Name Nicki E. GrossmanCounty/State Association/entity Broward County / Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors BureauEmail address ngrossman@broward.orgAre you a member of NACIO? YesWhich category are you entering? Special ProjectsWhich subcategory are you entering (e.g. B­2) H­1: Ceremonies/Community EventsWhat was the purpose of your project? BACKGROUND: As a pioneer in gay travel, Broward County’stourism marketing agency, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB) hasadvertised and marketed to LGBT travelers and LGBT group business each year since the “Rolling Out theRainbow Carpet” initiative began in 1996 with its first LGBT ad campaign. The GFLCVB became the firsttourism agency with an LGBT­centric vacation planner and dedicated section on a CVB tourism website topromote the hundreds of gay­owned and operated hotels and businesses throughout the destination. TheGFLCVB was the first in the country to have a dedicated department, staff and marketing dollars to supportLGBT tourism, as well as to integrate LGBT images and messaging into its mainstream marketing initiatives.Today, the gay and lesbian travel industry is estimated to be a $100 billion market. Home to the world's firstAIDS museum, the Stonewall National Museum & Archives with one of the only permanent spaces in the U.S.devoted to exhibitions relating to LGBT history and culture, and one of the country's largest Pride Centers,Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County continues to attract LGBT travelers from around the world. In 2014,more than 1.3 million gay and lesbian travelers visited Greater Fort Lauderdale and spent approximately $1.4billion. The GFLCVB is the only Convention & Visitors Bureau in the United States with a sales andmarketing manager dedicated to the LGBT visitor/group market. MARRIAGE EQUALITY: In July 2014, theGFLCVB announced its unconditional support for the repeal of its state's gay marriage ban, which was set tolift in the coming months. The response to this announcement was extremely positive and stimulated greatinterest from local and national media. If/when the gay marriage ban was overturned, we needed a big idea tocelebrate marriage equality and extend a congratulatory message to gay and lesbian consumers in key markets.LOVE IS LOVE WEDDING: Planning began in August 2014 for a historic group wedding and vow renewal tomark the new dawn of same­sex marriage equality in Florida. The wedding would take place 30 days from theday of legalization to give the Broward County Clerk of Courts time/space to process the inevitable surge inmarriage licenses and courthouse weddings. To coincide with Broward County’s centennial, the collectivewedding feature 100 couples of all love (gay, lesbian and heterosexual couples) including out­of­area visitorsand local residents. It was important that the wedding be truly about the couples and celebrating “love is love.”It should be festive, but not act as an overly­commercial endeavor with circus feel and heavy logo placement.We wanted the couples to see, feel and witness the sincere and intrinsic warm hug and welcoming feeling thatBroward County has for all people. But we also wanted to convey the destination’s Hello Sunny carefree andhappy­go­lucky vibe. This embrace of marriage equality, couples of all loves and lighthearted energy set thetonality of the “Love is Love” event. Marketing and advertising initiatives included a :15 and :30 second video,print and digital ads to promote destination weddings in Greater Fort Lauderdale, LGBT visitation, and tosolicit 100 couples to participate. These videos and ads ran in LGBT publications including Curve, Gay Cities,Instinct, Passport and Here Media – as well as The Huffington Post and a 4­corner ad in The New York Times.What made the ad concept unique was its all­inclusive, casual chic feel, featuring couples of all loves:bride/bride, groom/groom and bride/groom. Photo and video shoot for the ads: We staged a mock beachwedding in front of a local hotel, Manta Ray Inn, a Superior Small Lodging property in Hollywood Beach onOctober 9, 2014 and invited local residents to be part of wedding guests/extras. We were happily surprisedwhen local media (ABC and NBC affiliates, plus Sun­Sentinel and Miami Herald newspapers) arrived on sceneto interview GFLCVB president Nicki Grossman and cover the story. It was timely, with the State of FloridaSupreme Court’s pending decision already top news. With the resulting images and ads, we created awww.sunny.org/LoveIsLove microsite with entry form for couples to send us their photos and love story to bechosen for one of the 100 spots. We formed partnerships with travel partners including JetBlue, CruisePlanners

one lucky couple in the running for a seven­night Celebrity Cruise honeymoon. More than 50 local hospitalitypartners provided items for a Hello Sunny wedding welcome bag as well. And then, it finally happened…inlate December, it was announced that at midnight on January 6, 2015, the ban on gay marriage would be liftedand marriage equality would be law. We sprung into action over the holidays and planned a sunrise wedding onFebruary 5, 2015. From florals to photography to wedding certificates and marriage licenses, to wedding cakeand music and wedding officiants – every detail for a wedding had to be multiplied by 100, and in a hurry.Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomed nearly 100 couples, representing 18 U.S. states, Europe, and SouthAmerica, who would marry/renew their vows at the W Fort Lauderdale, followed by a champagne toast. TheBroward County Clerk of Courts, Howard Forman, supported the initiative by offering extended hours on theeve of the wedding to issue marriage licenses to couples who were flying in. The GFLCVB providedtransportation and an escort from the hotel to the courthouse for a smooth and easy process. It washeartwarming to see the pride, relief and love in the couples’ eyes as they received their licenses and, for many,were a legal couple for the first time. Symbolic with a new beginning, the wedding ceremony was timed withsunrise, and the morning of the wedding was an exciting time. Couples were treated to morning coffee, theirchoice of bouquets and/or boutonnieres, and hair and makeup touchups provided by the hotel’s Bliss Spa (ledby Ted Gibson of TLC’s What Not to Wear fame). As the music started promptly at 7:30am, couples, two­by­two, began their descent down the aisle, past a standing­room only crowd of friends, families, communitymembers and dozens of media with cameras clicking. The couples were clearly moved, as were the rest of uswatching. It was a “moment.” Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau president, NickiGrossman, kicked off the ceremony with a warm welcome. She and her husband of 48 years, Judge MelGrossman, would renew their vows during the ceremony as well. Reverend Dr. Durrell Watkins, seniorminister of the Sunshine Cathedral presided over the ceremony, with remarks from a local supportive churchand synagogue. We were lucky to secure former *NSYNC member and Dancing with the Stars alum, LanceBass, who delivered a moving address on the meaning of love as the event's official "Love is Love"ambassador with his new husband Michael Turchin. Lance is an active LGBT advocate and his popularityadded PR value to the event. A highlight of the ceremony was the pronouncement that the couples were alllegally married in the State of Florida, which was celebrated with a beach ball toss in the air. A champagnetoast followed, led by Judge Mel Grossman, and the drawing of one lucky couple to win a seven­day CelebrityCruise honeymoon, courtesy of Cruise Planners. The W Fort Lauderdale provided a two­hour reception,complete with specialty drinks and light refreshments. In addition, each couple received a wedding portrait,two round­trip tickets on JetBlue and a wedding certificate.Please describe any outside assistance received on the project Entire wedding was planned in­house byGFLCVB staff. The following vendors provided services and partnered with us for the wedding festivities:Starmark, Finn Partners, Panache Style, LP Media, Creative Focus Photography, Dennis Dean Photography,Sunshine Cathedral, W Fort Lauderdale, JetBlue, CruisePlanners, Broward County Clerk of Courts.How did you measure the project's success? We can measure success of the Love is Love wedding withnumbers and statistics. But this was not about dollars and cents and impressions. This was about creating amemory, a lasting impression, and a genuine celebration of marriage equality. To us, the success is measured insmiles, happy tears and hugs. And there were lots of those. THE LANCE BASS EFFECT: • Lance Bass’sappearance and support of the landmark event coincided with Bass making TV history the same day with thebroadcast of his wedding with Michael Turchin in the E! network special, Lance Loves Michael: The LanceBass Wedding ­ the first American television broadcast of a celebrity marriage between two men. • Lance andMichael were eloquent and gracious, chose to stay after the ceremony to pose for photos, shake hands and kissbabies (yes, they actually kissed a baby or two!) before being whisked away to catch a flight to NY for thepremier of their TV show. • The media buzz surrounding Lance and Michael produced a palpable energy in theroom and the couples and their guests felt like royalty for a day. ADVERTISING RESULTS: • Totaladvertising impressions: 10,235,063 • Facebook video ads targeted to gay and lesbian users were the best­performing ads in the GFLCVB’s history of social media advertising, with 103,756 video views. MEDIACOVERAGE: • 1,535 media clips with 729 million impressions SOCIAL MEDIA SUCCESS: • Measureablespikes in Twitter and Facebook on February 5, 2015 as a result of the wedding. • Love is Love video watched740 times on YouTube in January and February through embedded players on Sunny.org and Facebook •

13,638,570 impressions (Jan 1­Feb 8, 2015) • Lance Bass a tweet machine, with average 700 likes per post and400,000 reach SUNNY.ORG WEBSITE VISITS • 29,159 page views for Love is Love landing page (Jan­Feb2015) • Love is Love was the second most shared URL with 1,771 shares • Sunny.org/Wedding page doubledin visits from December 2014 (7,741 visits) to January 2015 (14,753)Anything else you wish the judges to know about the project? The response to the Love is Love wedding wasoverwhelming. From the couples to the guests, service providers, staff, local and national media, it was ameaningful day that touched the hearts of everyone involved. Even the cameraman and videographer werecrying as the couples walked down the aisle. It was a truly moving experience. Not one complaint from anyoneinvolved, even after a rainy forecast and gusty winds prompted a last­minute change of location from the beachto the W Fort Lauderdale hotel indoor space. The couples were profoundly touched and told us they’d alwaysremember this day, their wedding day. (see feedback attached). The dedication to this effort was above andbeyond, with staff working all hours of day and night to make every detail perfect. Friends, family, localcommunity and out­of­area supporters flooded the online wedding guest book with congratulatory messagesand well wishes (visit http://www.sunny.org/love­is­love/sign­guestbook/)

Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau announcement in July 2014

Page 2: Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau announcement in July 2014

Page 3: Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau announcement in July 2014

Sun-Sentinel coverage after announcement is made

Newswire coverage of annoucement: dated July 10, 2014

Page one of two-page article

Page one of two-page article

Sun-Sentinel story with mention of GFLCVB’s support of marriage equality

Email to consumer database, both out-of-area and local

:15 and :30 videos created for digital advertising, social media and website.Filmed in Hollywood Beach with a mix of models, staff and volunteers from the community

Media coverage of the video shoot.

WTVJ NBC 6 South Florida: http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Fort-Lauderdale-Starting-Cam-paign-for-Same-Sex-Destination-Weddings-278675951.html

WFOR CBS 4 South Florida: http://miami.cbslocal.com/2014/10/09/fort-lauderdale-weddings-part-of-love-proj-ect-commercial-campaign/

Miami Herald coverage of wedding: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/gay-south-florida/article5464440.html

Sunny.org/loveislove: received 165 entries from couples in 18 states, Europe and South America

Love is Love Guestbook: an online version of a guestbook with warm wishes from family, friends, local community and national/international fans.

“Checkerboard” ad in New York Times, the Sunday edition after the legalization of marriage equality in Florida

Instinct Travel email to their subscribers

Love is Love video in Times Square as part of a 16-month Greater Fort Lauderdale designated billboard space.

LOVE IS LOVE WEDDING February 4-5, 2015

Run of Show: Rain Plan As of Feb 2, 6:48pm

Wednesday:

Noon-6 pm Anna Levin, Ambassador of Bliss, at W Fort Lauderdale Lobby

3 pm Shuttle to Broward County Clerk of Courts, meet in hotel lobby

Tentative 5 pm Return to hotel

Thursday:

5:30 am Set up registration 1st floor, hotel in front of elevators (W Fort Lauderdale handling)

Coffee service set up in Living Room (W Fort Lauderdale handling)

Coffee service, continental breakfast set up in Green Room (W Fort Lauderdale handling)

6:00 am Lance Bass arrives in Green Room for media interviews (Finn Partners to handle)

6:00 am Registration opens for couples near Whiskey Blue, 1st floor lobby (CVB Staff: Saskia, Anna, Michelle, Rita)

6:30 am Registration opens for media near Whiskey Blue, 1st floor lobby (Finn Partners: Aubrey, Justin)

6:45 am Dignitaries arrive at hotel, directed to 4th floor Living Room

7:00 am Program begins, 4th floor Living Room Welcome from Nicki. Nicki intros Broward County Vice Mayor Kiar

7:02 am Vice Mayor Kiar comments

7:05 am Nicki introduces clergy

7:05 am Blessing from Father John and Rabbi Noah in the Living Room

7:15 am Couples registration desk closes* (*CVB Staff, Saskia and Rita, remain for any stragglers)

7:15-7:25 am Seating begins in 4th floor Living Room for couples

7:30 am Welcome from Lance Bass

7:35 am Lance to introduce Rev. Watkins

7:35- 8 am Ceremony conducted by Rev. Watkins

8 am Ceremony concludes / beach ball toss

8:05-8:15 am Champagne is served

8:15-8:20 am Congratulations & Champagne Toast from Nicki Grossman and Judge Mel Grossman

8:20-8:25 am Drawing for wedding cake by Beatrice Otero, Elite Cake Creations

8:25-8:30 am Cruise drawing Michelle Homoky, Celebrity Cruises & Vicky Garcia, Cruise Planners

8:30-9:30 am Couples portraits during reception at photo stations

8:30-9:30 am Reception continues Jet Blue pickup / wedding bag pick up/ marriage certificate pick up at desk in Living Room

10 am Event concludes

###

The wedding!

<-- Click to view highlight reel of the wedding

Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau president Nicki E. Grossman walks down the aisle with husband of 48 years, Judge Mel Grossman, to renew their vows.

Two by two down the aisle

Lance Bass welcomes the couples and accepted many media interviews. He was the perfect amBASSador for Love is Love

Officially married in Fort Lauderdale! Beach ball toss to celebrate!

Media coverage: 1,535 clips and 729 million impressionsView television coverage in the link below. Complete report available at www.sunny.org/loveisloveclipreport

<-- Click to view TV coverage montage

Lance Bass a social media powerhouse with average 700 likes per post and reach of 400,000.

Feedback from community and couples

From: Philip Cooke [mailto:phiva2000@hotmail.com] Sent: Wednesday, February 18, 2015 10:33 AMTo: Canter, KimberlySubject: RE: Love is Love Wedding Portraits

Hi Kimberly

We are just back from a wonderful “honeymoon” starter, (the real one starts March 6th) in Cancun and we were delighted to get this email whilst away. The internet connections out there are not the best so its not been easy to sit down and write a reply.

We aren’t even sure where to start, however, the biggest thanks certainly has to go to you and the whole team who came up with the idea and clearly worked their butts off to make 5th February 2015 so incredibly special not only for us, but I am certain for the other 99 couples. As non US residents, to be included was amazing, getting married here in Florida, which has become our second home and certainly the place where our hearts are, made the day for us even more special, as did knowing that we were part of something so historic for Florida and LGBT values.The guest speakers, the clergy, the ambassador, all were so eloquent, not heavy, not lengthy, just right and wonderful too, as some of the photos show, not only us, but so many of the couples were clearly moved by their words. And of course once those words were said, “ I now prounounce you........”, I think we were, as a room, producing almost as much water as the skies outside :)Everything, the “W” did, was amazing too, they coped incredibly well with what I can only imagine was a rather highly strung and demanding group of “to be weds”, then with the last minute change to indoors, it all went so smoothly, we would never have known anything had changed. Their staff were friendly, helpful and appeared thoroughly happy to be part of our day, in fact so many people did, the joy and pride that we felt from pretty much everyone in attendance was incredible, it certainly lent itself to making us feel special on such an amazing day.As did all the work done by the florists and “stage setters”, the room, the atmosphere throughout the building was elegant, mod-ern and simply perfect. We can’t really say enough to praise everyone, and if we have forgotten to mention any of the involved parties here, its not inten-tional, so many people were involved and we are eternally grateful to each and everyone of them.

Thank you, thank you and thankyou again, It was a pleasure to meet you albeit briefly and again to all involved thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Philip & Valter

-----Original Message-----From: Will [mailto:willgillmail@gmail.com] Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2015 12:02 PMTo: Canter, KimberlySubject: Wedding

Dear Kim and Stacie,

First we would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the chance to share our wedding day in such a special and historic way.

We had a lovely time and have know such special memories of our time with you guys and those who where there on this special day. We met so many lovely people...

It’s was as you guys say “AWESUM”!!!

We arrived back in the UK today and not long after our wedding certificate arrived. It’s lovely! THANK YOU x

Naseer and I both have agreed that we will be returning on our anniversaries in the future.

Sending much love and affection to you and all those who where involved as well as all the others lovely couples xx

Will & Naseer

From: Jim Wilson [mailto:dunnwil@hotmail.com] Sent: Saturday, February 07, 2015 7:51 AMTo: Canter, KimberlySubject: Thank you

Dear Kim, Thank you for coordinating such a wonderful and joyous “I Do” Wedding Event! You and your team and the W Hotel did an outstanding job. Our family and friends were so impressed, as were we! We are so pleased to have been part of the celebration. And now that our house full of family has gone back to Pittsburgh, Alex and I are taking a honeymoon cruise on the Celebrity Constellation.Thank you again! Alex Dunn & Jim Wilson565 Oaks LanePompano Beach, FL 33069-3731

From: James T Zarlinga <jtz1953@yahoo.com>Date: February 6, 2015 at 10:56:43 AM ESTTo: <kcanter@broward.org>Subject: Re: February 5: Wedding Questions

Dear Kimberly, John and I would like to say thank you and all the Stat at Fort Lauderdale Visitors Bureau along with everyone from The W Fort Lauderdale for a wonderful wedding and reception.We know a lot of hard work went into this event and wanted to say it all went very well and beautiful.

Thanks for makeing this our wedding day so special a day will never forget.Please share this with anyone involved. Thanks again to all for there hard work in makeing this event a success.

Thanks againJim Zarlinga and John Knapp 1 of the 100 Newlywed Couples

From: Jerry Rizor [mailto:jerryrizor@yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2015 3:07 PMTo: Canter, Kimberly; Grossman, Nicki; Molinet, Carlos; Butler, Kim - CVB; gm.wfortlauderdale@whotels.com; blanca.choy@starwoodhotels.comSubject: Love is Love Wedding

My husband (Jeff) and myself were privileged participants in the Love is Love Wedding occurring in Ft. Lauderdale last week. I want to congratulate you on a job very, very well done. We are still in disbelief by the entire event. Each little detail was perfect in every way and the the amount of press represented was not to be believed. I find something new everyday about the wedding when searching the internet. What a fabulous job you did!

Thank you to all the staff for their hard work. Those persons from the Visitors and Convention Bureau that Jeff and I were fortu-nate to meet were truly gracious and an absolute joy to come in contact with. Thank you to Kim Canter for choosing Jeff and I. Thank you also, for your terrific ongoing communication which helped tremendously in preparing for this big event. Thank you Kim, for treating me with warmth and kindness when I’m sure, at times, my excitement might have been a bit overbearing. Thank you Kim, for knowing that this was the biggest and best day of my life....thanks to you and the Visitors and Convention Bureau.

Thank you to the W Ft. Lauderdale Hotel for their generosity in providing us with a most memorable and welcoming stay. In Ohio we always relate excellent customer service with Disney. Never again will I. I’d have to say that Disney can take lessons from the W Ft. Lauderdale Hotel. I can sincerely say that I have never experienced customer relations and good old fashioned hospitali-ty to the extent that I witnessed and enjoyed there. By every single staff member! And, I understand many of the hotel employees stayed late into the night because of change in venue due to weather conditions. A million kudos to Marylouise Fitzgibbon for her expertise and for giving me the finest hotel accommodations I have ever, ever experienced. I’m sure her company realizes how valuable she is to her organization. And thank you, W Ft. Lauderdale Hotel, for opening your doors to help create and host this amazing and historic moment in history.

Thank you to Reverend Dr. Durrell Watkins from the Sunshine Cathedral, Cruise Planners and Celebrity Cruises, and Creative Focus for their generosities. Thank you to Jet Blue for the travel certificates. Thank you to Broward County for the marriage cer-tificates. Thank you to the local merchants who participated in the wedding gift bag. There are so many thank you’s to be given....from the flowers to the wedding cupcakes and champagne. I am so sorry that I cannot thank each individually. But know in our hearts you made this the most wonderful day of our lives.

Thank you to the Love is Love Wedding Ceremony’s brainchild. You deserve a raise for your creativity, insight and enlightenment!

I am recently retired from a long career as the Vice President of Marketing/Planning for the parent company owning a hospital, managed care insurance company, nursing home, rehabilitation centers, various clinics, home care and medical supply compa-nies. I also was responsible for directing our own in-house advertising/public relations agency. So I am not without some hint of knowledge of the type of intense work that was put into the Ft. Lauderdale project. I could not see one single flaw in the work performed by anyone. Despite last minute changes due to weather, it was as though these changes were well planned out and all a part of the original design. You absolutely could not have made the Love Is Love Wedding Ceremony more perfect. And - you’ve made history!

In closing, not only do I want to say thank you on behalf of Jeff and I and the other 99 couples who were delighted by this well pre-pared and most memorable occasion, but I want to say that I am certain the city of Ft. Lauderdale and the Ft. Lauderdale Visitors and Convention Bureau will benefit greatly in the years to come by your hard work and expertise but also for welcoming the LGBT communities ! I can’t imagine any gay or lesbian couple not wanting the kind of romantic wedding that we enjoyed and that only Ft. Lauderdale can provide. Thank you Fort Lauderdale for being my Heaven on Earth. Thank you for permitting me to walk safely down the street holding my husbands hand and not feeling afraid. We can’t do that in Ohio. Again, thank you.....everyone.

Very truly yours,

Jerry A. RizorCanton, Ohio

John Ruda and Tim Melger from New Jersey, who were checking into the W Fort Lauderdale for a vacation (their 19th visit to Fort Lauderdale!), noticed the Love is Love signage at the front desk and googled it while waiting in line. To their surprise and delight, it was a wedding scheduled to happen next morning at the W. On a whim, they headed to the CVB’s welcome desk to ask if they could be a part of the wedding (of course it was a YES). The bus to transport them to the Clerk of Courts was leaving in one hour and they had just enough time to get their marriage license. John proposed to Tim in the elevator, and history was made!

Read their follow up email to us:

Nicki, Anna & the entire GFLCVB Team,Last week you all gave us a gift that meant the world to us. While having planned and arranged the Love Is Love event itself deserves a huge amount of thanks, your willingness to include us in the ceremony only 12 hours before the program was simply amazing.

Following or civil union in NJ in 2007 we celebrated in Fort Lauderdale. We’ve since visited at least 18 times and it simply feels right to us. W Fort Lauderdale was our destination for most of those visits so when we checked in last Wednesday and learned of your event it was serendipitous. We’d talked previously about “upgrading” our union to marriage for full federal recognition but couldn’t decide on the best approach. Your event couldn’t have been more perfect for us.

Every member of your team that we encountered helped to make our day special. Pulling off the event given all the logistics and weath-er curveball couldn’t have been easy. Your willingness to go the extra mile for the LGBT community is truly appreciated.

Thanks to your efforts and support of the W, JetBlue, Celebrity, Cruise Planners, and many other partners we are finally married!As a small thank you we wanted to share with you the video we created to share our wedding with our friends and family. You can stream it at the web link below:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1882tw88l9u6d86/2015%20Wedding%20-%20Tim%20%26%20John.mp4?dl=0

The impact you make with a relatively small team is amazing. We will be back in town at the end of Feb and again at the end of March. Fort Lauderdale will continue to be a place that feels like home to us (but without the cooking, cleaning and snow)!

Thank you again for this gift that will last a lifetime! If there’s anything we can do to help your team in the future let us know.

Best,John Ruda and Tim Melger

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