Payne County Pride hosts family-friendly Pride festival in the park
Jun. 25—On the end of Couch Park, people of all ages gathered under a pavilion that was full of rainbow-themed merchandise and outdoor activities.
At one of the crafting tables is Trisha Iyonsi with her two children Toju and Esha. She and her children consider themselves allies for the LGBTQ+ community.
"For me, it's really important that my kids are inclusive of all people and that they're accepting of everyone from a young age," Iyonsi said. "We are a different ethnic group ... so we kind of know what it's like to feel different or not included."
Payne County Pride hosted Pride in the Park on Tuesday evening to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in the area. It was a family-friendly event free for people of all ages to attend.
Kristy Self is the secretary for Payne County Pride and helped plan this event. While the organization couldn't throw a large parade for the month of June, she said the organization still wanted to host an event to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in Stillwater for Pride month.
"As a committee, we decided that we should do something in the park and so we decided to rent the pavilion and make it more family-friendly," Self said. "We wanted it to be very open, very inclusive for anyone who wanted to come out."
Dozens of people gathered at the park to socialize and play games around the pavilion. Children could color and make their own rainbow flags and windchimes at the arts and crafts table.
Irissa Baxter-Luper is a member of Payne County Pride's board of directors and helped orchestrate the arts and crafts section. She said the decision for the event to be family-friendly was intentional to be welcoming for people of all ages.
"It is vitally important because having events where children can come is saying that there is nothing wrong or abnormal about us," Baxter-Luper said. "We're not dangerous people. We're just human beings who love each other and happen to love people that some people don't necessarily find acceptable."
People who attended could also play games like cornhole and get their face painted by Anjali Sweetman, a volunteer at the event. Sweetman, who had usually attended Pride events in the past as a participant, had never been a part of a Pride event's activities as a volunteer.
"I'm really happy to be a part of this event," Sweetman said. "This is something that I never thought I'd be able to do and I'm so happy that I can."
The organization sold its 2020 Pride t-shirts that couldn't be used last year along with other merchandise in order to raise money for its upcoming event. Payne Country Pride plans to host a larger event in October consisting of a parade down Main Street along with festival booths.
Self said anyone who missed the event and wants to contribute to the cause can visit Payne County Pride's website or Facebook page for more information.
Baxter-Luper said the event was a success because it allowed the organization to show that people are here to support everyone who is different.
"We're not going anywhere," Baxter-Luper said. "We absolutely love our LGBTQ community and we are still part of the Stillwater family."
