Collections by Michelle Brown WSG Whosoever Ministry's Rev. Dr. Selma Massey

Rev. Dr. Selma Massey was reared on the west side of Detroit as a Christian Scientist. It taught her a great deal including a mindset to think of God first.
When her mother discovered Massey was gay, she rebuked and rejected her. That rejection ripped her to her core.
After graduating from High School, she attended the University of Detroit Mercy receiving her bachelor’s in sociology and master’s degrees in Student Personnel Work. She earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in two and a half years because she didn’t know it couldn’t be done.
Massey went on to earn a doctorate degree in education from Western Michigan University. She then began to work in the mental health and corrections fields. While the work had its rewards, it eventually lost its appeal. In 1966 she left that profession to learn more about God..
While serving as assistant pastor of Full Truth Fellowship of Christ Church, she began to envision having her own ministry,
Whosoever Ministry has had several homes - at the YWCA building in Detroit until the it closed, in the Detroit suburb of in Birmingham , and at the Detroit Ecumenical Theological Seminary near downtown Detroit. After becoming a part of the United Church of Christ, Whosever Ministry found its home on Chalfonte Avenue in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan
The congregation expressed a desire to develop a virtual museum containing pictures, images and keepsake items that highlight LGBTQ lives. The project will be known as the American Museum of LGBTQ History. Phase one of this project is in the works. A preview of what is to come will be available on the Whosoever Ministry website this fall.
Phase two of the museum project is scheduled to preview in the summer of 2021. Eventually there will be a physical location in Detroit, a Welcome Center, for visitors and travelers