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A New Virtual Event for the LGBTQIA+ Latter-day Saint Community

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by Joel McDonald

March 21, 2022

I became the director of operations for Affirmation in February 2020 and immediately began helping plan the 2020 Affirmation International Conference. We had a venue. We had dates. We began promoting and inviting everyone to join us for this event that, arguably, Affirmation is best known for and that many look forward to each year.

Then COVID-19 became a reality in all of our lives.

In response to the pandemic, Affirmation quickly focused on pivoting from in-person events to virtual events hosted by chapters, regions, and by the international organization, including the international conference. It was a learning curve for us all, as individual community members and as an organization. The outcome was really beautiful though. In many ways, expanding virtual events helped build community connections that would otherwise not have been possible. The 2020 and 2021 virtual international conferences were some of the most accessible ever hosted by Affirmation.

Of course, we want to return to in-person activities and conferences. We’re very much looking forward to the 2022 Affirmation International Conference in Salt Lake City from October 7 to October 9 this year. However, we know that not everyone can access in-person activities and conferences. We did not want to lose the beautiful virtual connections created over the past two years.

Affirmation Connections is a virtual summit that I hope will become a new annual tradition for Affirmation. This is a one-day virtual event being hosted on April 23, 2022, with seven sessions throughout the day to inform, uplift, and empower LGBTQIA+ current and former Latter-day Saints and their families and friends around the world.

Registration for Affirmation Connections is free, but a special gift is available for anyone who makes a suggested donation of $35 or more while supplies last.

I invite all within the LGBTQIA+ Latter-day Saint community to attend and participate in Affirmation Connections. More information, including registration, can be found at connections.affirmation.org.

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