Trent Hills celebrates Pride big-time
Photo from the Trent Hills Pride Facebook page
By Cecilia Nasmith
Trent Hills Pride is pleased to announce the return of the Trent Hills Pride Festival in June – Pride Month – with a variety of events designed to bring together residents and visitors to celebrate 2SLGBTQ+ identities, promote understanding and strengthen community connections.
The lead-up to festivities comes May 9 at Campbellford Legion, with the 7 PM Drag Bingo Extravaganza, featuring live drag performances and fabulous prizes.
Then, on June 1, pride-flag raisings take place throughout the municipality – at Old Mill Park (Campbellford) at 9 AM, Mill Creek Park (Warkworth) at 10 AM, Hastings Library at 11 AM, the OPP Campbellford detachment at noon, Campbellford Memorial Hospital at 2 PM and YMCA Campbellford at 3 PM.
From there, a variety of events roll out.
June 4 – a screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show at Campbellford's Aron Theatre, with pre-show gathering at 6 PM and the screening at 7 PM. This is a cult-classic Pride tradition, featuring costumes, audience participation and prizes for the best-dressed. Admission includes a prop bag for that full interactive experience.
June 6 – Storytime with Betty Baker and Butch at 11 AM at the Acorn Room (65 Bridge St. E., Campbellford) and 2 PM at the Warkworth Library. This free family-friendly storytelling experience celebrates self-expression, creativity and belonging through interactive performance.
June 6 – Pride In The Park, at the Mill Creek Park bandshell in Warkworth from 6 to 11 PM, is an outdoor celebration (complete with food and a beer garden) featuring live performances from The Trash Panda Brass Band, Evangeline Gentle, North of Normal and dear Queens Betty, Sahira, Corey, Banshii and Madelaine, with special participation form the Peterborough Academy of Circus Acts.
June 10 – Voices of Resilience Panel at 6 PM at the Aron Theatre Co-op. This powerful intergenerational discussion highlights the lived experiences of two 2SLGBTQ+ seniors in rural communities.
June 18 – Special screening of The Chess of the Wind at 6 PM at the Campbellford branch of the Trent Hills Library. This daring Iranian masterpiece features notable LGBTQ+ themes in a film that was lost for decades, discovered in a Tehran junk shop, and restored.
