Melissa Button says the number of people who attended this year’s North Grenville Pride parade exceeded her expectations.
“It was a huge turnout,” she says. “We counted, I believe, just over 400 participants.”
Button, a member of NG Pride who helped to organize the parade, thinks that estimate might be underselling the size of the crowd.
“It was just so full of love. Like, I remember we started at the Kemptville [Campus], we’re looking at the crowd, and it’s lovely, but then, all of a sudden, we hit the downtown core, and it was a flood of people. Like, I have never seen the streets that packed.”
The parade was held on Sunday afternoon, and after it reached its destination in Riverside Park, there was a three-hour afterparty, including local artisans and food trucks, a family-friendly drag performance, and a concert by gender-fluid Ottawa musician Alanna Sterling.
“Alanna’s performance was just mind-blowing,” Button says. “At the end, they actually said, ‘you know, if you have another Pride event, anything, I want to be there.’ So, that was just such a huge, huge thing, we were so happy about that.”
Button is thanking all the sponsors, vendors and participants that helped make the parade happen.
If you’re interested in having a hand in organizing next year’s parade, she says NG Pride has openings on its Board of Directors. You can message the organization on Facebook to learn more.