A Bucks County LGBT Pride organization this month announced that it will coordinate the Northeast Regional Pride (NERP) Conference in 2019. New Hope Celebrates will coordinate the conference March 7-10.
“We are excited to bring the 2019 meeting to an area so many of us love to visit, one with such rich history in our movement,” NERP Co-Regional Director Tyler Evertsen said in a statement.
The annual event will bring together more than 200 Pride organizers and activists to New Hope.
This marks the second time the town has been the host city. NHC President Matt Hanson noted the conference is typically held in large cities, with the aim of staging it in a central location.
“What was great about 2013 when we held it in New Hope was we really showcased different parts of the town, different venues and different experiences for the attendees and they really liked that,” Hanson said.
He said the organization plans to conduct the event in a similar fashion in 2019. Additionally, they will incorporate the town’s newly renovated locations and projects, including Odette’s, The Ferry Market, The Logan Inn and The Playhouse Inn.
“We have so many things that we can showcase right in the borough and use as a conference space,” Hanson said.
In addition to highlighting different assets of the town, Hanson said NHC will coordinate educational workshops and keynote speakers. The organization will also form a planning committee and present a formal event schedule at the 2018 NERP meeting March 1-4 in Providence, R.I. Registration for the following year’s conference will open at that point.
Hanson said the group plans to conduct a workshop around the political climate, though the exact topic will depend on the future state of the country.
“Our world is changing every day and our country is changing every day so we don’t know what 2019 will look like, but as we get closer, we’ll do something on the climate,” Hanson said. “We want to keep it relevant so people can plan their Pride [around the climate].
“I’m really excited about having all of the northeast Pride [organizations] come to New Hope, experience our town, learn something and really get our name out there even more as a great destination for LGBT tourists to come visit, hang out and feel accepted.”