A Light in East County: Santee United Methodist Church Receives San Diego Pride’s Light of Pride Award

By Cesar A Reyes

For more than a century, Santee United Methodist Church has served East County with a simple mission: to love its neighbors, meet people where they are, and make sure no one feels forgotten. Since its founding in 1911, that mission has taken the shape of food programs, clothing closets, community meals, and quiet acts of care that have kept the church deeply rooted in the everyday needs of the people around it. This year, that long-standing commitment has earned the congregation San Diego Pride’s 2026 Light of Pride Award.

For Rev. Jaime Pangman, who has led the church since 2020, the honor feels both meaningful and unexpected.

“It is a bit surreal to imagine that we have received the Light of Pride Award this year,” he said. “In years past, I had seen the past honorees and wondered at their years of advocacy and hoped to live up to their example.”

At Santee United Methodist, faith has always been measured in action. A free monthly pancake breakfast has run for more than 16 years without missing a first Saturday. Naomi’s Closet offers free clothing and essentials for women in need. A blessing box provides food for anyone who needs it. Holiday meal programs help families gather with dignity, and when food assistance cuts threatened local residents, the church responded by opening weekly community dinners.

“Our desire is not to be the best church in our community, but the best church for our community,” Pangman said.

That same spirit led the congregation into LGBTQ+ advocacy. In 2021, during the pandemic, the church’s youth group organized a virtual Santee Pride Walk. What began as a small act of solidarity grew into an annual local Pride celebration, now including a community walk, entertainment, vendors, nonprofits, and families gathering openly in East County.

The growth came during a tense time in the region, when national attention turned toward protests against transgender people at a local YMCA. Instead of stepping back, the church stepped forward.

“As a result, we were highlighted on the local news as a counter to the forces of hate and exclusion,” Pangman said. “Hundreds of people showed up in solidarity.”

One moment stayed with him. A visitor told him they attend San Diego Pride every year, but felt they needed to be in Santee.

“They said they needed to be present here because this is where it matters most.”

For Pangman, that captures why visibility matters. In places where LGBTQ+ people may feel isolated, presence itself can be powerful. That belief helped guide the church’s decision in 2024 to join the Reconciling Ministries Network, formally affirming LGBTQ+ people in every part of church life, including marriage, leadership, and ordination.

Still, he knows trust is not automatic.

“The trauma people have experienced at the hands of religious communities would mean people would mistrust us,” he said. “If we are going to show that we are safe, and that all people can truly belong here, we have to be visible.”

That visibility is not always comfortable. Questions about safety and backlash still surface. But the congregation continues to choose openness over silence.

“There are always concerns wondering if we should be a bit more careful, a bit quieter,” Pangman said. “But we always make the harder choice, because that is how things change.”

Receiving the Light of Pride Award, he says, affirms that path.

“It feels like a reassurance to keep making those harder choices because they matter.”

Today, a rainbow mural on the church grounds reads: “YOU ARE a child of God and a person OF WORTH.” It reflects the heart of what Santee United Methodist Church has become—a place where faith and belonging are not conditional, and where being a light in the community means standing firmly with love, even when it is not the easiest path to take.