Diversity Ed will mark the beginning of Pride Month with a flag raising ceremony Wednesday afternoon.
Executive Director Crystal Fach said members of the Sarnia-Lambton community are welcome to attend the Seaway Centre Parkette at 3 p.m. for the Pride and Trans flags to be raised.
"We're going to have a variety of speakers, including our two-spirited welcome with Theresa Sims," they said. "Some of our community members are going to be coming up and sharing their experiences as members of the community and why it's important to celebrate Pride Month."
After the past two years, Fach said it's important for people to connect with each other and learn about the 2SLGBTQAI+ community, especially during the month of June.
"Coming out to our flag raising or our events in the month of June shows allyship to our community. Yes, we love when our 2SLGBTQAI+ folks come out -- this is what this is for, but it's also important that we see that there are members from outside our community who support us," they said. "A lot of us have lost our families and some of the times these allies become our chosen families so we like to see people come out."
A few local events will take place during Pride Month, including two drag shows.
"On June 11th and 12th, Diversity Ed will be hosting two different drag shows in support of our QT 2SLGBTQAI+ youth summer camp," said Fach. "We're super, super excited to have folks come out and get to know our community, meet some of our local artists and just kick off Pride."
The first drag show will be held in the evening at Refined Fool and a drag brunch will be held the next day at Imperial City Brew House. Ticket details can be found on Eventbrite.
Fach said further details about Pride Month or upcoming events can be found on Diversity Ed's website or social media pages.
A three-day PrideFest is also scheduled to take place in July.
