Don Williams and Jose Ortega, a gay couple from Arizona, were recently informed that they are unwelcome on their stepdaughter’s school campus because they are gay. Williams’ ex-wife moved from California to Arizona and enrolled their daughter in a religious school without his knowledge, but after he and his husband also moved closer to the child, they were told by Pastor Billy Van Camp, who runs the school, that parents send their children to Heart Cry Christian Academy in Queen Creek to keep them safe from gay people. Williams and Ortega decided not to put themselves in harm’s way by defying Van Camp’s warning.
Williams’ ex-wife is against homosexuality, and he believes that she has put it in their daughter’s head that it is not okay. Williams notes that when his daughter stays with him and Ortega, only Williams can take her to school or pick her up because Van Camp has barred Ortega from campus because he disapproves of the couple’s relationship.
Van Camp has a history of anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs, and in 2011, he expressed disgust at including a photo of a lesbian couple in the Queen Creek High School yearbook. After threatening to remove his kids from school for exposure to objectionable materials, he finally did so after starting his school. The private school’s principal, Lisa Van Camp, is Billy’s wife, and the couple’s son, Trey Van Camp, was on staff at Heart Cry Church as an Associate Pastor before moving on to his own ministry.
Williams says that he needs to go back to court and start the process of changing his daughter’s school since his ex-wife has primary custodial custody and the right to choose where their daughter goes to school. He believes that his daughter is being poisoned against him and his husband by his ex-wife’s influence.
Although Van Camp did not respond to The Advocate’s request for comment, he stated in 2022 that he was less interested in religion and more interested in solid relationships. He was interviewed to discuss a cowboy church he started, where he preaches to a rodeo-style crowd outdoors. “I’m trying to reach the people who would never pull into the parking lot of an organized church,” Van Camp said. “I just want to reach the people who aren’t churchy. I hate religion. I love relationship[s].”
This incident raises concerns about the worldview of religious schools and the impact it has on children. Williams’ ex-wife’s disapproval of gay people and the school’s policy of keeping children safe from gay people sends a message that LGBTQ+ people are not welcome or accepted, and that is a dangerous message to send to children.
