Inaugural PrideFest Newsletter - FULL EDITION COMING IN JUNE
Thank you for subscribing to the MidMO PrideFest quarterly newsletter! This is the first of many exciting editions to come! In this edition, you will find a brief introduction to our event and what our year looks like! We hope it is informative, educational, and builds excitement for the event each fall!
Who We Are
MidMO PrideFest is an all-volunteer organization with its focus being total inclusivity, that plans and presents the annual celebration of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, pansexual, asexual, and ally community in Mid-Missouri. This family-friendly event is typically held in September in Columbia, Missouri at Rose Music Hall and surrounding streets (Orr, Park). The festival includes live entertainment throughout the day, many local food trucks, both alcoholic and alcohol-free beverages for purchase, over 125 vendors, health organizations, community service-based information community organizations, an expanded family area, and more!
Introduction
Each year our planning sessions begin in January, after a well-deserved break for the month of December. All of our planning meetings are on the 4th Wednesday of the month at The Center Project from 6:30-8:30 or 9:00 pm. A LOT goes into this endeavor and one meeting each month is typically packed with tons of information! We spend the first few months of the year, planning the logistics of the event before announcing dates, locations, and programs. A lot has to happen before we can go live!
Our timeline looks similar each year, so you can be on the lookout for information regularly. Of course, all of the timeline is subject to change, contingent upon the outcomes of availability, etc. We also have a few other events that are subject to date change each year such as the pub crawl, Gayeset Pet Contest and Youth Talent Show.
- Date Announcement – February/March
- Sponsorship Opening – March/April
- Pageants – June
- Sponsorship Closing – July
- Event Finalization – August/early September
- Wrap-up/Feedback- October
- End Of Year – November
- Break – December
PrideFest 2023
We have a lot in store for you this year! We are hopeful for yet another big expansion, giving us the opportunity to eliminate our waitlist, add even more food vendors, and offer more new things for you to enjoy!
You can always expect:
- Tons of live entertainment
- Headlining Drag Shows each night
- Food Trucks for meal purchases
- Both Alcoholic and alcohol-free beverages to purchase
- PrideFest merch in the Information Trailer
- History Tents dedicated to Missouri and national LGBTQIA+ history
- Huge Family Area with tons of activities for all ages up to 18
- VIP purchase
- Over 125 vendor booths and growing, with too many awesome things to name them all
- Health Pavilion for information gathering, some testing and First Aid tent
- Parade
- Interactive Art Wall (made by the entire community)
Calendar Of Events
Pub & Grub Crawl
April 22, 2023 6:00pm-1:00am