Why limit pride to just one month? On Saturday, October 11, Georgetown Pride hosted its third annual pride festival! This family-friendly event brought together members of the Georgetown community to celebrate love, identity, and belonging.

Intentionally taking place on National Coming Out Day, visitors were welcomed from 2:00-7:00pm at Wellspring United Methodist Church, whose motto is, “All Are Welcome, All Are Accepted, All Are Loved, and All Means All.”

From the moment visitors arrived, they were greeted by smiling volunteers in front of the church, waving pride flags and giving out bracelets and temporary tattoos. Food trucks lined the curb as attendees headed to a sunny field filled with vendors and a stage for live music and drag performances. 

Over 40 queer and LGBTQ+ allied vendors set up booths around the field, including many small businesses and local organizations. Several local non-profits such as PFLAG Georgetown (the founders of this specific festival!), Rainbow Connections ATX, and Austin International Drag Festival, as well as different faith communities, came out to show their support for the queer community. Visitors strolled from booth to booth, where they could find free stickers, buttons, flags, candy, and even “mom hugs.” 

Visitors also had the opportunity to support locally owned businesses including Sugar Penguin Treats, Queer Audacity ATX, and Pride Socks, selling everything from cookies to fans to t-shirts to jewelry. Larger chains like Target and Nothing Bundt Cakes also came out to show their support. The League of Women Voters and Williamson County Democrats offered information about elections, giving guests an opportunity to register to vote.

I had the privilege of volunteering at Southwestern University’s Distinctive Collections booth, promoting the Central Texas LGBTQ+ Collection that DisCo is hoping to grow. We provided those who stopped by with information about the distinctive collections and how they could support this particular collection, handing out zines, flyers, buttons, pencils, and stickers. 

Meanwhile, visitors crowded to the main stage where live music, drag performances, and speakers entertained audiences throughout the afternoon. Trans advocate, artist, and performer Maxine LaQueene hosted the entertainment along with the Weird City Sisters, queer nuns from the Austin House of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Part of a worldwide movement “dedicated to the promulgation of universal joy and the expiation of stigmatic guilt,” this order of queer nuns reflects the city of Austin’s values through their community outreach and joy-filled drag shows. Popular and nostalgic songs, eye-catching performances, and poignant stories acted as both a backdrop to the festivities and a main attraction for many, touching the lives of all who took a moment to watch or listen. 

Attendees could also find respite from the hot sun inside the church, where they could view and bid on silent auction items, including a board game basket, theater tickets, and gift certificates to locally owned businesses. 

In the late afternoon, guests returned to the stage for the drag queens’ final performances, as well as a touching display of love. Two attendees were married, as Sister Serena Severe of the Weird City Sisters performed the ceremony in front of the couples’ loved ones and any remaining guests. The two men exchanged beautifully written vows, testifying to the love they had found in each other. Strangers shared hugs, tears, and smiles in celebration of the overwhelming joy, gratitude, and sense of community this moment and the day as a whole had brought.

Heading back to the parking lot at the end of the evening, I had the beautiful opportunity to meet two of the drag queens, posing for several pictures and sharing my appreciation for their performances. Their parting words to me were, “Be queer, be happy, be you, baby,” echoing the day’s message of hope, joy, and community.