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Gov. Phil Murphy and Congressman Frank Pallone Jr were among those who came out Sunday to honor Luanne Peterpaul at Watermark on the Asbury Park Boardwalk.

“I don’t think that there is anyone in this state that I have met who has poured their heart out day in and day out more than Luanne Peterpaul,” Murphy said of the exiting Garden State of Equality Board Chair. “This was not always rolling down hill with the wind at our back. This was, in most cases, going hand to hand combat to stand up for the rights of the LGBT community in this state and nobody poured their heart out more than you Luanne.”

Peterpaul spent 12 years advancing equality for the LGBT community through her work with the advocacy and education nonprofit.

“This afternoon we are honoring the legacy that Luanne is leaving behind on the board of Garden State Equality,” Executive Director Christian Fuscarino said. “Not only are we celebrating the chapter closing in all that she has for community in this state but we are celebrating a chapter that’s starting because Luanne is not going too far; we are not going to let her get away.”

Peterpaul played an influential role in most, if not all, of the over 250 laws and local ordinances passed with guidance from Garden State Equality,  Fuscarino has said. Among the pioneers in the fight for marriage equality, Peterpaul advocated for greater emphasis on educating today’s youth on diversity, equality and respect for their peers.

Her wife, filmmaker Robin Kampf said she first met Peterpaul when she became the new student in their third-grade class at Burnet Hill Elementary School in Livingston.

“The principal came into our classroom to introduce us to a little girl who had just moved into town,” Kampf said. “She was the new kid in our school…and I was a little intimidated then. Fast forward to now, and what’s amazing is something that I thought I would never experience in my lifetime, is that I actually married that woman.

“Everyone in this room who is married now, in a same gender relationship, or even thinking about marrying your beloved, you can thank Luanne Peterpaul,” Kampf said. “She truly is an unsung hero and advocate for people who have been unjustly treated, denied their rights and marginalized by society.”

Peterpaul co-authored the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights, which sailed through both the State Assembly and Senate, and was signed into law by Governor Chris Christie in January 2011.

A partner and principal at Peterpaul Law, located in Asbury Park, her practice specializes in everything from employment law, business litigation and school law issues. She is admitted to practice before the state and federal courts of New Jersey, and the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. And last year, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the LGBT Rights Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

The event raised $25,000 in Peterpaul’s honor, which will be invested in technology to help elect more LGBT candidates and allies, Fuscarino said. He said special thanks goes to Tito’s Handmade Vodka and the David Bohnett Foundation for their large contributions.

“When Luanne go involved with Garden State Equality, it was the perfect place for her,” said friend of 38 years Roseann Primerano of Kinnelon, who met Peterpaul while the two were in law school. “It gave her a chance to use her talents to try to make a change. Luanne has fought so hard for gay rights and anti-bullying laws in New Jersey. When they passed the marriage equality law, Luanne knew it wasn’t enough. She went down and testified and said marriage equality is not enough, we need to have marriage. She never gave up on that; she fought and fought until we had it passed in New Jersey.”

New on the political landscape was Jess Alaimo, a local comedian who has launched the Young Democrats of Asbury Park with Kayvon Paul and Andrew Chambarry to foster political awareness, education, and involvement of the city’s younger population.

“Like so many millennials who are new in this whole world of politics, I looked to the pioneers and leaders in our community for guidance and for direction and acceptance, and I found Luanne Peterpaul,” Alaimo said. “I found a strong woman who accepted me with open arms into the activist community. As a young woman in politics, right in the middle of the #metoo movement, Luanne serves as a role model not only for myself but for all women.”

Also in attendance was Asbury Park Mayor John Moor who said, “What a wonderful person and what a great job she has done. She’s leaving big shoes to fill.”

The new Garden State Equality Action Fund Chair is Chris Donnelly, a principal for Kivvit – an organization that focuses on public affairs and communications strategies. Donnelly previously served as State Senate President Steve Sweeney’s press secretary; has worked in the administrations of three New Jersey governors; and served as Congressman Rush Holt’s 2010 communications director. He also has a background in LGBT advocacy, having served as communications director for New Jersey United For Marriage – a grassroots campaign to bring marriage equality to New Jersey.

“It will not be easy following the incredible legacy Luanne is leaving behind,” he has said. “She has been a mentor to me, but more importantly, a great friend.”

For more on Peterpaul and her work with Garden State Equality, click here.

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