Community members gather at Winter Pride Celebration for story hour, crafts, and education
Mar 18, 2024 10:53AM ● By Content Editor
Photos by Cory Quirk
By Cory Quirk - Boreal Community Media - March 18, 2024
On Saturday, March 16, community members of all ages gathered at the Cook County Community Center Log Cabin for an afternoon of events followed by a free dinner.
The day began with snacks and smoothies provided by the Cook County Co-Op and Shook Smoothies, with arts & crafts available throughout the day. The Cook County Pride Committee collected donations which will be used to help with this June’s Pride celebration. A poster was filled out by community members with words of encouragement for LGBTQ+ youth.
Performer ThatQueerIsa of Virginia, Minnesota, read for Drag Queen Story Hour (sponsored by Drury Lane Books), bringing to life children’s books with messages of inclusion, love, and acceptance. Erika Ternes of the Grand Marais Public Library traded off with her to sing songs with the audience.
Matt Lewellyn-Otten of the LGBTQ+ advocacy group OutFront Minnesota gave an educational presentation and opened a discussion with the audience. Matt and Isa both returned to Cook County after visiting during Cook County Pride 2023, as well as last year’s winter celebration. A free soup and salad dinner was provided by Angry Trout Cafe.
Unlike the 2023 winter event, it was reported that no one showed up in opposition to the day's activities.
Ben Nichols introduced activities for the day.
This year’s Drag Queen Story Hour selections, all available at Drury Lane Books.
The following organizations and businesses also directly contributed to the Winter Pride Celebration:
- First Congregational Church
- Great Expectations School
- Cook County YMCA
- Cook County Higher Education
- Grand Marais Playhouse
- Boreal Community Media
- WTIP Community Radio
- Visit Cook County
- Joy & Company
- Violence Prevention Center
To keep up to date with Cook County Pride, visit cookcountypride.org. Cook County Pride is a volunteer organization welcoming new contributions, collaborations, and support.
Upcoming Pride events include:
Saturday, April 20th, 7pm: Night at the Movies co-hosted with Grand Marais Film Society at Arrowhead Center for the Arts
Saturday, April 27th, 10am-1pm: Drag Brunch & Variety Show presented by the LGBTQIA2IA2S+ Youth Group sponsored by the Grand Marais Playhouse
Saturday, June 15: Summer Pride Celebration all day in Harbor Park
March 22, 2024 Update: This article has been updated to correct the place where ThatQueerIsa is from. The initial article stated she was from Duluth, Minnesota, but has been updated to Virginia, Minnesota.
