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by OnTopMag.com

Roanoke, VA — Will Trinkle and Juan Granados filed a lawsuit against Roanoke Athletic Club after it revoked their family membership, saying the couple did not qualify. On Thursday, the club reversed its stand.

The Virginia couple sued the club on June 27 for breach of contract.

Trinkle, 54, a real estate agent, and Grenados, 40, a marketing director, claim they were discriminated against because they are gay.

"Actually it was like someone punched us in the stomach," Trinkle told ABC News. "It's from a place we couldn't imagine that there would be this kind of discrimination and this kind of attack. We have come a long way but this shows we still have a long way to go."

The couple, who have a two-year-old son Oliver, at first were encourage to apply for a family membership. The lawsuit alleges that eight days after they applied and paid the family rate, they were informed by the director of operations that they did not meet the definition of family.

"We tried to resolve this with Carilion's leadership," said Trinkle, referring to the club's parent company. "We were not only told that they were sticking with their decision to kick us out, but because of us, they were 'tightening policies' so no families like us would ever 'get as far' as we had."

Roughly 40,000 people joined a Change.org petition asking the club to reverse course.

On Thursday, the Roanoke Athletic Club announced in a Facebook post that it had replaced its family membership with a gay-inclusive household membership.


Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine

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