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The group Fox Valley Pride will host an event from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Wheeler Park in Geneva.
Family Pride at the Park will feature arts, crafts, games, music, dinner and a very special guest to entertain children young and old – Drag Queen Miss Moana Lotte. Wheeler Park is located at 822 N. 1st St. in Geneva.
The event is being hosted in conjunction with local LGBT+ affirming churches – Fox Valley Presbyterian Church, Geneva Lutheran Church, Geneva United Methodist Church and the Unitarian Universalist Society.
“We want Fox Valley families to know they are safe and welcome in our churches,” Stephanie Anthony, pastor at the Fox Valley Presbyterian Church, said in a news release. “We are an affirming space and we wanted to join other affirming churches in making our presence known to the LGBT+ community. When Fox Valley Pride invited us to be part of this event, we were excited to do so.”
Fox Valley Pride (originally Geneva Pride) was started in 2021 by Fox Valley activists looking to provide a safe, inclusive and affirming space that celebrates the diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions of residents throughout our communities, said founding member Paula Merrington, of Geneva.
The group hosted a number of successful events last year, including an LGBT+ Teen Forum, the first Family Pride at the Park Day, the Fox Valley Pride Showcase and Art Exhibit and a Teen Halloween Party.
Fox Valley Pride 2022 events started in April with a Queer Teen Prom held at Mixology Spa in St. Charles. The event exceeded the expectations of attendees and the organizers and hosts.
“We were delighted with the enthusiastic response to the Queer Prom,” Merrington said in the release. “The event sold out, and we could easily have sold twice as many tickets which we will plan for next year. Our community obviously needs more events and spaces for LGBT+ youth to feel safe and affirmed.”
Earlier this month, the teen forum Growing up LGBT+ in Geneva was held for the second year at Geneva High School. The final Pride Month event for Fox Valley Pride will be ONE: A Pride Pop-up Event.
The event will be from 5 to 8 p.m. June 25 at the Geneva Center for the Arts, 321 Stevens Street, Suite Q, Geneva. The event will have live music, guest speakers and an open mic, food, beverages, tarot readings and viewing of the exhibit ONE: A celebration of art and PRIDE in our community.
Use this link to enter art work for consideration: genevaartscenter.org/one-registration. For more information, send an email to info@genevaartscenter.org .
Viewing of the exhibit will also be available during regular gallery hours (noon to 4 p.m. June 24 and 25.
More information about Fox Valley Pride can be found on the group’s Facebook page at @FoxValleyPride.