National Gay Wedding Association
The National Gay Wedding Association (NGWA) has announced their inaugural Inclusive Awareness Conference, #sharethelove. The conference will take place January 4-6, 2022 in Indian Wells, California at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa. The conference will bring together like-minded wedding professionals for three days of inclusive awareness training. Join our keynote speakers, Chasten Glezman Buttigieg, Teacher, Activist, and New York Times Best Selling Author, “I Have Something to Tell You”, and Sara Cunningham, founder of Free Mom Hugs and author of, “How We Sleep at Night”. “The time is now!”, said Ric Simmons Founder & Executive Director. “The wedding industry is ready for a conference to address inclusive practices to deliver a higher level of service to LGBTQ+ couples. The support has been overwhelming and we do anticipate a complete sell-out. With only 200 in-person tickets available, and 1,000 virtual tickets, it’s important our guests walk away empowered and return to their wedding business feeling supported and educated to be a leading advocate for engaged LGBTQ+ couples. Delivering a higher expectation from all partnering vendors,” explains Ric. We have created an event that will allow for relationship building and networking. Additional tickets are available for purchase to select events.
The Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa will host conference attendees as they kick off the 3-day event with a welcome dinner & reception. Day 1 will be hosted by Cathy O’Connell, COJ Events & NGWA President. Join Cathy with inclusive speakers, advocates, and wedding industry leaders to take a close look through the eyes of an LGBTQ+ couple. Learn how to style a photoshoot, use proper hashtags, and more in one of the afternoon breakout sessions. Day 2, join our host Vice President & A Monique Affair founder, Chanda Daniels. Join Chanda along with her panel of guests and speakers, develop the plan to grow your wedding business by increasing your inclusive business practices.
The conference itinerary will take the attendees on a journey of understanding inclusiveness and inclusive business practices, focusing on one basic concept: love. Listen and learn from our panelists of leading LGBTQ+ advocates and wedding industry leaders. Please visit our website for more information.
Both in-person and virtual conference attendees will receive an Inclusive Awareness Certificate of attendance issued by the National Gay Wedding Association.
Scheduled to appear in no particular order: Jove Meyer Owner/Creative Director Jove Meyer Events @jovemeyer, Kirsten Palladino Editorial Director and co-founder @equallywed, Chanda Monique Eddens of A Monique Affair Executive Designer and Owner @cd_chandadaniels, Sara Cunningham Founder Free Mom Hugs @freemomhugs, Cathy O’Connell President & co-founder of COJ Events, a Destination Event Design & Planning Company @cojevents, Tara Melvin Founder & CEO National Society of Black Wedding & Event Professionals @NSBWEP, Julie Novack CEO co-founder PartySlate @partyslate, Courtney Sjoberg Hashtag Queen @SheSocial.co, Ricardo Tomas Lorraine Tomas of Dallas & NGWA Director of Chapter Development @lorrainetomasweddings, Lawrence & Michael Black Gay Weddings @blackgayweddings and Chasten Glezman Buttigieg, Teacher, Activist, and New York Times Best Selling Author, “I Have Something to Tell You” @chasten.buttigieg and more!
The National Gay Wedding Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that offers professional and educational resources for Professional Wedding Creatives that are invested in implementing inclusive practices for LGBTQ+ couples. In the wedding industry, we must learn the appropriate language to talk about queer couples, understand innovative and new wedding traditions, and reimagine the institution of marriage as it has existed for millennia. As advocates, we must continue to pursue equality for queer people across cultures, and acquire new resources to support and uphold these standards.
For LGBTQ+ couples, we provide a network of established inclusive-minded Professional Wedding Creatives and LGBTQ+ advocates who provide invaluable experience to engaged couples. Seeking inclusive experienced wedding professionals begins with NGWA.
If you would like additional information about the information contained in this press release, please contact the National Gay Wedding Association at 760-799-0809 or email us at [email protected].
SOURCE National Gay Wedding Association
