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Niagara Pride asking local businesses, community providers & leaders for help with 2021 events

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Wed, Apr 7th 2021 05:55 pm

With COVID-19 still impacting many local outdoor events and festivals this summer, Niagara Pride is moving forward with new ways to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month this June – and is asking for help from local businesses and leaders to participate in events.

As part of LGBTQ+ Pride month, Niagara Pride is partnering with local businesses and merchants in a weeklong shopping fundraiser event, “Shopping With Pride,” which promotes LGBTQ+ and ally owned businesses. “Shopping With Pride” will run from June 4-12. It is asking local merchants and businesses to donate either a percentage of sales made during that time period or a lump sum donation to Niagara Pride.

Leading up to this, Niagara Pride will promote “Shopping With Pride” via its website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram social media accounts, as well as through numerous press releases to local news and media outlets. “Shopping with Pride” participating merchants will be listed in all marketing materials.

Niagara Pride Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization serving LGBTQ+ individuals and families. It offers community-based educational programming and engages in charitable work for numerous organizations in Niagara County and the surrounding counties of Western New York. Niagara Pride hosts a monthly lunch and learn education series as well as other free training, which serves to raise awareness of community resources, in addition to obstacles faced by the LGBTQ+ community. As part of the charitable outreach, it has ongoing multiple donation drives throughout the year which benefit local children and homeless individuals.

Niagara Pride also facilitates welcoming social events, creating safe spaces in the community for LGBTQ+ individuals.

On June 1, Niagara Pride will have Pride flag-raising ceremonies at the following locations: City Hall in Niagara Falls, City Hall in Lockport, Niagara Falls State Park and Artpark. The ceremonies will be streamed live on Niagara Pride’s Facebook page and videos of the events will be compiled into a video to be posted on its website. Times of each ceremony to be announced. Niagara Pride is asking for other local leaders to participate with a flag-raising ceremony that day to show support of LGBTQ+ individuals and families who reside throughout Niagara County. 

Niagara Pride in June will also be releasing an online LGBTQ+ community provider resource guide, which aims to serve as a listing of local community service providers who either have LGBTQ+ specific programs/services, or their services are LGBTQ+ and gender affirming. The resource directory will focus on community providers in a number of areas, including, but not limited to: counseling services (mental health and addictions); health care; accounting/financial services; legal services; community supports; youth programming; domestic violence services; food pantries/houseless services; crisis intervention services; senior/elder care services; medical insurance; spirituality and church services.

Other events planned by Niagara Pride for June include a virtual Zoom karaoke Pride night and a virtual Zoom game night. For the “Pride Throughout Niagara County” video, Niagara Pride is asking folks throughout the county to take 20-30 second videos or still photos of themselves celebrating Pride at home, at work, at school, in the community, or throughout Niagara County and submit those videos/photos to be part of a compilation video to be released in June.

Business/merchants wishing to register as a participant in “Shopping with Pride” are asked to complete the merchant registration by April 30 at https://portal.niagarapride.org/pride2021. Community service providers wishing to be listed in the LGBTQ+ community provider resource guide can complete the provider registration at https://portal.niagarapride.org/provider-directory.

For more information about Niagara Pride, visit www.niagarapride.org, email [email protected] or call 716-298-7656.

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