domestic partnership law went into effect. The county has thus far refused to act.
The good news is that Hester and Andree have community support.
A cancer-stricken law enforcement officer who wants her partner to get her death benefits got an enthusiastic show of support Wednesday, with more than 100 gay rights advocates turning out to denounce Ocean County officials for not agreeing to it.
… “Ocean County Freeholders Where’s Your Humanity?” read a sign hung from a recreational vehicle parked outside the Board’s office.
“Shame on you, Ocean County,” read a hand-lettered sign carried by Nancy McNeil, 62, of Toms River, who attended in a wheelchair. “My sign says it all,” she said. “Who are the freeholders to pass moral judgment on a woman who put her life on the line for them?”
The rally, organized by Garden State Equality, featured its chairman, Steven Goldstein, who spoke through a bullhorn and introduced a series of speakers who support Hester’s cause.
… “This is a moral issue,” said Suzannah Porter, president of the National Organization for Women’s New Jersey chapter. “It’s about time that people who talk family values start valuing families.”
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