Two Florida women who are in a relationship and worked at the same daycare center are fighting to get their jobs back after they were fired for being gay . Jaclyn Pfeiffer , 29 , worked at the Aloma Methodist Early Childhood Learning Center in Orange County full-time for the last 18 months , while her partner , Kelly Bardier , 33 , was recently employed as a part-time teacher . The two have been together since October . However they were both terminated after the director , Barbara Twachtman , heard rumors about the two and asked Pfeiffer whether she was seeing Bardier . ' I feel like if a person can do their job , gay , straight or whatever , they should be able to work and do their job that they love to do , ' Pfieffer told Click Orlando . Fired for being gay : According to Jaclyn Pfeiffer , 29 ( left ) , rumors of her sexual orientation began to circulate after her girlfriend , Kelly Bardier , 33 ( right ) , took a job in another part of the school as a substitute teacher . Termination : Even though the couple insisted they had tried to keep their relationship private , the director of Aloma Methodist Early Childhood Learning Center fired both of them because of their sexuality . School : Aloma Methodist Early Childhood Learning Center receives $ 2,442 in taxpayer funding per child from the state of Florida for providing voluntary prekindergarten ( VPK ) during the school year . ' I never thought they would actually fire me for being gay . ' Bardier added that she was given the option to 'change her lifestyle ' to keep her position . The daycare is run by Aloma United Methodist Church . In a statement , the church said they 'felt the need ' to let both women go . 'We can say decisions regarding their employment involve long-standing local church policies intended to reflect the beliefs and values of this congregation , ' Gretchen Hastings , director of communications for the Florida Conference UMC , said in a statement to Click Orlando . 'These are policies applicable to all employees . Our church continues to be in prayer for all of those affected . ' Together : Jaclyn Pfeiffer , 29 , and Kelly Bardier , 33 , seen here at Disney World , have been together since October last year . However Pfieffer and Bardier are hitting back . They content they were unaware of the church 's stance against gays when they accepted their jobs . They have now hired a lawyer , Mary Meeks , who maintains that religious freedom does not mean workers can be fired because of their sexual orientation . They have threatened to sue Aloma United Methodist Church if they do not reinstate Pfieffer and Barider and offer an apology by April 15 . According to The Orlando Sentinel , a resolution passed in 2008 states that the church opposes 'all forms of violence or discrimination based on gender , gender identity , sexual practice or sexual orientation ' . Strict : Despite the state funding , Aloma Methodist broke no state or federal laws when the couple 's employment was terminated , they maintain . After the two were fired , Twatchman emailed parents saying Pfeiffer , who is well-like by the two-year-olds she cares for , had decided to leave for 'personal reasons ' . Twatchman added she had been a 'wonderful teacher ' who was 'gifted with children ' . ' I am very sad that she is leaving , ' the email said , according to The Sentinel . Unemployed : Jaclyn Pfeiffer and Kelly Bardier say they were terminated from their jobs at Aloma Methodist Early Childhood Learning Center after the school discovered they were in a relationship .
Jaclyn Pfeiffer , 29 , worked at the Aloma Methodist Early Childhood Learning Center in Orange County , Florida , full-time for about 18 months . She started dating Kelly Bardier , 33 , in October . Bardier recently started part-time at the daycare . Both were fired when staff learned of their relationship . TL;DR A man and woman who had been married less than a year have filed suit against each other claiming they are being discriminated against because of their sexual orientation.