By Brenda Hattie
On behalf of Eastern Shore Pride, I am pleased to report that our second annual festival, held August 19-27, was a resounding success. The 8-day festival, which included a diverse set of events, the majority of which were free of charge, was held in several communities between Musquodoboit Harbour and Lake Charlotte.
One of the ticketed events, the Legends Drag Show with Shayla Shenanigans, sold out within days. Our premiere Pride Variety Show of local talent, held at Memory Lane Heritage Village, also sold out, playing to an enthusiastic crowd at the Clam Factory.
Though only five of 15 events were ticketed, the Committee has a net profit of $1835.82. Ten percent of revenues was donated to the Old School, and the remainder was split between the Food Pantry at the Old School and Rainbow Refugee Association of Nova Scotia, the only registered non-profit society dedicated to LGBTQI+ refugee resettlement and support in Atlantic Canada.
This past summer, members of Eastern Shore Pride also provided support to Sheet Harbour Pride, which held its own Pride Festival on July 30-31st, including a flag-raising and luncheon on the 30th, followed by a Pride Garden Party on the 31st. Several members from Eastern Shore Pride (and some community members) travelled to Sheet Harbour to participate in their events to show solidarity. Eastern Shore Pride also contributed financial support for one of the events. We thank all the community members and businesses that helped make our festival a success. Eastern Shore Pride also thanks Halifax Pride, from whom we received a $1500 TD Proud of our Pride grant.
Plans for next year are already taking shape, and we plan to expand our area of outreach further “down the Shore” to Porter’s Lake. The festival lineup for next year will be available via Eastern Shore Pride Nova Scotia’s Facebook page, other community web pages, Eastern Shore Cooperator, and community postering.
Halloween Costume Extravaganza October 29th
On Saturday, October 29th, Eastern Shore Pride will be hosting a Halloween Costume Extravaganza from 7-10 pm at the Old School Gathering Place in Musquodoboit Harbour. Whatever is in your closet, put it on and come out! Tickets are $10 per person and will be available via Eventbrite. See the Eastern Shore Pride – Nova Scotia Facebook page for further information.
