Attend the 15th Annual Rainbow Families Conference, Apr 10

Saturday, April 10, 2010
8:30am–4:30pm
Anwatin/Bryn Mawr Schools
256 Upton Ave. S., Minneapolis
Whether you’ve been numerous times or this will be your first, the Rainbow Families Conference has something for everyone!

Come to re-energize, celebrate, be empowered and affirmed, and reconnect with old friends. Come to get information and resources and to build community. Come to provide your children with a rare opportunity to spend a day surrounded by other kids with families like theirs.

Complete list of workshops and affinity group gatherings.

Keynote Speaker — B.D. Wong
We are thrilled and honored to have Tony Award-winning actor, B.D. Wong as our keynote speaker. B.D. Wong is also the author of Following Foo: the Electronic Adventures of the Chestnut Man, a memoir about his experience with surrogacy. To learn more about B.D. Wong please click here.

Children’s Programming
Family Equality Council’s children’s programming will engage children in fun, educational and empowering activities that encourage connection, leadership, and pride in their identity as children of lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender parents and families. Children’s programming is available for children aged 1 through 8. Youth ages 9 and older will participate in COLAGE programming. Look for more details about children and youth programming coming soon! The last day to register children is April 5th.

What if I can’t afford to attend the Conference?
A sliding fee scale is available for individuals and families who are unable to afford full price admission to the Conference. Please contact Ember Cook at ember.cook@familyequality.org or 617-502-8700 ext. 233 for more information.

Register and get more information.

In celebration of the 15 year history of the event, we invite you join and upload photos from previous years to the 15th Annual Rainbow Families Conference Facebook event page. We would also love to hear your stories about the past 15 years. Please share your stories here.

Affinity Group Facilitators Needed for Rainbow Families Conference

A new feature of the 15th Annual Rainbow Families Conference will be affinity group gatherings—informal discussion groups centered on particular identities providing an opportunity for participants to meet and talk with other parents dealing with similar issues and experiences. Sessions will be facilitated to help guide the discussion, but there will be ample opportunity for participants to shape the discussion and bring questions or thoughts to the group.

Some of the possible affinity groups may include:

• Transgender and gender non-conforming parents
• Bisexual parents
• Parents of ‘tweens and teens
• Parents of color
• Parents who came out later in life
• White parents raising kids of color
• Parents raising kids with disabilities
• Single parents
• Dads
• Divorced and blended families
• Prospective parents
• Parents with kids aged newborn-5
• Parents with elementary aged kids
• Parents in the ‘burbs
• Parents in rural areas
• Empty nesters & LGBT grandparents
• LGBT educators
• Straight allies

We are seeking strong facilitators for these gatherings—people who can skillfully guide the conversation. Interested in being a facilitator or have an idea for an affinity group? Please email Stephanie Hazen at stephanie.hazen@familyequality.org for a Facilitator Application Form and to submit group ideas. Facilitator applications are due by January 29th.

Rainbow Familes Conference Workshop Proposal Deadline Extended to Jan 11

The deadline for workshop proposals for the 15th Annual Rainbow Families Conference has been extended a few more days. Proposals must be submitted by Monday, January 11th for consideration. Click here to download the application.

The conference will be held on April 10, 2010 in Minneapolis. We are seeking presenters for workshops in the following tracks:

• Creating Families
• Parenting
• Social Justice
• Legal and Financial
• Educators in Action

For workshop questions, please email Stephanie Hazen at stephanie.hazen@familyequality.org or call 651-644-4848 x3. For other conference-related questions, please contact Ember Cook at ember.cook@familyequality.org.