Mountain Pride, a Colorado nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ+ individuals in rural mountain towns, will celebrate Pride Month by giving a cheerful boost to a slate of their signature, year-round events.
Mountain Pride’s mission
Mads Partridge, the Executive Director of Mountain Pride, said the nonprofit works to support and celebrate LGBTQ+ communities in Colorado’s most mountainous regions. They serve rural areas in Eagle, Summit, Lake and Garfield Counties, as well as the Roaring Fork Valley.
Partridge explained that Mountain Pride brings resources, visibility-building activities, educational opportunities, wellness initiatives, safe spaces and more to communities where they are otherwise limited. They work with local organizations and consider community feedback to make this happen.
“We believe the people most impacted by challenges in rural communities should also help lead the solutions, which is why community feedback, lived experience and local leadership are central to how we grow and evolve our work,” Partridge said.
Mountain Pride began as a grassroots organization and has slowly developed their core Pride celebration, Pride in the Park, into one of the state’s largest LGBTQ+ mountain gatherings. Partridge said they currently serve nearly 12,000 touchpoints through their year-round advocacy work and activities.
Partridge emphasized that being an LGBTQ+ person in a rural community can be isolating, making Mountain Pride’s work even more significant.
“These events, whether it is a large-scale festival day like Pride in the Park or a recurring community gathering like a climbing night, provide a space for LGBTQ+ individuals to find others who are like them and are walking a similar path, seeking common points of connection. In rural communities like the ones we serve, these events are even more important,” Partridge said.
Partridge thinks Pride and its sense of joy are important in radical times full of pushback, and they shared a quote that further cements those thoughts:
“There’s a quote by AIDS activist Dan Savage that we return to often in our work: ‘During the darkest days of the AIDS crisis, we buried our friends in the morning, we protested in the afternoon and we danced all night, and it was the dance that kept us in the fight because it was the dance we were fighting for.’ Pride is the dance that keeps us going. It provides us with connection and joy that sustains us year-round. And it lets everyone know, whether they are questioning their identities or have been out and proud for years, that no matter what happens, the joy we feel when we are in community cannot be stripped from us.”
Pride in the Park is Mountain Pride’s all-ages-and-identities-friendly celebration, taking place June 13 in Nottingham Park.
Partridge said the nonprofit calls this Avon-based, diverse audience and emotion-filled occasion “the prettiest Pride in Colorado.”
“There’s just something really special about celebrating Pride in the middle of the mountains with thousands of people showing up to be joyful, connected and fully themselves,” she said.
Pride in the Park is one of Mountain Pride’s favorite events to host and has grown since its establishment in 2020 to welcome more than 3,000 attendees.
Here is the day’s schedule:
Noon- Attendees can enjoy a free yoga class and explore the event’s 60 vendors.
1 p.m.- The Pride Welcome event begins.
2 p.m.- The Pet Pawshion Show takes place.
3 p.m.- Attendees can take in a variety show, featuring Cheer Colorado and the Salida Circus.
4 p.m.- The Out & Proud Drag Show happens during this time, one of the day’s many drag shows featuring Colorado performers.
5 p.m.- The Pride Parade around the park’s lake begins at 5 p.m.
6 p.m.- The event closes with a free concert, featuring Gemini Moon, who Partridge described as a “six-piece, queer, synthpop group from Fort Collins.”
9 p.m.- The day’s true end is the afterparty at Chasing Rabbits, with Matt Suave providing music.
According to Partridge, these are just the main stage events. The day is filled with ongoing drag performances, live music, DJ sets, aerial performances, food, art, dancing and more.
Pride beyond the park
Mountain Pride will also host Glenwood Pride in Glenwood Springs on June 6 and Leadville Pride on June 20. They will also be part of and lend support to Breck Pride on June 12.
Additionally, Mountain Pride’s event calendar is full of celebrations and activities throughout the month of June. Everything from pool parties to trivia nights will be available to enjoy.
While June is the designated month for Pride, Partridge emphasized that Pride can also be found in their year-round programming.
Mountain Pride partners with Keystone Resort to host Pride Ski Weekend, which takes place the last weekend in March every year.
Partridge also shared that the nonprofit hosts 5-15 events every month across the communities they serve, in addition to hosting drop-in hours at their community spaces in Edwards and New Castle.
They named a few examples of past events, which included Drag Trivia in Silverthorne, Queer Craft Club and a Queer Spirit Support Group.
Partridge said Mountain Pride strives to offer programming for everyone, and those who want to stay in the know can subscribe to the monthly newsletter on their website.
They are also active on Instagram and Facebook, where they post regular updates.
Cover photo credit: madisonleighcreative
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