MAY 24, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SPENCER, INDIANA – The 2016 Spencer Pride Festival takes place in downtown Spencer on the square on Saturday, June 4, from 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM. The festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary as Indiana’s Rural LGBTQI Pride Event. This year’s theme is “A Decade of Diversity.”
In order to celebrate this special anniversary, Spencer Pride organizers are bringing a very special guest host to the event this year: renowned comic, Suzanne Westenhoefer. Westenhoefer was the first out lesbian comic with her own HBO® Comedy Special and she has been featured on Late Night as well.
The Spencer Pride Festival is known for its inclusive atmosphere and small-town setting. The event has grown steadily year after year and will be continuing that pattern in 2016 with over 100 vendors who will be participating in the diverse festival marketplace. The marketplace features everything from local artists to animal welfare organizations to civic organizations, as well as many retail vendors. There will also be a wide variety of festival food and snacks this year.
Spencer Pride is a family-friendly event and will have many activities for free this year to kids of all ages. The Family Fun Area consists of many inflatable activities, including a 32-foot high rock wall (sponsored by The Dragonfly Gallery), obstacle course (sponsored by Edwards Farm Supply), deluxe slip-n-slide, Toddler Town, 5-in-1 Combo Bounce House, and the very popular Dunk Tank. A variety of community leaders and representatives from organizations will be featured in this year’s dunk tank, including some candidates running for election this year.
The Prism All-ages Activity Zone will include a coloring contest (featuring a design by local artist Susan Shorter-Anderson), button- & jewelry-making, face painting, & glitter sensory bottle-making. This family-friendly set of interactive activities is provided by the Prism Youth Community – Bloomington, which is part of Bloomington PRIDE.
This year will also feature the second annual Spencer Pride Pet Parade, which will kick-off in front of the courthouse at 12:30 PM. Pets of all kinds will be judged on their personality & outfits in order to award one grand-prize winner & one runner-up. Responsible pet owners do not need to register their pets in advance – just show up at 12:30 on the south side of the courthouse with pets in hand (or on a leash). Participation is free.
Local, live entertainment on stage will keep the entire family busy all day long. Quarryland Men’s Chorus, Adam Riviere, King Bee & the Stingers, and many more performers will be on stage. The Ladies of Spencer Pride Drag Show will take place at 4 PM. This will be the 9th year of the drag show. Spencer Pride is the only place in the Midwest where you can see a drag show on the lawn of a county courthouse. A complete listing of all entertainers & performance times is located on the organization’s event page at www.SpencerPride.org/festival. This year’s entertainment is sponsored in part by Ivy Tech Community College – Bloomington.
Free HIV testing will be available from 1 – 6 PM and is being provided by Positive Link, a Program of Indiana University Health.
For adults, there will be raffles and 50-50 drawings throughout the day. There will also be free samples provided by Cardinal Spirits for those attendees who are 21 & over. Those samples will be distributed in the new headquarters building of Spencer Pride, Inc. The building, located at 46 E. Market Street, will be open for tours during the festival. In addition to the celebratory samples from Cardinal Spirits, there will be live glass blowing demonstrated by the Family Dog Glass Shop. Visitors of the new building will also be able to check out some of the history of Spencer Pride, through a large timeline on display of the organization’s many activities over the past decade. Except for the free samples, all other activities taking place in the building are for all-ages.
Parking, admission, and entertainment are all free at the Spencer Pride Festival, so attendance is well-worth the travel for an entire day of fun. More than 2,000 people are expected to attend this year. The Spencer Pride Festival is the second largest event that occurs on the square of the Owen County Courthouse each year.
The Spencer Pride Festival is sponsored by Positive Link (a program of Indiana University Health), White River Valley PFLAG, Boston Scientific PACE, Spencer, Bloomington, Linton, & Greencastle Walmart stores, Cody Crone Realtor/Broker, Cook Group, French Lick Resort, and many more local businesses and organizations.