The National Gay Wedding Association (NGWA), a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional organization, was founded in 2019 by Ric Simmons after he experienced bigotry and discrimination in Texas while planning his wedding.
In 2015, when same-sex marriage became the law of the land, the wedding industry was not prepared. LGBTQ+ weddings do not necessarily follow established traditions, and wedding planners were caught unaware. Very few wedding vendors across this country rose to the occasion to service LGBTQ+ couples. Still today, only five percent of wedding professionals openly advertise that they do not discriminate against LGBTQ+ couples.