New Hope Celebrates (NHC) will kick off its Annual PrideFest this year on Saturday, May 11.
It’s one of the first pride celebrations in the country this season, and runs through May 20, with the popular Pride Parade and Fair scheduled for May 18.
With the theme “Come As You Are,” PrideFest 2019 celebrates the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots in Greenwich Village, and also the WorldPride events in New York City, which take place during the month of June.
This year’s PrideFest starts at noon on Saturday, May 11, with the unfurling of NHC’s 25-foot, eight-color Equality Flag atop the Delaware House (Starbucks) building on East Bridge Street in New Hope.
Visitors are invited to participate in a week-long Best Cocktail Contest in which local bars and restaurants all around New Hope create specialty drinks featuring premier liquors from NHC partners. Bartenders are encouraged to be creative, and the public can vote for their favorite cocktail online via any mobile device. Sponsored by Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Templeton Rye, the contest runs from May 4 to May 19. A list of participating establishments is available online.
The highlight of the festival is the annual Parade and Pride Fair on Saturday, May 18. The parade will begin in Lambertville at 11:30 a.m, crossing over the bridge into New Hope. Featuring floats and marching bands including the Big Apple Corps and the DC Drummers, this is the only nationally recognized Pride Parade that crosses state lines to include both Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Featured in the Parade will also be New Hope’s very own 100-foot-long Rainbow Equality Parade Flag sponsored by Landmark Hospitality’s Logan Inn.
Pridefest LIVE fair takes place right after the Parade in “Pride Park” at the American Legion parking lot on New Street, where numerous vendors will offer pride items, services, and food, and entertainers will perform on a covered stage. Fair gates open at noon, with a suggested donation of $5. A portion of the proceeds benefits the New Hope Eagle Volunteer Fire Company, and NHC extends special thanks to the American Legion and the Borough of New Hope for their continuing support.
Live entertainment will feature the Stephanie Chin Band, Josh Zuckerman, Christine Havrilla and Gypsy Fuzz, Doylestown School of Rock, Ruby Roo, NYC3 Band, and local band Brother Eye.
Local Queens in attendance will include newly-crowned Sapphira Cristal (Miss NHC 2019), Ginger Alley (Miss NHC 2018), Cyannie Lopez (Miss NHC 2017), Miss Victoria Lace, Miss Pumpkin, Carl Max, Miss Martini Madness, Mimi Monroe, and Drag King Bryc, among many others. The fair will be a smoke-free zone with support from NHC sponsor Bradbury‐Sullivan LGBT Community Center.
Clarion Inn & Suites will host NHC’s Saturday Night Pride dance and Sunday Funday T‐Dance & Pool Party, and Havana will once again host the annual Ladies 2000 Pride Party on Sunday, May 19.
A schedule of events will be available the week before PrideFest 2019. For more information on becoming a parade participant, vendor, or sponsor, visit New Hope Celebrates online.
New Hope Celebrates (NHC) is a nonprofit organization focused on highlighting the history and cultural nuances of New Hope, Pa., while stimulating the retail, hospitality, and professional community.
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