[PCNJ-news] PCNJ News & Updates - 1/24/06

[pridecenter-news at pridecenter.org]

The Pride Center of New Jersey
News & Updates - January 24, 2006

See www.pridecenter.org for lot's more group and
activity information!

Openings for New Volunteers and Board Members! Contact
the Pride Center of New Jersey for more information!

1. NEW GROUP! OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS
2. PCNJ 4th ANNUAL VALENTINE's DAY GALA - Feb 18
3. Eastern Regional Womyn of Colour Conference - Mar 4
4. CLUBFEST - Apr 8
5. OCEAN COUNTY TO GRANT BENEFITS

1. NEW GROUP! OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS
Overeater's Anonymous: Mondays, 7:30pm.  A program of
recovery for compulsive overeaters using the 12 Steps
and 12 Traditions.  Although the only requirement for
membership is a desire to stop eating compulsively,
there will be a GLBT special focus.  For more
information, please contact Mark D. at 973-879-3038. 

2. PCNJ 4th ANNUAL VALENTINE's DAY GALA - Feb 18
Date: Saturday, February 18, 2006
Time: 7 PM to midnight
Location: The Holiday Inn, 390 Forsgate Drive, Monroe
Township, NJ  609-655-4775
Cost: Members - $48, Non-Members $55.
Dinner buffet, cash bar, live music, door & raffle
prizes.
Back by popular demand: Cosmic Entertainment.
Room rates: $95 plus tax, includes breakfast for two
the next morning. Call hotel directly and ask for
Pride Center rate.
Please make check payable to "PCNJ" and mail to:
Laura Fragapane, 20B Ashley Road, Whiting, NJ  08759
Call 732-350-9509 for more information.

3. 9th Annual  Eastern Regional Womyn of Colour
Conference - Mar 4
African Asian Latina Lesbians United
Proudly Presents
.
9th Annual Eastern Regional Womyn of Colour Conference

Shaping  & Defining Your Future: Personally,
Physically, and Politically
Saturday & Sunday, March 4 - 5, 2006
Rutgers University, Newark NJ
This two-day conference will provide enlightening
workshops that will address our intellectual,
emotional, and spiritual being.  It will focus on the
uniqueness of our diversity as well as our individual
strengths.  The days will include several empowering
workshops addressing these topics of interest and
concerns for womyn, as well as entertainment, arts and
so much more.  
The conference is being planned by several womyn of
colour organizations and individuals who contribute
greatly to the l/g/b/t/i community.  Some of the
organizations consist of:
African Ancestral Lesbians United for Societal Change
(AALUSC)   
Audre Lorde Project (ALP)
Liberation in Truth Church Unity Fellowship Church    
Metropolitan Community Church of Christ  the Liberator
Pride Center of New Jersey 
SableMagazine                                         
South Asian Lesbians and Gay Assoc. (SALGA)           
South Jersey Lesbians of Colour (SJLOC)               
Workshop topics will include sex and sexuality,
spirituality, labor issues, legal concerns, racism or
sexism among women, bi-cultural relationships,
community violence, mental and physical health & well
being, parenting/adoption/family issues, finance and
real estate.
Each registered participant will receive free valuable
give-a ways just for attending this event.  Complete
hot gourmet breakfast and lunch will be provided. 
Advance Registration: $75.00 if purchased before
1/31/05
$95.00 after 1/31/05
 NO ON SITE REGISTRATION ALLOWED 
Interpreters will be available upon request
 For hotel accommodations contact the Hampton Inn &
Suites 973 483 1900 ask for the AALLU Conference Rate
- RUT  Space is Limited!
 Vendors Welcomed! Contact Marybeth at 973 783 - 6788
or marybethboger at hotmail.com
 Volunteers Needed! Contact Burley at 917 837 - 3775
or
Burley.Tuggle at mdrc.org
 For more information contact us at 732 679 - 7687 or
e-mail at tyaalu at yahoo.com 
 Visit www.celebratesisterhood.org for more info

4. CLUBFEST - Apr 8
CLUBFEST IS BACK THIS SPRING! 
April 8th 
8-midnight 
Entertainment by Josh Zuckerman & Music By Nicol
Food, Desserts, Cash Bar. 
Pool, Steam Room, Sauna, Basketball, Volleyball,
Racquetball
Entry: $20.00 for members $25.00 for non members.
Vendors can display tables will ($50.00) 

5. OCEAN COUNTY TO GRANT BENEFITS 
SATURDAY MORNING.  OCEAN COUNTY FREEHOLDERS REVERSE
DECISION AND WILL AWARD BENEFITS TO LAUREL HESTER.  IN
ONE OF THE HAPPIEST MOMENTS OF LAUREL HESTER'S LIFE
AND IN THAT OF GARDEN STATE EQUALITY, WHICH HAS MADE
HER CAUSE OUR TOP ORGANIZATIONAL PRIORITY OVER THE
PAST SEVERAL MONTHS, THE OCEAN COUNTY FREEHOLDERS HAVE
ANNOUNCED THEY ARE CHANGING THEIR MINDS AND AWARDING
HER BENEFITS.  THE FREEHOLDERS DECISION COMES AFTER
GARDEN STATE EQUALITY'S MOST RECENT ACTION - THE VIDEO
OF LT. HESTER THAT GARDEN STATE
EQUALITY PRODUCED AND SHOWED AT LAST WEDNESDAY'S
FREEHOLDERS' MEETING, WHICH SHOWED LT. HESTER'S
RAPIDLY DETERIORATING CONDITION, WHICH THE FREEHOLDERS
NOW SAY MOVED THEM.

"This is one of the happiest days of my life," said
Lt. Hester from her home in Point Pleasant on Saturday
morning.  "I feel like David conquering Goliath.  Most
of all, I want to thank Garden State Equality, without
which this amazing reversal never would have happened.
Garden State Equality led the public education
campaign, organized thousands of New Jersey citizens
on my behalf, drew the attention of journalists from
across the world, and flooded the freeholder meetings
with crowds larger than the freeholders had ever seen
before.  This reversal never would occurred with
Garden State Equality."

"I echo Lt. Hester's sentiment.  This is one of the
happiest days not only of her life, but also of my
life and that of our organization," said Steven
Goldstein, chairman of Garden State Equality.  "Truth
be told, we did lose hope for a reversal in the last
couple of weeks.  We had applied all the pressure in
the world, embarrassing the freeholders and few public
servants had ever been embarrassed before in the state
of New Jersey or in this country, and they would not
budge.  Finally they did.  Hallelujah!  There is a
God.

"The difference wound up being Lt. Hester herself,
whose video testimony we produced and showed at last
Wednesday's freeholder meeting touched the hearts of
people across Ocean County -- and across the world."

"But Laurel Hester and her partner Stacie never should
have gone through this hell.  If there were marriage
equality for lesbian and gay couples in New Jersey,
the Ocean County Freeholders never would have had the
opportunity to torture Lt. Hester like this in the
last months of her life."

"But now that the Ocean County freeholders have done
the right thing, we thank them with all our hearts and
welcome them to the New Jersey of the 21st Century,
where compassion and common-sense prevails over hatred
and outmoded homophobia."

The video of Laurel Hester is at Garden State
Equality's website, www.GardenStateEquality.org

(Dennis sez: I personally am overcome with joy at this
news -- and I thank Garden State Equality, and
especially Steven Goldstein, for orchestrating and
organizing probably the single most effective
short-term political action ever taken in NJ on behalf
of LBGTI people. It's still early on Saturday and
there are details about which I do not know -- such
as, when will the Board of Freeholders meet to pass
the resolution? But something I've heard through the
grapevine is that the Ocean board is also going to
petition the state to take the pension benefit
question out of the hands of the local governing
bodies and mandate it across the board. So this is not
solely a victory for Laurel and Stacie; it is not
solely a victory of the residents of Ocean county; it
is a victory for each and every New Jerseyan, and we
all should be in awe of the bravery of Lt. Laurel
Hester, a woman who refused to go quietly into that
good night.)


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