Happy Pride!! 31 Days until the Pride Parade and Pride Festival!

The big month is upon us! Pride Month officially begins this Sunday, and the events are as numerous and diverse as our very own community. Be sure to check out the fabulous list of everything on the “Events” link on the Pride website. Many of these events have their very own web pages with more detailed accounts of the goings-on, but feel free to drop me a line or give me a call if you have any questions. Your Pride Committee and Friends and Leaders in the Community have some really exciting things planned, so be sure to support these events and, of course, Stonewall Columbus!

The Festival IS still at Bicentennial Park this year, by the way! I know, I know – you are wondering where everything is going to go. Not to worry. That’s a bigger space down there than you realize! The City of Columbus has also been extremely helpful with keeping your Festival Committee updated on all the latest construction details and whatnot. I think Joe, Joyce, and Rob and Company could do this festival anywhere, they are that good! Just as long as the sprinklers don’t come on again this year to wash away Rob’s booth numbers, there are no worries!

Speaking of booths, have you registered for your space yet? Have you registered your parade entry? The “Pride Participant Packet” is available online. Simply download that, fill it out, and send it in to me. Don’t YOU want to see and be seen? Of course you do! Go to the online links and sign up now, as the deadlines are approaching.

Also available online are the dogs tags, as well as tickets for all things Pride. You can buy tickets for An Exhibit of Pride, the annual Pride Art Show which is coming up next week. You can also get your VIP spots for the special Pre-Party and Saturday Brunch with Bitch and Ferron, as well as other tickets for “Our Power Weekend,” the Pride Kick-Off Concerts.

You can even register your golf team to play in “Fore! Pride,” or you can register to “Run for Pride.” You also better snag those coveted spots to come to the Pink Party to meet that cute Southern Boy, Leslie Jordan (aka “Brother Boy,” “Beverley Leslie.”) And don’t forget to go to our link to the Ticketmaster site to purchase tickets to his show at the Southern Theatre the following night! He is hilarious!

VOLUNTEER SIGN-UP is also available online! We still need a few people to help in various areas, including the upcoming Art Show. Sign up to be a stylish server at An Exhibit of Pride. Or is setting up and tearing down the festival more along your lines of talent? Want to help with the Parade? How about helping in the Family Area or volunteering in the Beverage Area? Don’t you want to look important in one of those awesome SWC Volunteer Shirts? Come on, sure you do! All the cool kids are doing it!

I am getting tired just telling you about all these events! So get your pedicures, manicures, stylist appointments, disco naps, and dates all lined up – it is time to do the “Happy Pride” shout out for the next 31 Days!

Happy Pride!

HAPPY PRIDE!!   65 Days until the Pride Parade and Festival!!!

Can you believe that countdown?  I have it posted in my Pride office and I change the numbers every day! It’s purely because of my excitement – like Seniors counting down their last days until Graduation –  not because I am stressed about getting everything done in time . . .

There are sooooooooooooooooo many Pride events the month of June! “We aren’t just a Parade and Festival anymore,” that’s what I’ve been saying.  June is officially “PRIDE MONTH” now! We have moved up from just one weekend and definitely from one day! Many of our events have their own official websites, too, with online registration and ticket purchasing. We are definitely advancing the Pride Site so that everything is easily accessible and very user-friendly. Simply click on the “Events” button on the left side of our Columbus Pride Home Page, and you will see a complete list of events with dates, locations, website information, and whatnot.  Many thanks to the various Event Chairs and their committees who bring all of these fabulous – and diverse! – events to you!

I am also including a concise list of events here as I conclude this post. Please refer to the “Events” site for the more detailed information.  Enjoy these events, and HAPPY PRIDE!   – Jan

June 3 – History Panel:  The Central Ohio Response to the AIDS Crisis

June 5 – An Exhibit of Pride Art Show

June 6 and June 7 – “OUR POWER WEEKEND” Pride Kick-Off  Outdoor Concerts

June 11 – History Panel

June 14 – Pride Poker Run

June 14 – Fore! Pride Golf Outing Inaugural Event

June 15 – Leslie Jordan “Pink Party” Pride Fundraiser at Stonewall

June 16 – Leslie Jordan: My Trip Down the Pink Carpet   One-Man Show

June 20 – CATF “Skate for Life”

June 21 – Run for Pride 5K Run/Walk

June 26 – After Stonewall DVD Showing

June 27 and June 28 – Rockin’ in The Streets

June 27 and June 28 – Qasis Pride

June 27 and June 28 – Interfaith Events

June 28 – Pride Parade and Pride Festival

June 29 – Pride Brunch

June 29 – Bat -N – Rouge

June 30 – Call in Sick! =)

HELLO, and HAPPY PRIDE!

Hope you are enjoying all the video updates and Pride blogs on our new website. What’s been going on in Pride World, you wonder? Well, this past month has been filled with securing sponsors, registering vendors for booth space, registering parade entrants, planning our growing number of events, and signing up volunteer after volunteer after volunteer.

If you are interested in participating in Stonewall Columbus Pride 2008 “Our Power,” please submit your information to me here at Stonewall. Our website is very user-friendly and just about every form you will need can be found online and submitted directly to me. You can also download, print, and fill out the various forms, too. The most important thing is to just get your papers in to me! I am eager to sign everyone up for anything and everything!

Our “Events” link contains all the various “Pride Happenings” throughout the month of June. You will be pleased to see many new events listed. One exciting event is the extension of our outdoor concert festival kick-off for Pride. “Our Power Weekend” will be held on June 6 & 7. Many outstanding artists and performers will be at Stonewall Columbus that weekend, so go to our “EVENTS” link and check it all out for yourself! Tickets will be available soon, so keep posted.

Another new event this year is “Fore! Pride,” the inaugural golf outing being held at Raymond Memorial Golf Course. Gather your foursome now and get ready to sign up for what we are sure will be a very popular new event. Door prizes, golf contests, auction items, SCHMIDT’S catering, and an all-around good time are in store for this event. Stay tuned to our website for information on registering your foursome.

The traditional Pride events also return, including the Art Show, “An Exhibit of Pride,” which will open on June 5 at Stonewall. This exhibit will remain up for viewing throughout the month of June, something new for the show this year. “An Exhibit of Pride” is a juried event with a “Call for Submissions” currently being advertised. Contact me for further details.

The Pride Poker Run also has an exciting change this year. Registration will take place at Pickerington’s own “Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum.” Participants can register for the Poker Run and then tour the site for free while awaiting the start of the event. The Poker Run will end at Club Diversity, the popular ending point for many years.

Also, the “Run for Pride 5K” is returning this year. It will once again be held at Goodale Park and promises to be as fun as it has always been in years past. Kelly Jaeger and Company are working on putting together some rather nice “goody bags” for you, so look for the registration link in the next few weeks.

The History Panels truly kick off the Pride events. Tuesday, June 3, is the date set for the first panel of the month. This panel will discuss “The History of Aids.” Stay tuned to our “Events” link for further details on participants.

That’s about it for now. I will try to stay more update on communicating to you all that you wish to know. Feel free to contact me to discuss anything Pride-related. I will be glad to help you out and continue to promote Stonewall Columbus Pride 2008 – “OUR POWER.”

Happy Pride!