Kathy Pinna
The "Golden Couple" Splits Up
Lyla Loehr met James Melville White, son of the Santa Cruz mayor, when they were 12. In high school, when White was the student body president, she tried to get him impeached. Not drawn to religion, Lyla believed that Mel's obsession with evangelism was a conflict of interest. White responded by asking her out. They got married when they were 22.
He had converted her to Christianity, and they had two children, Erinn and Michael (who would go on to star in the film "Chuck & Buck"). They were a "golden couple" Lyla said - smart, articulate, full of hope. And then one night, two years after they married, he picked her up from Crescenta Valley High School, where she was teaching English. He pulled into a Chinese restaurant. "I think I might be a homosexual," he said. He tried not to be. He even tried dropping homophobic comments from time to time. But it was a mirage, and he was miserable. Lyla told him to pack up. He moved out of their Pasadena home, they divorced and today they are best friends.
"I have some deep spiritual resources," she said. "and I have all of that because of Mel."
White plans to stage more protests and organize a smattering of voices into a succinct series of demand: "Mary us. Ordain us. Let us serve."
- The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Saturday, February 17, 2001 on page 237. Orange County Religion section.
He had converted her to Christianity, and they had two children, Erinn and Michael (who would go on to star in the film "Chuck & Buck"). They were a "golden couple" Lyla said - smart, articulate, full of hope. And then one night, two years after they married, he picked her up from Crescenta Valley High School, where she was teaching English. He pulled into a Chinese restaurant. "I think I might be a homosexual," he said. He tried not to be. He even tried dropping homophobic comments from time to time. But it was a mirage, and he was miserable. Lyla told him to pack up. He moved out of their Pasadena home, they divorced and today they are best friends.
"I have some deep spiritual resources," she said. "and I have all of that because of Mel."
White plans to stage more protests and organize a smattering of voices into a succinct series of demand: "Mary us. Ordain us. Let us serve."
- The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Saturday, February 17, 2001 on page 237. Orange County Religion section.
