"Love Won Out," marking its 10th anniversary this year, aims to promote the cause of "reparative therapy," also known as "ex-gay therapy," with emphasis on countering the "born gay" argument. Such programs seek to eliminate same-sex attraction in its subjects using techniques such as religious teaching, aversion therapy and group counseling.

"Anyone who has undergone the life-changing process of leaving homosexuality behind will tell you that it is not an easy one," "ex-gay" Exodus International president and "Love Won Out" speaker Alan Chambers said in a recent Focus press release. "However, for thousands of us, the journey has been well worth it. Regardless of what causes same-sex attraction, our lives show that others can live a life free from its dominance."

"Love Won Out extends this redemptive message of change to men and women struggling with unwanted same-sex attractions, while educating the community on how to respond to this issue with grace and truth," the press release further reads. "It is driven by men and women who, like Chambers, who used to self-identify as homosexuals and no longer do."

"It's our hope that our experiences provide audiences with a clearer picture of what it means to apply timeless biblical truths to a very human situation," adds Focus director of gender issues and conference speaker Melissa Fryrear.

"What you won't find," activist, author and public speaker Wayne Besen tells PageOneQ, "are people who can claim to be successfully changed that aren't 'ex-gay for pay,' on the payroll of Focus on the Family or other groups. Independent stories of success are nearly impossible to find."

Truth Wins Out, headed by Besen, will meet Focus on the Family at the conference with a message of their own: You cannot heal a person who's not sick, and you cannot fix a person that's not broken. Techniques used to "liberate" a person from his or her same-sex attractions, they contend, often lead to inner turmoil, depression, self-denial and even suicide.

"By going to San Jose and working with local organizations," Besen says, "it's a real educational opportunity, serving to counter the efforts of this multi-million dollar organization that drops dogmatic ideological bombs and leaves destruction in its wake."

"Our message is acceptance and theirs is rejection," continues Besen. "They try to present it as love. Our job is to peel away those layers and show that, at the end of the day, these groups only love those that live according to their religious beliefs. That's pseudo-love, with some very cruel strings attached; it's a different definition of 'love' than the one I grew up with."

Meetings such as "Love Won Out" are largely attended by ashamed parents of gays seeking to change their children rather than accept them, Besen says. His message to these parents is: "Don't throw away your relationship with your child. Telling them you love them for who you want them to be and not who they are is a road map to a shattered family and to broken lives."

More information is available at Truth Wins Out, Box Turtle Bulletin and Ex-Gay Watch.