MARCH 15 , 2005 FORT LAUDERDALE , FL -- SunServe, Fort Lauderdale 's gay and lesbian social services agency, and the Washington, DC-based Family Pride Coalition have announced additional honorees will be recognized at the second annual Valuing Our Families conference April 8-10, 2005 . This gathering of families and allies will take place at the Metropolitan Community Church 's Sunshine Cathedral in Fort Lauderdale , Florida .
In addition to previously-announced recipients Rosie and Kelli O'Donnell, Florida activists Carole Benowitz and Steven Alicea will also receive a Valuing Our Families award on Sat., April 9. Award-winning actress and activist Sharon Gless (Queer as Folk), the inaugural Valuing Our Families honoree, will present the award to the O'Donnell's.
Benowitz is the Florida state coordinator for PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). She is the founder of many of Florida 's PFLAG chapters, and has done similar work in Alabama , Georgia , Mississippi and Puerto Rico . She has recently focused her talent and energy toward connecting LGBT youth in crisis to appropriate and safe foster care.
My job, and PFLAG's, is not done until every gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex person has the same rights as I do, Benowitz said.
Steven Alicea, a 17-year-old LGBT teen advocate from Miami , has been in and out of 17 foster homes since he was 10 years old. Alicea often would flee his placements, especially after he came out at age 15. But after Alicea met Denise Hueso at Miami 's Pridelines Youth Services, all that changed. Hueso and her partner took Alicea into their home, and Alicea credits them for turning his life around.
Alicea formed a local chapter of GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network). After enduring rejection and hardship during his own years in foster care, Alicea now speaks to foster parents about issues regarding LGBT youth.
The awards will be presented on Sat., April 9 as part of a family-focused conference that will feature nearly two dozen workshops on all aspects of gay and lesbian family life, from decisions about whether to have a child to practical guidance about caring for frail elders. It also features activities for children and strategizing sessions for building allies in support of gay and lesbian families.
In addition to the host organization, the Sunshine Cathedral MCC, other co-sponsors of the conference include the National Conference for Community and Justice; Seniors Active in a Gay Environment (SAGE); Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)/ Florida , South Florida Family Pride; and the Broward Chapter of The National Organization for Women (NOW).
For more information on the conference and the award celebration, go to www.sunserve.org or call (954) 462-2004.
The Family Pride Coalition is the only national not-for-profit organization exclusively dedicated to securing equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender parents and their families.