Left: Jazz Jennings, transgender activist and star of TLC reality show “I Am Jazz,” celebrates her 15th birthday at the Southern Comfort Conference at Bonaventure Resort & Spa. Center: The Board of County Commissioners of Broward County, FL proclaimed October 3rd, 2015 as “Southern Comfort Conference Day.” Pictured from left to right, back row: Michael Rajner, gay rights activist; Richard Gray, LGBTQ managing director, Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau; Lexi Dee, president, Southern Comfort Conference; Christy Anderson, board of directors, Southern Comfort Conference; Stefanie Schumacher, board of directors, Southern Comfort Conference; Phyllis McCall, board of directors, Southern Comfort Conference; front row: Bishop S.F. Makalani-MaHee and Stacy Ritter, Broward County Commissioner. Right: Isabella Santiago, Miss International Queen, makes an appearance at the Southern Comfort Conference.
Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomed the 25th Annual Southern Comfort Conference to its sunny shores this year, a first-time honor for Florida. The destination will host the conference, one of the largest gatherings of the transgender community in the world and the longest running transgender conference in North America, for the next two years.
The four-day conference, held at the Bonaventure Resort & Spa from September 29 through October 3, 2015, welcomed hundreds of attendees including partners, spouses, family members and trans individuals. In addition to attending seminars, workshops and networking events, participants enjoyed sightseeing, gourmet food, nightlife and entertainment throughout Greater Fort Lauderdale.
Broward County native, LGBTQ rights activist and teen trans role model Jazz Jennings delivered a keynote speech during this year’s conference and signed copies of her “I Am Jazz” book, which details her life as a transgender youth. Jennings is the star of TLC’srecent documentary series “I Am Jazz,” which traces her everyday life. Other high-profile guests included Zackary Drucker, co-producer of the Emmy-nominated TV series “Transparent” and Isabella Santiago, Miss International Queen, winner of the world’s most prestigious and largest beauty pageant for international transgender individuals.
“Greater Fort Lauderdale is committed to raising the bar for trans inclusion,” said Richard Gray, LGBTQ managing director for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We want trans travelers to know that when they visit our destination, they will feel welcomed and can be themselves.”
Greater Fort Lauderdale has long been known as a diverse and universally welcoming travel destination. The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau has been proactively targeting and welcoming the LGBTQ market since 1996, when it became the first Convention & Visitors Bureau with a gay-centric vacation planner and dedicated website on a CVB homepage.
A clear pioneer, Greater Fort Lauderdale is the only CVB in the U.S. with a designated LGBTQ department and in 2014, commissioned the first-ever survey of transgender travelers in North America with the goal of identifying the travel motivations, needs and priorities of the market.
The CVB’s survey helped to identify the motivations for travel, destination and hotel selection by the transgender community, as well as other specific needs. It also provided insight as to how the CVB could communicate appropriately with transgender travelers and deliver a sensitive and authentic welcoming experience, including providing training to the local community.
The survey is an extension of the destination’s latest initiative which emphasizes a respect and commitment for the market. The CVB has created an advertising campaign to be included in mainstream outlets, “Where Happy Meets Go Lucky,” that features authentic transgender models. In addition, the bureau has created a designated landing page for transgender travelers: www.sunny.org/tlgb, placing the often forgotten “T” in front of the well-known acronym LGBT.
Next year’s conference will take place September 28-October 2, 2016. For more information on Southern Comfort, please visit http://www.