A minimum donation of $5 per person is required to attend the convention. Lunch on Saturday will be provided for a $20 donation if you register by February 25, 2014. The registration fee may be paid in advance using PayPal or a credit card at http://gpofpa.nationbuilder.com/2014annualmeeting. Those not wishing to pay in advance may register by emailing [email protected] or calling (267) 289-2247. Payment will be expected upon arrival.

The convention will be held in the country club's Grand Ballroom, which will be divided into Ballroom West and Ballroom East. Ballroom East will have a theater arrangement with chairs and a projector screen, and Ballroom West will have a conference setup with tables and chairs.

A silent auction will be held during the day in Ballroom East, which is where items donated to the auction can be brought. Please do not donate items that are broken, damaged, dirty, or large enough to be difficult to carry, such as furniture. Suggested items for donation include antiques, handmade crafts, or artwork. Bids may be placed during the day until 5:00 p.m., which is when payment will be expected . Cash and all major credit cards are accepted. Green Party merchandise will also be available for purchase in Ballroom East following the auction.

The convention will open with our keynote speaker, 2012 Green Party Vice-Presidential nominee Cheri Honkala, who will be introduced by Jay Sweeney, chair of the GPPA Steering Committee.

Our first workshops will begin after Honkala's address. In Ballroom East, GPPA Steering Committee member Hillary Kane will introduce the Nationbuilder Organizational Tool, recently adopted by GPPA. In Ballroom West, Alex Gillett, from the Green Party of Philadelphia, will lead a ballot access workshop. A recent history of efforts to educate the public about ballot access will be discussed, along with Senate Bill 195, the Voters Choice Act, which improves ballot access. The workshop will also develop strategies for securing passage of the VCA.

Following Kane's presentation in Ballroom East, The Centre County Green Party, the newest local affiliate of the GPPA, will discuss their insights into forming a local GPPA affiliate. Following the Centre County Greens, Brian Bittner from the Green Party of the United States will hold campaign training.

In Ballroom West, following the Ballot Access workshop, Neil Haagen from the Centre County Green Party will hold a workshop on voter registration drives.

Lunch begins at noon. Those who paid for lunch as part of their registration will have access to a buffet in Ballroom East. The buffet will have deli meats, soup, salad, and dessert. Coffee and tea will also be served.

After lunch, GPPA Steering Committee member Carl Romanelli and GPPA legal counsel Paul Rossi will hold training on both technique and strategy for collecting signatures on nominating papers for this election cycle.

At 2 p.m. in Ballroom East the candidates seeking nomination by the GPPA will introduce themselves: Paul Glover (Governor), Tom Prigg (12th congressional district), and Jay Sweeney (20th Pa. Senate district).

Tom Prigg will give our next presentation in Ballroom West, “Corporatism vs. Capitalism: How trickle down economics is destroying our economy and increasing inequality.”

In Ballroom East, Wendy Lee and Dave Laidacker from Shale Justice will deliver a presentation called “Pennsylvania's Frack-Tastrophe: Top Priority for the 2014 Elections. Why Resisting the Conversion of the Commonwealth into an Extraction Colony for Multinational Corporations Should be the Top Priority for the 2014 Elections.” Following their presentation we will screen Triple Divide, a fracking documentary by J.B. Pribanic and M.A. Troutman.

In Ballroom West concurrently with the movie, Martin Zehr from the Green Party of Allegheny County will conduct a workshop on regional water planning.

The silent auction will finish after Triple Divide ends. Dinner will be following. The View Restaurant and Lounge at the Mountain View Country Club serves dinner from 4-9 p.m. The cost of dinner is not included in your registration fee.

Following dinner there will be a panel discussion of healthcare in Pa. Gubernatorial hopeful Paul Glover, GPPA steering committee secretary Dave Ochmanowicz, who works in the health insurance industry, and Elizabeth Sieminski from HealthCare 4 All PA will be the panelists.

At 7:30 pm Democracy Unplugged, cosponsored by the PA Ballot Access Coalition, will host a ballot access forum. The forum will be moderated by Roger Balsom, and features these speakers: Jim Clymer, Pa. Constitution Party Treasurer; Ken Krawchuk, Pa. Libertarian Party Gubernatorial Candidate; Carl Romanelli, Pa. Green Party 2006 US Senate nominee; and State Senator Mike Folmer (R-48), sponsor of the Voters Choice Act. Questions from the audience will be taken after the speakers' opening remarks. The forum will end by 9:00 p.m., which will conclude Saturday's program.

The View Restaurant and Lounge serves Sunday brunch from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. for those interested. The cost is $12.99 for adults.

Sunday's business meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. in Ballroom East. Only registered Green Party members may participate in discussion and decision making, but anyone may attend to observe.

The meeting will open with introductions from attendees. For the sake of brevity, introductions will consist of name, county, and whether or not one is a delegate to the GPPA State Committee. After introductions, reports will be presented by the steering committee and various state committees.

Following reports, nominations and elections for members of the GPPA steering committee, delegates to the Green Party of the United States, and members of other committees will be taken. Submitting nominations in advance via the GPPA email list is recommended.

Lunch will follow party and committee elections. After lunch, our 2014 candidates will be nominated, followed by candidate endorsements.

Petitioning and Ballot Access planning will be discussed next, along with any other GPPA business. The meeting will end by 4 p.m.

Look for coverage of the convention's events in a future edition of the Green Star.