Explore these events for Pride Month in Holland

HOLLAND — A month of events leading up to the Holland Pride Festival are scheduled in recognition of LGBTQ+ Pride Month in June, with a kickoff planned next week.

Out On The Lakeshore, a nonprofit community and resource center in Holland, announced a series of events that culminate in the Pride Festival on Saturday, June 29.

“We are bringing the community a lot of exciting educational and entertainment opportunities to celebrate Pride Month,” coordinator Sarah Tyria wrote in a release. “We are perhaps most excited about this year’s Diverse Voices Speaker Series, the entertainment lineup for the Pride Party on June 8 at Park Theatre, and our brand new live stage at the Holland Pride Festival.”

A kickoff event runs 5-8 p.m. Tuesday, May 28, on the patio of Big Lake Brewing. It will be open to the public, with LGBTQ-themed trivia and music by Bri Baron.

Herrick District Library's North Branch will host an open mic night from 3-5 p.m. Saturday, June 1. All ages are invited to participate, although those under 18 require a signed permission slip. All content — which can be an acoustic song, poem, spoken word or short story — must be LGBTQ or social justice themed.

Participants can sign up at outonthelakeshore.org or register for empty time slots at the door on the day of the event.

Throughout the month, OOTL will host its Diverse Voices Speaker Series. Events will be held each Monday in June, starting June 3. There will be four events in the series:

• Continuing the Conversation, 7-9 p.m. June 3, at Brew Merchant

• Asexuality in the Public Eye, 7-9 p.m. June 10, at Haworth Hotel

• The Silenced Killer: AIDS Then and Now, 7-9 p.m. June 17, at Holland Museum's Spark Lab

• Creating Space: An Advocacy Workshop, 7-9 p.m. June 24, at Herrick District Library's North Branch

The Run with Pride 5K begins at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, June 8, at Helder Park. Registration will remain open through race day.

Also on June 8, Holland Pride will host a Pride Party at Park Theatre, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. The ticketed event is for guests 18 and older. There will be exclusive drinks, burlesque, performances by drag host B.R.I.T, live music by Elare André and Lipstick Jodi and more. For tickets, visit outonthelakeshore.org/pride-party.

The official Holland Pride Festival will run 12-5 p.m. Saturday, June 29, at Centennial Park in Holland. The free, all ages event will feature a new live stage for music and dancing with DJ GB, a family area with inflatables, face painting, crafts, entertainment, an inclusive all-ages Dungeons and Dragons campaign, food trucks, an LGBTQ market, resources vendors and more.

Subscribe: Receive unlimited digital access to your local news coverage

Following the Holland Pride Festival, OOTL is holding a drag show at Virtue Cider in Fennville from 7-9 p.m. Attendees must be 18 or older. The event will feature DJ Keller Shaw, Cherry Poppins as show host and performances from B.R.I.T, La Reine Divine and Dice Santana.

“As you explore the array of activities, performances and events we have curated for you, we invite you to immerse yourself fully in the spirit of community, diversity and commemoration that defines this season,” OOTL Pride Chair Penny Jansen wrote in a release.

All proceeds from the festival, drag show and other events go toward supporting OOTL’s year-round programming and resources. For more information, visit outonthelakeshore.org/holland-pride.

— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Explore these events for Pride Month in Holland