Cook County Pride 2022 Main Event - in Photos
Jun 05, 2022 10:19AM ● By Content Editor
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media Exclusive - June 5, 2022
On Saturday, June 4, 2022, the Cook County Pride Committee put on a family friendly pride event for the community to attend.
Those who attended were lucky enough to not only get to experience bright blue, sunny skies, but also the joy of being able to celebrate and support our local community members.
The event took place at Harbor Park in downtown Grand Marais, Minnesota.
Boreal's own Laura Durenberger-Grunow attended the event with her family and took a number of photos to document the celebration.
Enjoy!
Community members gathered before the event to socialize and enjoy the day.
Attendees drew and wrote messages of hope, joy, and acceptance on the sidewalk in Harbor Park.
Signs of support were made ahead of time by community members on their own, or at the Cook County Pride Committee event held earlier in the day at the Grand Marais Art Colony.
This community member was a big hit!
A couple of dance numbers were put on by anyone who wanted to learn the choreography ahead of time. You could feel the joyous energy coming off of the dancers. Dancers: Angel Kelly, Elsa Garry, Lenna Stever-Sobanja & community members.
There were speakers that included this 11 year old student Iris Works from Great Expectations School in Grand Marais, who spoke about their experience coming out as non-binary. MCs: Matthew Baxley & Carly Puch.
And Julisa Swader from Grand Portage who spoke about being LGBTQA+ in the Indigenous community.
Including how there is not a term for those who identify as LBGTQA+ in their language, so some prefer to go by "Indigequeer", "Two-Spirit", or something else.
The crowd also got to enjoy music by local musician Ben Nichols. Tech: Enno Limvere.
The crowd listened to one or two more speakers, before it was time to get ready to march!
Community members headed out around downtown Grand Marais, singing songs, dancing, waving signs, and receiving lots of cheers and car honks from those witnessing the event.
Some decided to roller skate.
Some biked!
After the march, community members gathered for fellowship, food, and fun. DJ: Bryan Kelly
A bounce house and face painting was provided by the YMCA.
Happy pride, Cook County!
Don't forget, there are more pride events happening throughout the month of June in Cook County. Learn more about upcoming events here.
