WHEN opposites ATTRACT
“We know when to look the other way”
Dana Pham, a 33-year-old who works in human resources, is a staunch Catholic and engaged to Hayley (surname withheld), a 32-year-old doctor and selfconfessed “militant atheist”.
DANA SAYS:
“I was raised in a Catholic household but fell away from the faith as a teenager after I told a religious sister I was trans and she responded in a way that bruised me emotionally. That experience left me in limbo for years, but as I neared the end of my 20s I began to feel like something was missing; I needed to get back to my roots. The process of coming home took some time, but I reconnected with my Catholic faith and community a couple of years ago.
When Hayley and I met at a lesbian speed-dating event back in 2019, I felt a spark between us that continues to grow to this day. Obviously, many within the LGBTQI community tend to be agnostic or atheist so I don’t know that I ever expected to fall in love with someone who shares my religious beliefs. Let’s just say I wasn’t exactly surprised when Hayley revealed how she felt about religion a couple of weeks in.
My faith is a huge part of my life.
