schedule travel lodging things to do FAQ RSVP

saturday, may 23^rd, 2026
6:00pm
el cid, 4212 w sunset blvd
dinner + performances + dancing

Food will be served at the outdoor patio with heaters. Performances will take place indoors. Some seating will be provided indoors and outdoors.
Details about parking/arrival linked here.

sunday, may 24^th, 2026
4:00pm
**arrival time based on procession schedule, see details linked below.
grace e. simons lodge,
1025 elysian park dr
procession + ceremony + dinner + games

Most of the event, including dinner, will be happening outdoors with some shade during the day and heating in the evening. We highly recommend using rideshare, public transportation, or Lime bikes/scooters to travel to Grace E. Simons Lodge. Please see details about the processional timing, parking, and directions here.

If you are traveling from out of town, we always recommend flying into Burbank Airport which is a smaller airport (less hectic) and closer to our events. If you fly into LAX, consider taking the FlyAway bus, which drops you off at Union Station in downtown LA. You can read our very detailed LAX transportation guide here.

We recommend taking rideshare or public transportation to get to our events. LA is a car-based city, so renting a car is a good option if you’d like to do some more exploring of the city.

Our events are located in Echo Park and Silver Lake, so we recommend looking for lodging on the east side of Los Angeles - neighborhoods nearby include Echo Park, Silver Lake, Los Feliz, Downtown Los Angeles, Chinatown, Atwater Village, Frogtown, Cypress Park, Glassell Park, and Lincoln Heights.

Hotel Room Block: We have a room block with discounted rates at the VERY funky Westin Bonaventure in Downtown LA ~20 mins from all venues, where countless famous movies have been shot, as well as this insane Fenty fashion show. They have a 360 rotating bar at the top, not to be missed, unless you get nauseous easily. You can book rooms here [must be booked by May 1st].

Other options include the Silver Lake Pool and Inn (walking distance to the event on Saturday) and AirBnbs!

We are compiling (and still adding to) some of our favorite activities, food, hiking, etc into this google map! We will keep adding to it as we go (note it’s easier to view this on your phone :))

Saturday is the party night!! We will have a buffet dinner, performances by our talented friends/family, and then dancing into the wee hours of the night!
Sunday will start with a procession through the park followed by a ceremony. Dinner will then be served, and we’ll have speeches and table games to end the evening.


DAY 1: El Cid is a historic flamenco bar with quite the storied, eyebrow-raising past. We’ve gone to many fun dance parties here and adore the coziness of the space along with its intimate booth seating and spacious outdoor patio. The venue has beautiful deep wood paneling that contrasts with brick, Spanish tiling, and white stone walls. Dusty wine cabinets and coats of armor accessorize the space. To match the personality of the venue, we encourage showstopping outfits with elements of flamenco and Western wear - think fringe, leather, ruffles, sequins, or bright solid colors. Wear shoes you’ll feel comfortable dancing in.


DAY 2: Grace E. Simons Lodge is a City of LA event venue named in honor of Grace E. Simons, who dedicated the later years of her life to protecting and saving Elysian Park (the park Grace E. Simons Lodge is located within) from being destroyed and converted into a large convention center. The lodge is surrounded by the Chavez Ravine Arboretum, which boasts more than 150 species of trees! We live within walking distance of this park and love walking through it to visit horses at the Echo Park Corral, to absorb the joy and energy of families celebrating birthdays and other milestones at the parks’ many picnic areas, and to admire the occasional antique car show that pops up along the gorgeous Avenue of Palms along Academy Road.

Our theme for our second day of celebrations is “BBQ formal”. A park cookout conjures up classic red gingham picnic tablecloths, overalls, denim, floppy sun hats, bold patterns. We’re hoping that the jacaranda trees located at the lodge will be in peak purple bloom (see photo in moodboard for color inspiration). We will be outdoors the entire day, so dress for heat + sun and prepare for an evening drop in temperature with layers. Our ceremony will be on the grassy portion of the venue where the ground may be uneven. Some of the seating for the ceremony will be cushions placed on the ground, so consider wearing clothes that would allow you to sit in this manner more comfortably.




If you are an overachiever, you can learn how to play some of the games we will be playing on Sunday evening:

• High Low Jack card game (A Gallogly Classic)
• Note: in this video they call this game “Pitch”, you can ignore that :)
• Mahjong

We will also have folks on hand to teach!


In lieu of a purchased gift, please consider donating to the following housing justice organizations we currently give to and organize closely with. We will also accept and appreciate handwritten cards and/or handmade gifts!

HouseUS is a pooled fund that supports tenant power, tenant-led campaigns, and a national movement for housing justice that centers the strategic leadership of tenants.

What we love about HouseUS: HouseUS funds a number of tenant unions that recently came together to form the Tenant Union Federation (TUF) - a first-of-its-kind nationwide collaboration across tenant unions formed in response to poor living conditions in housing owned by Capital Realty Group, a private equity firm that profits from an extensive housing portfolio all over the U.S., including in L.A.’s own Chinatown. TUF hopes to leverage its power to sign a collective bargaining agreement with the firm so that tenants can negotiate for more affordable rents and better living conditions.

Chinatown Community for Equitable Development (CCED) is an all volunteer, multi-ethnic, intergenerational organization based in Los Angeles Chinatown that builds grassroots power through organizing, education, and mutual help.

What we love about CCED: CCED tenant organizers do an incredible job of building relationships with the poor and working-class mostly elderly community members of Chinatown by prioritizing language accessibility to hear from marginalized community members living in a neighborhood that’s been ravaged by speculative real estate deals and government disinvestment. They try to have all their materials translated in Traditional Chinese, Spanish, Khmer, and Vietnamese + conduct their monthly All Chinatown Tenants Union meetings primarily in Cantonese with English translation provided through individual translation devices. CCED tenant organizers laid the foundation for the creation of the LA Chinatown Community Land Trust where Monica sits on the board. Read about their work advocating for seniors living in Cathay Manor, a building that fell under major disrepair, and get this, was recently acquired by Capital Realty Group, the private equity firm TUF (mentioned above) is hoping to collectively bargain with.

People Organized for Westside Renewal (POWER) organizes in/around public housing communities and other subsidized "affordable" housing in LA.

What we love about POWER: POWER is committed to organizing public housing residents who often get forgotten in conversations relating to our national housing crisis. Through Resource Generation-LA’s (an organization we both have leadership roles in) partnership with POWER, we’ve learned so much about the history of public housing and how its once immense popularity in a post-Depression/post-WWII America as a solution for housing people of diverse class backgrounds was later deliberately attacked by Nixon and Reagans’ administrations who used racist tropes like the “welfare queen” to justify defunding public housing and demolishing thousands of units. Sadly, a number of public housing units in Los Angeles are currently slated for demolition, so we hope you’ll join us in resourcing POWER’s fight calling for “Repairs, Not Demolitions!” and their long-term work of restoring adequate funding to public housing.


Events for the weekend are 21+.
Additional details about getting to the venues and things to do during the day will be added closer to May!

Please RSVP by March 15^th using the link here!