Sara Cunningham, 54, took to Facebook to extend her offer to stand in as a supportive mother at same-sex weddings
One Oklahoma mother is making headlines after her adorable Facebook post offering her love and support to same-sex couples went viral.
Sara Cunningham, a 54-year-old mother-of-two and ordained minister from Oklahoma City, shared a PSA on her Facebook page last Friday: “If you need a mom to attend your same sex wedding because your biological mom won’t. Call me. I’m there. I’ll be your biggest fan. I’ll even bring the bubbles.”
The post promptly blew up, garnering some 1,400 comments and 8,400 shares. It’s even more wholesome given the context: Cunningham tells NBC News the post was prompted by a conversation she’d had at a wedding rehearsal for a lesbian couple, where one of the brides recalled her mother asking “for a heads-up” so she could turn away when her daughter kissed the bride.
Cunningham added that the photo in the post was snapped in 2013, and the necklace she’s wearing in the shot was gifted to her by her gay son and his then-partner.
Though she’s since come around to her son’s sexuality, Cunningham wasn’t always so accepting. When her son came out to her, she assumed it was just a phase, but an earnest conversation with her son caused her to reevaluate her prejudices. “I wrestled with my faith as if I had to choose between my faith and my son,” Cunningham recalled. “I reexamined everything I believed.”
Today, Cunningham runs Free Mom Hugs, an organization that offers educational resources about the LGBTQ community to schools, churches, and hospitals.
She became ordained by her pastor to officiate same-sex weddings and continues to champion queer inclusion and acceptance. And her viral Facebook post has been incredibly well-received: Cunningham says she’s gotten more than 100 private messages from LGBTQ people and their families thanking her for her show of support.
“Everyone needs their mom,” she said. “To deny that on the most important day of their lives is devastating. I wanted to make the day better.”
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