The Pop Luck Club

The Pop Luck Club is a Los Angeles-based organization of gay dads that is the largest known gay fathers organization in the world, with hundreds of families and continued strong growth. Its mission is to advance the well-being of gay prospective parents, gay parents, and their children. We do this through mutual support, community collaboration, and public understanding.

For questions about the Pop Luck Club or this website, or for more details about any of the ongoing or special events listed below, please contact plcinfo@popluckclub.org.

Ongoing Events - held the same day each month:

◊  Monthly Pop Luck Club meetings in West Hollywood - First Sunday, 11:00AM for new and prospective members, 12:00PM for everyone.

◊  Monthly Pop Luck Club picnics in Orange County - Third Sunday, 1:00PM.

◊  Maybe Baby - Second Sunday, 10:30AM. Provides information for prospective gay and lesbian parents. Note that we list event information for Maybe Baby, but it is not affiliated with The Pop Luck Club. Email MaybeBaby@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

◊  Family Day in the Park - Third Saturday, 10AM - 12PM. Combines PLC members with other gay and lesbian parents. Note that we list event information for Family Day in the Park, but it is run by The L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center's Family Services Program. Email FamilyServices@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

Upcoming Dates:

SEPTEMBER EVENTS:

>  PLC West Hollywood Meeting - Sunday, September 7, 2008, 11:00AM. Kids' Activity planned: The Sports Coach team will be there to provide activities for the kids!  Email plcinfo@popluckclub.org for more info.

>  Parenting with Pride Conference & Resource Fair - Saturday, September 13, 2008. Conference starts at 8:30AM, Resource Fair runs from 11:00AM - 2:00PM. See details below, and email plcinfo@popluckclub.org for more info.

> Maybe Baby - Canceled for September, but visit Maybe Baby at the Parenting with Pride Conference & Resource Fair. Email MaybeBaby@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  Family Day in the Park - Saturday, September 20, 2008, 10:00AM - 12:00PM. Email FamilyServices@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  PLC Orange County Picnic - Sunday, September 21, 2008, 11:00AM. Email gcollins92651@yahoo.com for more info.

OCTOBER EVENTS: 

> PLC West Hollywood Meeting - Sunday, October 5, 2008, 11:00AM. Email plcinfo@popluckclub.org for more info.

> Families In The Desert - October 3 - 5, 2008. Sponsored by the Family Equality Council. Email plcinfo@popluckclub.org for more info.

> Family Equality Council National Awards Dinner, Honoring The Pop Luck Club - Saturday, October 11, 2008, 7:00PM. For more information and to buy tickets, see http://www.familyequality.org/events/awards08.

>  Maybe Baby - Sunday, October 12, 2008, 10:30AM. Subject: Singles Considering Parenting & Single Parents. Email MaybeBaby@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  Family Day in the Park - Saturday, October 18, 2008, 10:00AM - 12:00PM. Email FamilyServices@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  PLC Orange County Picnic - Sunday, October 19, 2008, 11:00AM. Email gcollins92651@yahoo.com for more info.

NOVEMBER EVENTS:

>  PLC West Hollywood Meeting & semi-annual Pop Swap - Sunday, November 2, 2008, 11:00AM. See below for more info about the Pop Swap, and email plcinfo@popluckclub.org for more info.

>  Maybe Baby - Sunday, November 9, 2008, 10:30AM. Subject: Success Stories. Email MaybeBaby@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  Family Day in the Park - Saturday, November 15, 2008, 10:00AM - 12:00PM. Email FamilyServices@LAGayCenter.org for more info.

>  PLC Orange County Picnic - Sunday, November 16, 2008, 11:00AM. Email gcollins92651@yahoo.com for more info.

Pop Luck Submits Amicus Curiae letter to CA Supreme Court in support of Prop 8 challenges

The Pop Luck Club has submitted an "Amicus Curiae" ("Friend of the Court") letter to the CA Supreme Court in support of the challenges to Prop 8.

Dec. 7, 2008 - Members' Forum, PLC 10th Anniversary & Holiday Party

Save the date - Sunday, Dec. 7th, 2008, West Hollywood! Join us from 11AM - 12PM for our first Members' Forum, which will be followed by our combined 10th Anniversary Party/Holiday Party. The Members' Forum will give members an opportunity to provide feedback and input for The Pop Luck Club as we update our vision and programming, particularly in light of the passage of Prop 8. After the Members' Forum will be The Pop Luck Club's 10th Anniversary Party, with food provided and special guests - PLC's founders will be there, and Santa Claus will join us for his annual holiday visit! To RSVP, or for more information, please email plcinfo@popluckclub.org.

Marriage Equality - Message to PLC Members from the PLC Board

To Members of The Pop Luck Club:

The Pop Luck Club Board of Directors understands the disappointment of the recent approval of Prop 8.  We recognize that our membership invested heavily in the fight against Prop 8.  We share your concern about this and any future legislation that would jeopardize or harm our families.  Please know that we hear you and are energized by your input. 

Right now, your Board of Directors is working to collect your ideas and  determine our most effective course of action.  In the next few weeks, our goal is to develop a new organizational plan in response to the new political environment, that best suits our volunteer organization, its membership, and our abilities.

Please continue to generate input on the newsgroup - to do so, send messages to thepopluckclub@yahoogroups.com, if you're a newsgroup member. If you're not a Pop Luck Club member or a newsgroup member, your email will bounce back. You can become a Pop Luck Club and a newsgroup member by clicking on the "Apply for Membership/Renew" link to the left.

We thank you and look forward to your continued participation.

Jeff Hall & Larry Riesenbach
Co-Presidents, The Pop Luck Club

Give It Up for Pop Swap - November 2nd WeHo Meeting

Join us for our semi-annual Pop Swap at our November 2^nd West Hollywood meeting. Bring your gently-used toys, clothing, and baby paraphernalia, and take home some other good finds! Everyone’s welcome to take stuff home, and anything left at the end of the Pop Swap will be donated to charity.

PLC Being Honored at Annual Awards Dinner

The Pop Luck Club is excited to announce that we're being honored at this year's Family Equality Council National Awards Dinner, being held Oct. 11th at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. Along with HBO, we're being honored for the work we do in the community to help support LGBT-headed households - as the Family Equality Council states, for our "contributions to securing equality for all loving families."

We hope to have a great turnout of Pop Luck Club members and community members at the dinner to cheer us on as we accept this honor. For more information about the dinner, and to buy tickets, visit Family Equality's website:  http://www.familyequality.org/events/awards08

Resource Fair & Parenting With Pride Conf. - Sat., Sept. 13th

This Saturday, Sept. 13, 2008 is The Pop Luck Club's 10th Annual GLBT Parenting Resource Fair, held in conjunction with the "Parenting with Pride" conference that's hosted by The LA Gay & Lesbian Center's Family Services Program. There is no charge for attendance at the conference or the Resource Fair.

As in past years, the Resource Fair will feature exhibitors targeted at prospective parents and current parents. The concurrent Parenting with Pride Conference features more than two dozen workshops throughout the day, including some targeted at prospective parents (e.g., Adoption 101, Surrogacy 101, Donor Insemination 101), and many geared toward existing or soon-to-be families (e.g., Choosing Your Children's Schools, Faith and Our Families).

There will be a new "Learning with Pride" track this year, with 5 workshops geared toward parents of school-age children that are designed to help our families learn how to work with the schools to ensure that our children are in a safe learning environment.

The Resource Fair and Conference are held at Selma Ave. Elementary School in Hollywood, at 6611 Selma Ave. The conference runs from 8:30AM - 5:30PM, and the Resource Fair runs from 11:00AM - 2:00PM. You can attend just the Resource Fair, just the conference, or both. Free daycare is provided for children 0-8, COLAGE (Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere) activities are available for youth ages 9+, and meals are provided throughout the day.

For more information about the Resource Fair, contact plcinfo@popluckclub.org.

For more information about the conference and to register for it, see the Family Services site or contact familyservices@lagaycenter.org.

Andrew Rakos - Daddy of the Year!

Please join The Pop Luck Club in congratulating Andrew Rakos on being named our first Daddy of the Year: A Face of Fatherhood (AKA "DOTY"). As our new DOTY, Andrew led The Pop Luck Club's contingent in the LA Pride Parade, and introduced himself to many people at the Pride Festival in West Hollywood Park. We're honored to have Andrew representing The Pop Luck Club, and since being selected as the DOTY, he's also joined the PLC Board of Directors!

For more information about Andrew, please see his candidate's statement:
Andrew Rakos' Candidate's Statement

Saw us at Pride? Welcome to The Pop Luck Club!

Welcome to everyone who found out about The Pop Luck Club at the LA Pride Festival this past weekend. This page and the rest of our website will tell you many of the details of The Pop Luck Club, and you can join the club by clicking on the Apply link on the left side. If you have any questions about the group, please email us at plcinfo@popluckclub.org!

MARCH WITH POP LUCK AND OUR "DADDY OF THE YEAR" IN THE ANNUAL PRIDE PARADE!

Visit us at our booth at the LA Pride Festival

Pull out those Pop Luck Club T-shirts and join The Pop Luck Club and our "Daddy of the Year" to march in the annual LA Pride Parade on Sunday, June 8th, 2008. Meet up by 10:30AM for an 11AM parade kickoff. We’re usually on Crescent Heights Blvd. near the corner of Santa Monica Blvd., but ask parade workers for our lineup number to find us. We didn't order new Pop Luck Club T-shirts this year, so bring your shirts from previous years. If you don’t have one, we’ll be bringing some along to lend to people!

The Pop Luck Club will also have a booth at the LA Pride Festival to tell people about our group, provide resources for current and potential dads, and to publicize our annual Resource Fair that will be held on September 13th this year. As in years past, the Resource Fair will be held in conjunction with the Family Services Program's "Parenting with Pride" conference - Save the Date!

SPORTS COACH COMING TO JUNE WEST HOLLYWOOD MEETING

The kids always have a great time when Coach Samir and his staff lead activities at our monthly meetings. Join us at our June 1st meeting in West Hollywood when Coach Samir will be with us once again!