On August 1^st some 150 people attended a forum to discuss the challenges faced by gay and lesbian youth. Instead of turning to so-called reparative therapy, forum participants said that self-acceptance and unconditional love are the best ways to overcome challenges relating to sexual orientation. "It is my experience that those who are able to heal spiritually are able to step away from the self-loathing that people have been taught [and] into a place of personal power and wholeness," said organizer Duane Jennings.

The event included an interview with the Hardys, a Mormon family from Salt Lake City. David and Carlie Hardy are the parents of a gay son who attempted suicide after attending a seminary lesson on Sodom and Gomorrah. The story of the Hardy Family has recently been featured in Newsweek magazine (August 6, 2001, pp. 44-51).

Frank Morris Susa moderated a panel where the voices of gay and lesbian youth were heard. "When I first went to therapy I was taught that God found me so choice and so worthy, that he gave me an incredibly difficult challenge to overcome," said Judd Hardy. "The problem came three years down the road, when I realized that I was not changing. I had to completely change sexuality around from being this obstacle to the reassurance that I could love and accept myself."

After the panel sessions, a ritual of remembrance was conducted, and participants read the names of gays and lesbians who took their own lives or were victims of gay bashing.

The event took place at St. James Episcopal Church in Midvale, Utah, and was co-sponsored by Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Religious Leadership Roundtable, and the National Youth Advocacy Coalition.