2021 Conference
June 10-13, 2021
2021 Conference
Trust in the Lord
June 10-13, 2021
Salt Lake City, Utah
Sheraton Salt Lake City Hotel
150 W 500 S, Salt Lake City, UT, 84101
President’s Message
My beloved brothers and sisters,
On behalf of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, I welcome you to the 2021 North Star Conference. Please know that you are among friends who love you dearly and who share your desire to live the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are so grateful you are here and that we are able to actually gather this year―either in person or virtually―as we weren’t sure if this was going to be a possibility this year with the global pandemic. God truly is in this work. Please know that you have all been prayed and fasted for in the hopes that you will walk away from this conference with more hope, connection and a deeper relation to our Savior Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father.
The purpose of the North Star Conference is to bring together Latter-day Saints who share a unique path and precious perspectives of living with same-sex attraction or identify as LGBT and to gather with their loved ones, families and church leaders, so that we might learn from and strengthen each other as we strive to live the gospel and make and keep sacred covenants. The Conference Committee has spent hundreds and hundreds of hours and diligently sought the Spirit of the Lord to make the conference what it needs to be this year. We encourage you to take advantage of the amazing keynote addresses that will be given and the wide variety of breakout sessions that will address more the specific needs of those in our community. We also encourage you to take a minute and look around and notice that you are not alone. We also encourage you to reach out and connect to someone you may not know or someone you may not fully understand yet. There is power in reaching outside of our comfort zones to love and connect with another person and God will meet you there as you do so.
The theme of this year’s conference is Trust in the Lord. We all are at various places in our journeys of faith with our Father in Heaven and please know that wherever you are in this journey, you are loved. And please know that your Heavenly Parents see you and love you and are walking this path with you. Even though we may not always feel as close to them as we would like, I promise you that they are there. They see and understand your pains, your sorrows, your loneliness, your joys, your triumphs and your successes. I promise that as we truly seek to trust in the Lord and strive to follow our prophet’s advice of seeking to “Hear Him”, remarkable blessings are in store.
This path of sexuality/gender and faith is not an easy one, but it is one where we can truly come to know our Heavenly Parents in deep and profound ways. This has been my experience and it has changed my life for the better. I challenge all of us to use our individual and shared experiences that bring us together at this conference today to forge a deeper relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus. I pray that we can all feel power from heaven as we together, and individually, seek to Trust in the Lord.
Spencer Thompson
President, North Star International
Leadership
Board of Directors
- Brigit Pack, Board Chair
- Jeff Bennion, Member
- Becky Mackintosh, Member
- Bree Bruce, Member
- Rosalinda Chacon Lauper, Member
- Kurt Francom, Member
- Sarrah Hurst Groves, Member
- Ty Mansfield, Member
- Monica Phillips, Member
- Blake Smith, Member
- Travis Steward, Member
- Tember Harward, Member
(Current List of Board Members)
Executive Committee
- Spencer Thompson, President
- Jeff Case, Senior Vice President
- Liv Mendoza Haynes, Executive Vice President
- Erick Hacking, VP, Regional Communities
- Mark Buckley VP, Online Communities
- Ryan Warnick VP, Marketing (outgoing)
- Miranda Stewart, VP, Marketing (incoming)
- Jarry Lozano, Co-VP, Community Events
- Jeni Davis, Co-VP, Community Events
(Current List of Executive Committee Members)
Conference Committee
- Brent Ebmeyer, Co-Chair
- Courtney Ebmeyer, Co-Chair
- Rebecca Silva, Logistics Lead
- Denise Smith, Registration Lead
- Debby Jackson, Bookstore Lead
- Vaughn Armstrong, Social Lead
- Daniel & Emma Atwell, Volunteer Lead
- Ethan Fisher, Conference App
Conference Program
Keynote Speakers
Nik Day
Friday Morning
Michael Mclean
Friday Afternoon
Mat & Savannah Shaw
Saturday Morning
Carol McConkie
Saturday Morning
Panel Discussion
Saturday Afternoon
Friday (currently under construction)
7:30am - 8:45am Registration/Meet & Greet
9:00am - 10:45am Opening Session
Conducting: Jeff Bennion
Hymn: How Firm a Foundation, #85
President’s Address: [Presentation] Spencer Thompson, President, North Star International
Musical Keynote Performer: [Presentation] Nik Day, Song Writer, Singer
11:00am - 12:30pm Breakout Session 1
- Wasatch: Sexual Self Mastery: Eliminating Unwanted Sexual Behavior
Presenter: Warren Bitner
Panelists: Maurice Harker, Ryan Peeples, Leland Wilson
Target Demographic: - Deer Valley: Writing Your Own Story: Principles for Thriving in a Mixed-Orientation Marriage
Presenter: Ty Mansfield & Danielle Mansfield
Target Demographic: - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: Seeking Revelation
Presenter: Jennie Taylor
Target Demographic: - Snowbird: Walk with Christ Through Faith Crisis
Presenter: Dan Ellsworth
Target Demographic: - Brighton/Alta: Building Local Community
Presenter: Erick Hacking
Panelists: Tember Harward, Bryan Korth, Michelle Sherwin
Target Demographic: - Big Cottonwood: Finding Healing Through Community While Learning to Connect, Accept, and Support Your Transgender/Non-binary Child
Presenter: Blaine Hickman
Target Demographic: CLOSED DOOR: Parents of Gender Identity/Trans
12:45pm - 1:45pm Lunch
2:00pm - 3:00pm Breakout Session 2
- Wasatch: How We Balance Friendships and Marriage: A Panel of SSA Women
Presenter: Becky Borden
Target Demographic: - Deer Valley: Healthy Male Friendships 101
Presenter: Greg Reichmann
Target Demographic: - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: How to Have Empathy When Your Loved One Makes Choices that Don’t Align with Your Belief System
Presenter: Lynette Braddock
Target Demographic: - Snowbird: Ministering to Our LGBTQ/SSA Youth
Presenter: Alec Barrow
Target Demographic: - Brighton/Alta: The Many Shades of Gender Dysphoria: Transgender 101
Presenter: Brandon Jenson
Panelists: Lynsie Andreasky, Lee Bennett, Lucas Jones, Miranda Stewart
Target Demographic: - Big Cottonwood: Spouses Facilitated Discussion
Presenter: Kristin Hodson
Target Demographic: CLOSED DOOR: Spouses
3:15pm - 4:15pm Breakout Session 3
- Wasatch: Love Boldly: Embracing Your LGBTQ/SSA Loved Ones and Your Faith
Presenter: Scott Mackintosh & Becky Mackintosh
Panelists: Jeni Davis, Monica Phillips, Brent Schindler, Ron Schindler
Target Demographic: - Deer Valley: Shame to Joy
Presenter: Tyler Moore
Target Demographic: - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: From Brothers to Leaders: Turning a Struggle into a Blessing
Presenter: Brent Ebmeyer & Bruce Ebmeyer
Target Demographic: - Snowbird: Sexual Fluidity: What Does that Look Like in a Covenant Marriage?
Presenter: Meghan Decker
Target Demographic: - Brighton/Alta: How to Make Sure Your Emotional Needs Are Met
Presenter: Bob Stahn
Target Demographic: - Big Cottonwood: Trans Spouses Facilitated Discussion
Presenter: Kristin Hodson
Target Demographic: CLOSED DOOR:
4:30pm - 5:45pm General Session
Conducting: Brigit Pack
Musical Number: He Knows My Name, by Bree Bruce, Lee Bennett, Kristy Thitshao, Boo Tinling, acc. by Vaughn Armstrong
Keynote Speaker: [Presentation] Michael McLean
Hymn: I Know My Father Lives, #302
Saturday (currently under construction)
7:30am - 8:45am Registration/Meet & Greet
9:00am - 10:15am General Session
Conducting: Spencer Thompson
Hymn: The Lord Is My Light, #89
Musical Keynote Performer: [Presentation] Mat & Savanna Shaw
Keynote Speaker: [Presentation] Carol McConkie
10:30am - 12:00pm Breakout Session 4
- Wasatch: What I Have Learned from My LGBTQ/SSA Church Members
Presenter: Kurt Francom, Jeff Christensen, Anne Clegg, Bruce Ebmeyer
Target Demographic: SSA Men, SSA Women, GI/Trans, Spouses - Deer Valley: The Importance of Communication in Marriage
Presenter: Nikki Harmon
Target Demographic: General - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: Principles of Reconciliation
Presenter: Tember Harward & Jeff Bennion
Target Demographic: Spouses, Parents, General - Snowbird: Personal Development and Christ’s Involvement in Every Place
Presenter: Julie Hanks
Target Demographic: General - Brighton/Alta: Making a Safe Space for Your LGBTQ/SSA Loved Ones
Presenter: Travis Steward & Margaret Steward
Target Demographic: Church Leaders, General - Big Cottonwood:Delighting in Sexual Complementarity: Creating Fullfillment and Pleasure with Your Wife
Presenter: Preston Dahlgren
Target Demographic: CLOSED DOOR:
12:15pm - 1:15pm Lunch
1:30pm - 2:30pm Breakout Session 5
- Wasatch: Ministering to LGBTQ/SSA Members
Presenter: Blake Smith
Target Demographic: - Deer Valley: Being Okay with Who I Am
Presenter: Dennis Schleicher
Target Demographic: - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: Lasting Friendships
Presenter: Brad Petersen
Target Demographic: - Snowbird: Finding My Worth as a SSA/Gay Woman
Presenter: Jenn Curtis
Panelists: Amberly Bean, Nancy Hales, Myrna Moll
Target Demographic: - Brighton/Alta: Being the Parent Your Child Needs
Presenter: Janae Monson
Target Demographic: - Big Cottonwood: Focusing on Personal Revelation When Guidance is Unclear
Presenter: Jeff Case
Target Demographic: CLOSED DOOR:
2:45pm - 3:45pm Breakout Session 6
- Wasatch: How We Make Our Marriage Work
Presenter: Bennett Borden & Becky Borden
Target Demographic: - Deer Valley: How Healthy Boundaries Can Help Us Create Fulfilling Relationships While Staying True to Our Covenants
Presenter: Cynthia Miller
Target Demographic: - Powder Mtn/Solitude/Sundance: Faithfully In-Between: Finding Connection and Belonging
Presenter: Kylee Shields
Target Demographic: - Snowbird: You Are Enough – Embracing God’s Love
Presenter: Bree Bruce, Brandon Jenson, Landon Phillips-Turley
Target Demographic: - Brighton/Alta: Voices of Hope: Where Are They Now and What Comes Next
Presenter: Garrett Ferguson & Sallie Ferguson
Panelists: Brett Cragun, Shaundra Cragun, Jenn Curtis, Spencer Thompson, Mary Thompson
Target Demographic:
4:00pm - 5:30pm Closing Session
Conducting: Kurt Francom
Musical Number: How Can I Keep From Singing, by Jeff Case, Sarah Case, Brandon Langford, Sarah Langford, Vaughn Armstrong, Cynthia Miller, acc. by Spencer Stevens
Keynote Speaker: [Presentation] Ganel-Lyn Condie, Panelists: Ann Pack, Rosa Chacon Lauper, Greg Reichmann
Hymn: I Believe in Christ, #134
Sunday
9:00am-11:00am Post-Conference Sharing Session
Conducting: Brent Ebmeyer
Opening Hymn: My Redeemer Lives, #135
Closing Hymn: Testimony, #137