City Commissioner Nicole Murray-Ramirez, chair of the San Diego Human Relations Commission, honored actor and television personality Mario Lopez, a Chula Vista native, for his charity work and for “being a role model for Latino youth.” Among his charity work, Lopez has raised funds for cancer research. Ramirez also praised Lopez for portraying Greg Louganis in a made-for-television movie about the Olympic gold medalist who was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Many young actors turned the role down. Lopez’s parents and grandmother attended the event at which Lopez was honored. “The Lopez family truly is a role model of a caring, loving family with true values,” Murray-Ramirez said. Also in attendance, representing the Human Relations Comission, was City Commissioners Tom Felkner and Teresa Oyos.

The California Commission on the Status of Women will hold a June 26 public hearing in San Diego to learn what issues women and girls are facing and what the state can do to address them.

The session runs from 1:30-5:30 p.m. at the California Western School of Law in the Gafford Moot Court Room.

Issues for testimony may include human trafficking, reproductive freedom, child support, Title IX, access to health care, childcare, universal health care, financial challenges, domestic violence, education, equal pay, arts, employment discrimination, stalking, sexual assault, hate crimes, child custody, athletic equity, disability, spousal support, women in prison, CalWORKs, Equal Rights Amendment, feminization of poverty, Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), teen pregnancy, women of color and sexual harassment.

To sign up to testify in person or submit written testimony, visit www.women.ca.gov. The deadline to sign up is June 19.

The California Western School of Law is located at 225 Cedar St. in Downtown.

As part of its 11th annual entry in the San Diego LGBT Pride Parade, The Gay, Bisexual and Lesbian Seculars (GABLES) organization will host a secular marriage service on its float in the parade. The parade is scheduled for Saturday, July 19 at 11 a.m.

Certified Humanist Minister Jason Frye-Kolarik will officiate the ceremony on the float as it travels past the expected crowd of 140,000 people along the parade route. GABLES will host a reception for the couple at its booth in the San Diego LGBT Pride Festival following the parade.

Same-sex couples interested in “tying the knot” during the parade should contact Jay Murley at murley@post.harvard.edu for more information.

The June LGBT Community Coalition Breakfast will feature City Councilmember Toni Atkins, Dale Kelly Bankhead of The Center Advocacy Project and Amy Denhart of Planned Parenthood. The breakfast will take place on Friday, June 20 from 7:30-9 a.m. at The Center.

The Community Coalition Breakfast takes place the third Friday of each month. Its mission is to bring together fair-minded individuals to network, educate and discuss the diverse issues of concern to GLBT and allied neighbors and citizens of San Diego. A full breakfast is available for a $10 donation; coffee and tea are complimentary. RSVPs are not required. ASL interpretation will be provided upon request, which must be sent to Caroline Dessert at cdessert@thecentersd.org at least seven working days before the event.

The Center is located at 3909 Centre St. in Hillcrest.

The Women’s Resource Center at the San Diego LGBT Community Center is currently organizing The San Diego Women’s Fest for Saturday, Aug. 9. The event, to be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., is a day-long festival of workshops, entertainment and resources for lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LBT) women.

The goal of the free festival is to empower LBT women to learn new skills, celebrate women’s creativity, build a stronger and more diverse community and gain access to essential health resources. The festival will focus on five topics: health, family and relationships, arts and crafts, community and movement building, and building skills for power and success. Spanish speaking workshops will be offered within each topic area.

For more information, contact the WRC coordinator at 619-692-2077, ext. 212, or wrc@thecentersd.org.

The Center is located at 3909 Centre St. in Hillcrest.

The recently formed LGBT chapter of the San Diego State University Alumni Associated, The Aztec LGBT Alumni, will hold its next mixer at Martinis Above Fourth on Thursday, June 19 at 6 p.m.

The group’s mission is to promote and support the development of relationships between SDSU’s GLBT alumni community, current students, the administration and community supporters. The Aztec GLBT Alumni fulfills this mission by holding events that allow for social and professional networking. The group also plans to host an annual Rainbow Graduation Ceremony to recognize SDSU’s self-identified GLBT graduates starting in May 2009.

The mixer is open to everyone and participants will have the opportunity to learn about the chapter, meet its officers, and find out how to get involved. For more information or to register for the chapter, visit http://chapters.sdsu.edu/lgbt, or e-mail Rob Rankin at sdsu.lgbt.alumni @gmail.com.

Martinis Above Fourth is located at 3940 Fourth Ave., Ste. 200 in Hillcrest.

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders has been awarded Friend of the Year by San Diego LGBT Pride, an honor bestowed annually to an individual or couple who does not identify as GLBT, but who has supported the GLBT community over an extended period of time.

In the face of opposition last year over an appeal on a same-sex marriage license ban to the California Supreme Court, the Republican mayor supported GLBT rights by signing an amicus brief championed by City Councilmember Toni Atkins in support of marriage equality. The action was followed by an emotional press conference he gave, which attracted national media attention to the issue, as well as his support for San Diego’s GLBT community.

The Republican mayor has taken part in Pride rallies and parades since he was elected to office in 2005. And during his tenure as police chief (from 1993 to 1999), he marched each year in the Pride parade. As mayor, he has participated in The Center’s annual gala, San Diego AIDS Walk and a host of other GLBT-related events.

San Diego Pride also recognizes his tandem efforts with the San Diego Police Department to educate officers on hate crimes. In 2006, Sanders responded quickly to a violent attack on six men after they left the Pride festival, saying in a press conference to the perpetrators, “You are cowards. Make no mistake about it – if you commit such a crime, we will do everything within our power to catch you.”

The award will be presented at a ceremony on July 14, at the W Hotel in downtown San Diego. Each year the Pride organization invites the community to submit nominations for the prestigious community awards, which are presented in four categories for individual, group or organization services to the community that also include “Champion of Pride,” “Stonewall Service” and “Community Service.”

This year’s 34th annual San Diego LGBT Pride weekend is scheduled for July 19-20. The theme is “Live, Love, Be.” To sign up for Pride’s e-newsletter or inquire about special Pride events and volunteer opportunities, call 619-297-7683, ext. 101, or visit the web site at: www.SanDiegoPride.org.

State Assemblymember Lori Saldaña has invited the public to a town hall meeting to examine California’s budget crisis and its impact on human services, education, public safety, public transportation and other vital programs on Thursday, June 19. The meeting will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the CalTrans District 11 offices at 4050 Taylor St. in Old Town.

Citizens interested in attending may RSVP online at http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a76/ or call 619-645-3090.

The San Diego LGBT Community Center’s Positive Action program is offering a comprehensive educational course for people living with HIV. The course, called Positive Living, focuses on being HIV-positive and maintaining mental, emotional, and physical health.

“Positive Living is about providing people living with HIV with the knowledge and resources that can assist them living a long and healthy life” said Rick Braatz, The Center’s Positive Action coordinator. The course covers a variety of HIV-related issues and subject matter including nutrition, medication, sexual health, depression, social support and stress reduction. All people living with or impacted by HIV/AIDS are invited to participate, said Braatz.

Positive Living meets Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 7-9 p.m. for four weeks at The Center, located at 3909 Centre Street and starts June 17. The course is free and food and beverages will be provided.

To register for Positive Living, or for more information, contact Rick Braatz at 619-692-2077, ext.133, or via e-mail at rbraatz@thecentersd.org.

A celebration of life memorial will be held for Lovel Waiters at 6 p.m., June 15 at The Center.

Waiters, who was born Nov. 28 1950 and died May 23, was a writer, poet, published author and community activist.

Waiters volunteered with the St. Vincent de Paul “Rolling Readers” program and the San Diego Public Library’s READ/San Diego Literacy program. In 1998, Lovel initiated the Malcolm X Library shut-in service to deliver library materials to patrons who had trouble getting to the library. A long-time member of the African American Writer’s & Artists, Inc., Lovel served as secretary/treasurer from 1999 to 2004.

Lovel also served as a board member of The San Diego LGBT Community Center, volunteered and led writing groups for the Women’s Resource Center, and served as co-chair of Ebony Pride San Diego board of directors for four years. Waiters was the first vice-president of the National Council of Negro Women, Inc. San Diego Section from 1994 through1995. In 1995, she was the Honoree for NCNW-San Diego for the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority breakfast. In recognition of her work, Lovel was named “Woman of the Year” by the National Council of Negro Women and was honored by Ebony Pride.

Waiters was also a member of the Gay & Lesbian Times editorial board.

Waiters is survived by her daughter Latisha, son Darrell, six grandchildren, her brother Robert Toran, her former husband Rogers, and cousins and nieces in Virginia.