A founding OCEC member, Katherine Darmer, passed away Friday.

A service will be held this Saturday, 25 February at

11:00 AM

St Mark’s Presbyterian Church

2200 San Joaquin Hills Road

Newport Beach, CA 92660

If you knew Katherine, then there’s no need to explain what’s been lost. If you didn’t, then know this: She fought for you even though she did not know you. Her’s was the voice we heard that spoke against marriage inequality, gave us hope and guidance for the future, and helped form a better community. As a founding member of OCEC, she was integral not only in creating an organization that promotes equality, but also in establishing a progressive force in Orange County.

As a law professor at Chapman University, she was a respected educator who challenged her students to think critically. As a fellow activist, she used her knowledge and experience in the legal field to seek justice and create change for issues like marriage inequality and government sanctioned torture. As a person, she was a caring wife and mother, a brilliant and driven colleague, and a thoughtful and inspiring friend.

We are deeply saddened by this loss to our OCEC family. Katherine was a strong, courageous, and brilliant advocate for the LGBT community and she will truly be missed by us all. She has our eternal gratitude and love for everything she did and for being exactly who she was. Our hearts and thoughts go out to her family.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made in Katherine
Darmer’s memory to the following 3 organizations:
Riverside Church, New York, NY
Princeton University
Orange County Equality Coalition
Parking is limited, please carpool if possible. If parking is not available,
please park at Fashion Island Shopping Center located directly across from
St. Mark Presbyterian Church.

Prop 8 ruled unconstitutional!! Today, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals finally determined what we already knew: “Proposition 8 enacts nothing more or less than a judgment about the worth and dignity of gays and lesbians as a class.” The Day of Decision event was a great success, and we thank all the organizations and interfaith communities represented. We also appreciate all those who attended as well as all those who couldn’t attend but have stood with us in our fight for equality. Though marriages won’t resume immediately, we still have plenty of reason to celebrate this victory!

Click on “Event Photos” under the “2011 Summit” heading to view the pictures that were taken by Lou Delgado at this year’s OC Progressive Summit!

Once again, thank you to all those who participated in the event. The purpose of the Summit is to bring together progressive individuals and organizations so that we can work together and build our community here in Orange County, and we hope we accomplished taking that step towards strengthening our movement.

The Orange County Progressive Summit aims to build the progressive presence and strengthen the progressive movement right here in Orange County.  It appears that this year’s event will accomplish just that with over 200 people signed up to attend and over 40 non-profit organizations represented.  Join us tomorrow, Saturday, September 10th from 9am to 5:30pm at the Delhi Community Center in Santa Ana!

A strong turnout is expected this year due to the fantastic keynote speakers Jim Hightower and Christine Chavez, the educational and interesting workshop lineup, and the networking opportunities with various exhibiting organizations.  Registration will be $20 the day of the event.  Don’t miss out!

Click on “Workshop Information” to view the list of workshops that will be presented at this year’s Summit. Every workshop request that was submitted was very intriguing, but we were unable to accommodate all of them. The result is a wide variety of progressive issues that we anticipate will be educational and engaging. Don’t forget to Register for the event if you haven’t already!

Register online to get your admission into the Orange County Progressive Summit!  As a reminder, admission includes access to educational and engaging workshops, amazing keynote speakers, and opportunities to learn about various progressive organizations in Orange County.  As the event will run from 9am to 5:30pm, we will be providing a continental breakfast, vegetarian lunch, and 2 drinks at the post-Summit happy hour. The cost is only $15 and will go to $20 at the door.  Click on “Register Now“!

The Orange County Progressive Summit is excited to announce our special guest speakers for the event on September 10th: Jim Hightower and Christine Chávez.

Both Hightower and Chávez are well-known for their work in the progressive realm all over the nation. For more background, click on “Keynote Speakers” under the “2011 Summit” heading.

The location for the 2011 OC Progressive Summit has been confirmed as the Delhi Community Center in Santa Ana! The address and directions can be found under the “2011 Summit” tab. 

Please note, as a result of the venue coordination, the Summit date has been moved to Saturday, September 10th from 9:00am to 5:30pm. We apologize if the date change causes any inconvenience, but we are excited to accommodate a larger group this year.

The Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBT organization in the nation, has over 1 million members and supporters.   One of HRC’s Steering Committee members, Carin Jacobs, was awarded with an HRC Diversity Award at the annual Equality Convention in Washington D.C. in March.  The award is shared with all of the sponsoring organizations for helping to plan the Progressive Summit and promote coalition building in Orange County. Congratulations!

The Orange County Progressive Summit will be held on Saturday, September 10th, and we are looking to have another great turnout! Last year’s event was a great success, and again this year it will run a full day from 9:00am to 5:30pm to provide ample time to network and learn.  We look forward to bringing together various individuals and organizations to further establish a strong progressive presence.  Keep checking back as location details and other important information will follow as it becomes available.