Dear Friends,
Here is the most recent information on our ExGay Survivors Conference, June 29 – July 1, 2007. The conference promises to be a powerful mix of interactive workshops, multiple community-building opportunities, dynamic musical performances, and film clips from featured documentaries.
If you're flying into the John Wayne/Orange County Airport there is a free shuttle to the hotel. Just look for the Doubletree hotel van outside of the airport. If there is no van there, there are phones to call for a van.
If you're flying into LAX, there are two shuttles, Super Shuttle — (800) BLUE VAN (258-3826) — and Prime Time Shuttle — (800) RED-VANS — that provide transportation to the hotel. The cost from LAX to the hotel is approximately $35.00.
Here is the conference schedule. Don't forget the pre-conference book signing at 4pm on Friday at the UCC Congregational Church at 4915 Alton Parkway, just a 10 min drive from UCI. Authors Wayne Besen (Anything But Straight), Darlene Bogle, (A Christian Lesbian Journey), and Rev. Mel White (Stranger at the Gate and Religion Gone Bad) will be there to sign their books.
Early registration begins at 6pm on Friday at Crystal Cove Auditorium in the UCI Student Center (see University of California-Irvine campus map page).
Peterson Toscano will kick things off on Friday, June 29 at 7pm with his hilarious performance of Doing time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House: How I survived the Ex-Gay Movement."
That performance, also in the Crystal Cove Auditorium, is free and open to the public, so bring a friend!
Registration begins Saturday morning at 8am.
If you are arriving by car, plan on parking at the SOCIAL SCIENCE PARKING STRUCTURE (SSPS-1) located at the corner of Campus Drive and Stanford (campus parking map) by 8am. The parking fee there is $2/hour with a max of $7 per day. Designated conference volunteers wearing purple conference t-shirts will meet you there and direct you to the right building for registration and opening festivities.
Transportation from the hotel to UCI is available via the Orange County Transit Authority (OCTA). The following routes go by the campus: Route #s 59, 79, 175, 178, and 470 all go by the campus.
The workshops on Saturday will provide valuable information to survivors, allies, clergy, and mental health professionals. Every workshop is carefully designed to be interactive so that your voice, if you wish, is heard and your experiences are shared as part of the learning process. We are excited about the possibilities for ongoing connection and support that will come out of this conference, and the potential for all of us to become stronger advocates for social justice.
Refreshments will be available throughout the day and we invite you to enjoy lunch and dinner with other conference attendees at one of the restaurants in the area.
On Saturday, there will be optional opportunities for survivors to record their personal stories on video in order to help Soulforce and BeyondExGay.com can continue to educate the public about the damage caused by reparative therapy and ex-gay ministries. We'll have a release form available for you to sign, should you wish to help us with this project.
On Sunday, those who wish are invited to attend Irvine UCC Congregational Church, Christ Chapel MCC, or a spirituality discussion group at UC-I (or a place to be determined). Those who plan to stay on Sunday are welcome to attend one of the optional workshops available on Sunday afternoon. Please take a look at the conference schedule for a list of speakers and workshops.
Our official hotel for the weekend is:
Doubletree Hotel Irvine Spectrum
90 Pacifica Avenue
(maps and directions)
949-471-8888
DoubletreeIrvineSpectrum.com
The Soulforce special rate of $105.00 Standard/$125.00 Executive Level per night Friday - Sunday, single or double occupancy stay, was available if you registered on or before June 22. Parking is free (the usual $7.00 fee has been waived) and there is roundtrip shuttle service from the hotel to the University of California-Irvine for a nominal fee of $3.00 per person each way.
A shuttle to the Irvine Spectrum Entertainment Center is also available that hosts movie cinemas, restaurants, and shopping. The hotel has an outdoor swimming pool, whirlpool, and fitness center. When making reservations online, be sure to use the "Group/Convention Code"of SFI and remember that the CUTOFF DATE FOR THIS OFFER WAS 6/22/07.
Many thanks to our friends at the LGBT Resource Center, University of California-Irvine, for graciously providing the space for this event.
We're looking forward to seeing you in Irvine. If you have any last minute questions you can reach Kara through Wednesday at Kara@Soulforce.org; after that we won't be checking emails until after the conference, but you can try us at bxg@BeyondExGay.com
Jeff Lutes, MS, LPC
Executive Director
Soulforce, Inc.
