Record Turnouts and Great Laughs.

Well, Lancaster, PAs first ever Pride event went really, really well with a record breaking attendance for first time Pride events of over 2,800 attendees and only a scant half a dozen protesters. We had a great time at the event and actually had an easy time setting up. The only down-side for us were so many people had never been to an event like this that many did not bring any money to spend so are sales of jewelry were not as great as we would have liked. A lot of people liked the wares, took business cards and kept saying, "I should have saved up!" My bills and I are hoping these individuals go to our website and purchase in the near future. Despite the lack of profit, I wouldn't have turned down the chance to be there for anything. Our sister MCC church, Vision of Hope, members were an integral part in getting the festival up and running and it was great to see all of them and see their success.
Here is the article in the Lancaster newspaper. Lancaster is traditionally a very conservative area of Pennsylvania however, the festival was well received and the organizers couldn't be happier. http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/223466
That evening after the festival a comedy show was held to raise money for HOPE Connection, a new, non-profit organization aimed at assisting GLBT youth and community members suffering from HIV. The show had Vickie Shaw as the headliner. If you've never seen her, she's worth looking up on YouTube, as well as Sabrina Matthews and Jennie McNulty. The ladies did a phenomenal job. We would have never been able to go if it wasn't for friends providing us tickets and it was worth ever minute if sitting in the short middle-school auditorium seats to watch them.
I mentioned earlier that there were protesters at the Pride event. Well, the comics were there too and had a bit of fun at the protester's expense. One protester had the obligatory, "Homosexuality is a sin" sign so the ladies made their own sign that said, "And apparently Judgement is a Virtue" and stood right next to him. The few protesters stayed out of the park (none of them wanted to spend $5 to get in) and the Silent Witness PA volunteers made sure people coming to the park had no issues and no confrontation. Once inside it was great food, great entertainment, lots of vendors and a lot of laughing and talking and generally having a great time. I look forward to going again next year.