Family Matters’ 10th annual conference and resource fair, taking place at The Center on March 5, brings together San Diego’s GLBT families for a day of workshops and speakers geared towards kids and parents, as well as those considering parenting. The keynote speaker will be Kelli O’Donnell, who was scheduled to speak at last year’s conference but cancelled due to a family emergency.

The event is expected to draw several hundred attendees. Nearly 1,000 families in San Diego County are members of Family Matters. The state estimates 20,000 children in California have gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender parents, Family Matters said.

For those considering parenting, there will be workshops discussing starting a family biologically – through insemination or surrogacy – and non-biologically, through foster parenting and adoption. Experts on the various kinds of adoption, such as international versus local and open versus closed, will have resource tables at the event. Foster parenting agencies and medical professionals will also be available to discuss both biological and non-biological options directly.

Guest speakers and panels of experts will address the impact of being an “out” family.

“We will have an L, G, B and T parent talk about their experiences and we will also have people from different areas of town discuss how it is in their area of town,” explained Marci Bair, president of the board of Family Matters.

Other panels will cover teens and sexuality, as well as school issues such as daycare options and public versus private schooling.

One of the most popular panels each year is the teen panel, where teenagers ranging from 12 to 18 years old speak about what it is like growing up in a GLBT-headed household. The daylong event will close with a birthday party celebration commemorating the 10-year anniversary of the conference.

Informational booths at last year’s conference included doctors, nurses, midwives, real estate agents, holistic health practitioners, massage therapists, mortgage brokers, accountants and photographers. Bair said this year’s conference will also have similar vendors and informational booths, but will be limited to 10 so that there is enough room for the large attendance they anticipate because of Kelli O’Donnell’s keynote address.

Kelli O’Donnell, partner of Rosie O’Donnell, will discuss issues pertaining to gay families and raising children in a gay household.

Formerly the director of marketing at Nickelodeon, Kelli O’Donnell is now the executive director of Rosie’s Broadway Kids, an arts program for New York City public schools with high poverty levels.

Kelli and Rosie O’Donnell started a travel company designed for GLBT families two years ago with the help of Atlantis Travel director Gregg Kaminsky. Called R Family Vacations, Kelli O’Donnell said part of the reason the trio started the company was to find more families like theirs, and create a place where children wouldn’t be asked why they had two moms or two dads.

Kelli and Rosie O’Donnell supported efforts to overturn Florida’s statewide ban on GLBT adoption including the challenge of four gay men seeking to adopt their foster children. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the men last year.

Additionally, in a highly publicized court case between Rosie O’Donnell and her former publisher over the demise of Rosie magazine last year, Rosie O’Donnell was denied spousal privilege – conversation that takes place within the context of a protected relationship – during the proceedings and was forced to submit private letters and conversations between her and Kelli O’Donnell as evidence.

The couple exchanged vows in San Francisco last year. They have four children, ages 1 to 8.

The conference runs from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 5. Admission for adults is $20 with an additional $10 per child cost for daycare services provided. Breakfast and lunch is included in the conference fee. Call (619) 298-5431 for more information, or visit this article online at www.gaylesbiantimes.com for a link to the Family Matters website.