2020 Virtual Family Gathering Preview
The IFOPA recognizes the many challenges the FOP community is facing due to the COVID-19 virus. There are the obvious physical and financial challenges, and there are emotional challenges as well. The FOP Family Gathering is the IFOPA’s annual opportunity to bring the community together for education, connectivity and support. Our number one priority is the safety of the community. With consideration of feedback provided by leading FOP medical experts, the IFOPA’s Board of Directors and staff have decided not to hold the in-person FOP Family Gathering scheduled to take place November 2020 in Dallas, Texas.
We remain dedicated and focused on continuing to provide opportunities for the FOP community to come together and experience the same sense of community, get the latest education and resources and become more empowered advocates for themselves and their family members. With the input and feedback of the community we will be hosting a virtual Family Gathering available to attendees around the world. We are excited about this opportunity to fulfill the IFOPA's mission by providing audio and written translations which will enable us to educate and support the FOP community worldwide.
This event will be available to all community participants free of charge.
We know that attending virtual event may be a new experience for many of our community members. We look forward to being able to offer these exciting experiences:
- A customized virtual event environment with a lobby, exhibit hall and auditorium
- Live presentations and Q&A
- The opportunity to visit virtual exhibitor booths with access to downloadable resources, pre-recorded demonstrations and live one-to-one video chat with the booth staff. (Video chat provides two-way video communication. You must have a microphone on your computer in order to participate.)
- Community chat rooms, virtual conference games, badges and much more.
Family Gathering Itinerary
Friday, November 20- The day will begin with presentations from FOP medical experts and pharmaceutical companies researching FOP. There will be breakout style, small group video discussions offered in the afternoon followed by time to visit and interact with exhibit hall booth staff. Don't miss out on the community activities taking place later in the evening!
Saturday, November 21- We'll offer several tracks of general sessions followed by additional small group video discussions, exhibit hall time and evening entertainment.
Sunday, November 22- After hearing updates from IFOPA staff we'll come together to close out the conference, draw our raffle prizes, and find out where the 2021 conference will be held!
If you haven't already, please take a few minutes to complete this short survey and share your input to help us design an event that meets your needs.
**This survey can be translated to different languages by clicking on the button in the upper left corner of the page and selecting the necessary language.
Questions about the Family Gathering?
If you have questions about the 2020 Virtual Family Gathering please contact Hope Newport, Family Services Manager, at [email protected] or +1 (785) 294-1607.
