Gather your friends and get ready for some fun in the sun, because Aurora Pride is back at the reservoir on August 6 from 12-7 p.m. Come and enjoy the only beachfront Pride event in the Rocky Mountain region.
According to Executive Director Zander Oklar, this year’s celebration is going to be bigger and better than ever.
“We are really trying to highlight local people in Aurora and the Front Range,” he says. “We have more vendors and a lot more makers who are selling all sorts of things. From soap and art to jewelry and homemade sexual lubricants, there’s going to be a little bit of everything. We are also featuring local breweries and alcohol producers, so we’ll have local canned cocktails, seltzers, and beers, which we’re very excited about. Additionally, we are working with the Denver Squid, which is the local LGBTQ water polo organization, and they’ll be doing inner tube water polo in the lake. The inner tube is accessible to anyone who wants to join in.”
Attendees can also expect riveting performances from local entertainers.
“One performer we’re very excited about is Kayla Marque, who is the niece of a member from Earth, Wind & Fire,” Oklar explains. “She is from a musical Denver family, and she sings R&B and high energy soulful music. She puts on a great show, and we will also have Michele Castro, who is Denver’s premier Casanova Brazilian singer. She performed last year and was a big hit, so we brought her back this year.”
The two main hosts for this year’s Aurora Pride will be drag icons Dixie Krystals and Evelyn Evermoore. Krystals will host earlier in the day, which Oklar describes as “family friendly time,” and Evermoore will host in the evening. Both will feature several local drag queens and kings, and the later shows will also include burlesque artists and other musical acts.
Because most vendors and entertainers are local, Oklar says the annual celebration has a more intimate and special feel.
“We strive to feature Aurora businesses and performers as much as possible, as well as LGBTQ-allied businesses,” he says. “It’s so important for us to feature those people every chance we get because they make our community queer friendly all year long. It’s also very important to showcase small makers and one-to-two-person companies. We try to highlight everything that is uniquely Aurora, LGBTQ friendly, and LGBTQ owned.”
Another goal is to provide as many resources to the LGBTQ community as possible.
“While Aurora is close to so many great things, it doesn’t always have the easiest access for LGBTQ people to access different resources,” Oklar says. “We want to ensure that our event has as many resources as possible including STD resources, mental health, sexual health, educational resources, and job opportunities.”
While there are no official COVID mandates, organizers are requesting that any unvaccinated guest to wear a mask. COVID vaccinations will be onsite for free, both Pfizer and Moderna.
There will also be STI testing and monkeypox vaccines available.
“I know a lot of people in our community have been struggling to find access to a monkeypox vaccine, but our good friends over at Tri-County Health Department got a big shipment, and they thought of us,” Oklar says.
In terms of the future, Oklar and his brilliant team of organizers are going to continue to work alongside the city and build a better relationship with those making decisions so Aurora Pride can secure a place in the fabric of the community.
“We are always thinking of how we can make this event bigger and more inclusive to people of all ages, ranges, ethnicities, and incomes,” Oklar explains. “One of my favorite parts is when the photographers send me their images afterwards. Day of, I’m running around crazy, but afterward, to sit there and see the joy in all the attendees’ faces and how much of an impact this event is making for young queer people, old queer people, and everyone in between. It makes me so happy to see them all come together and celebrate queerness in Aurora. As we grow, we’re going to see how we can bring in more people from the community.”
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit aurorapride.com or follow Aurora Pride on Facebook.
Photos courtesy of Aurora Pride
