On July 19th, Stittsville will be hosting the West Side Pride event for the third year – a Pride celebration for the West Side of Ottawa! In previous years, guests attended from Stittsville and Kanata and from as far as communities such as Kinburn, Dunrobin, Carp, Arnprior, Pakenham and Renfrew. The event takes place at at Alexander Grove Park from 11:00am – 4:00pm.
The goal of the event is to celebrate Pride in the suburbs and bring home their own event for a family friendly and accessible manner. It is common to hear about Pride downtown, but less common to see events or parades in the small towns. Marion Steele and many others who help want to prove that there is Pride in the small towns and show how important it is to have these events everywhere.
There 34 vendors expected for this year’s event and they can be found around the park sharing information about a range of impactful causes. Most of the booths will be related to Pride and LGBTQIA+ issues in our community, but some also talked about other important issues that can be seen in our city and town as well. Centre 33 from Kanata has partnered to provide a reading area for children, along with a quieter area.
Schedule of events:
- 11:00am The event opens
- 11:15am Opening Remarks: Marion Steele WSP Executive Director
- 11:30am Indigenous Drumming Circle
- 11:45am Welcome from Councillor Glen Gower
- 12:00pm Drag Performances: BJ Stroker, Caleb O’Guy, Skyler Sapphire, Phiona Kitty, YETI The Drag Queen
- 12:45pm Guest Speaker Bruce Fanjoy, MP for Carleton
- 1:00pm Drag Story Time: Caleb O’Guy
- 1:30pm Drag Performances: BJ Stroker, Caleb O’Guy, Skyler Sapphire, Phiona Kitty, YETI The Drag Queen
- 2:15pm Remarks from Christina Cella West Side Pride Board Director
- 2:30pm Drag Performances: BJ Stroker, Skyler Sapphire, Phiona Kitty, YETI The Drag Queen
- 3:30pm Closing Remarks: Marion Steele WSP Executive Director
- 4:00pm The event ends
Should you require further information, please visit West Side Pride. At an event such as West Side Pride, there truly is something for everyone.
