Will you be attending Kitsap Pride this year? Gay pride can mean many different things to many different people. For some it’s a purely social event, a place to catch up with old friends or have a picnic with new friends. To some, gay pride is a place to party. Others see gay pride as a chance to celebrate who they are and who they love, a chance to literally be out and proud.
After OutKitsap shut its doors, people have wondered if there is enough interest in continuing to hold a gay pride event here in Kitsap. People have wondered if there is anyone willing to volunteer the time it takes to organize such an event. The answer to those questions is a resounding “yes”. Since the last pride event held at Evergreen Park in 2007, volunteers have been working on pulling off another gay pride event in 2008. Not only have they been working on “pulling off” the event, they’ve been working on making it the best event in Kitsap Pride history.
One of the reasons we gather at Evergreen Park, or any pride celebration, is to honor those LGBT figures that persisted despite their persecution for being honest about who they were, for coming out of the closet. There have been many notable figures that have struggled in the pursuit of gay rights. For all of the names we’ve heard, there are many thousands more that have struggled personally and even privately to live their lives as they saw fit, to love who they saw fit to love.
On July 17th, at Evergreen Park, let’s gather our friends and family for a social outing where we might just meet some new like minded people. We might have a great time catching up with old friends. We might learn a thing or two about what resources are still available to our community. We might party all night and recover all the next day. While we are doing all of these things, we will be celebrating our common belief that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity. We will celebrate our right to Live, Love and Be who we truly are.
Donations are needed. SUPPORT your local Pride. Click here.
Interested in being a VENDOR at the 2008 Kitsap Pride Event? Click here.
VOLUNTEER at the 2008 Kitsap Pride Event Click here.
Kitsap Pride is a network of local organizations collaborating to celebrate community in Kitsap County. Networking together eases the planning and execution burden off of any one organization and allows for more community input.