| | |  | June 2023 e-Newsletter…The Season of Pride Continues | |  | This Is Niagara Pride…A Look Back to Today
As we approach our 3-year anniversary, Niagara Pride wants to share with all of you some of the happy memories we have had in our journey to serve the LGBTQ+ community of Niagara County and WNY. We could not have done it without your love and support! Thank you to all of you who have attended our events, donated, and cheered us on! Please take a moment to enjoy this video chronicling our humble beginnings to where we are today! |  | | Niagara Pride’s Season of Pride 2023 Events Schedule
Niagara Pride welcomes you to join us for the 2023 Season of Pride…a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community throughout Niagara County and all of WNY. | June 2023 |  | June 1, 2023 - Pride Flag Raising Ceremonies Across Niagara County, NY on June 1, 2023 - join us we raise the pride flags in 5 locations across Niagara County 9:30am - ArtPark in Lewiston, NY (main entrance) 10:30am - Niagara Falls State Park (near the Top of the Falls restaurant at Terrapin Point on Goat Island inside the State Park) 11:30am - Niagara Falls City Hall (Congressperson Brian Higgins will be present) 1:00pm - NCCC in Sanborn, NY (inside the Learning Commons) 3:30pm - City of Lockport (near City Hall and the Erie Canal)
| |  | June 1 through June 30, 2023 - WNY Shopping With Pride this campaign highlights WNY LGBTQ+ and ally owned businesses; check them out on www.wnyshoppingwithpride.org and make sure to patron these amazing businesses! | |  | June 1 through June 30, 2023 - Virtual WNY Pride 5K - If you missed out on the WNY Pride 5K on May 20, 2023, here is your chance to still take part and support Niagara Pride! Complete the WNY Pride 5K as a virtual walk or run. Do it on your treadmill, in your gym, in your neighborhood…or complete it as you walk in the Buffalo Pride Parade…but however and wherever you get those steps in, you’ll be able to take part in this great event! To register, go to: www.wnypride5k.org | | June 4, 2023 - Niagara Pride at the Buffalo Pride Parade - Walk/ride with Niagara Pride as we represent Niagara County in the 2023 Buffalo Pride Parade (meet us at 8am at Buffalo State, parade kicks off at noon) | |  | June 10, 2023 (12pm to 3:30pm) - Newfane Pride - Join Niagara Pride and hosts Calhoon's Pub in bringing Pride to Newfane, NY with our second annual family-friendly event. Enjoy entertainment, lawn games, and activities for children. Food will be available. Bring your family, friends, or just yourself to this laid back and fun event designed to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride. For info call 716-638-0455. Calhoon's Pub outdoor grove, 2598 Main St., Newfane. (https://facebook.com/events/s/newfane-pride/1137875600223928/?mibextid=tejx2t)
| |  | June 10, 2023 (4pm to 8pm) - The Color of Always: An LGBTQIA+ Love Anthology Book Signing - Please join us for a special meet and greet event with Brent Fisher and Michele Abounader, two of the creators of The Color of Always, an LGBTQIA+ Love Anthology. There will be copies of the book for sale, and the signing is included in the cost! If you bring with you a Niagara Pride t-shirt, sweatshirt, bracelet, tote bag, or button, you will receive a 10% discount!
Location: Pulp 716: Coffee & Comics, 31 Webster St, North Tonawanda, NY
Event is brought to you by Pulp 716 and sponsored by Niagara Pride, Inc. | |  | June 17, 2023 (11am to 4pm) - Oliver Street Pride - Join us for our free event as we celebrate equality for all at Heritage Park on Oliver Street in North Tonawanda! PRIDE '23 is the place to be! In honor of Pride Month, we are hosting a family-friendly event filled with informational booths and up to 70 vendors! We have an entertainment schedule full of music, fun, and drag shows! Scroll through the Facebook event to see highlights of our crafters! Thank you to our sponsors: Armstrong Pumps and Lumber City Development Center! (https://facebook.com/events/s/3rd-annual-oliver-street-pride/3108432966117624/)
| |  |  |  | June 24, 2023 (12pm to 5pm) - Rainbow City Pride (The Official Pride of Niagara Falls, NY) - Pride comes back to Niagara Falls once again!!!
We are very excited by the lineup of performers, which include Jayme Coxx, DivasWho, and the Buffalo Gay Men’s Chorus. We are thrilled that the Justice League of WNY will be on hand. And we are honored to have Kitty Lambert-Rudd and Ari Moore as our featured guest speakers.
Rainbow City Pride will be on Old Falls Street, in Niagara Falls, NY.
The following vendors will be on hand as well:
• Aquarium of Niagara
• GLYS
• Dig Your Engrave
• Destination Niagara
• DivasWho
• embraceWNY
• JB’s Bake Shop
• Fresh Off the Brush Studios
• The Burning Candle Gift Emporium
• Pastel Pride Witch
• Buffalo Body sex
• Niagara County Department of Health – Sexual Wellness Clinic
And if that's not enough...free unicorn drawn carriage rides!
Join Old Falls Street and Niagara Pride as we bring PRIDE to Niagara Falls!
The best part…it’s all free of charge!
For more information go to: https://facebook.com/events/s/rainbow-city-pride-the-officia/553408743597691/?mibextid=tejx2t |  |  | |  | June 24, 2023 (11am to 12pm) - Pride Interfaith Service – Niagara Pride will be hosting a Pride focused interfaith service as part of Rainbow City Pride. Clergy and spiritual leaders from various denominations will be on hand to deliver the service and will be available to answer questions about their places of worships and the work they are doing to reach out to the LGBTQ+ community. The Interfaith Service is at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 140 Rainbow Blvd., Niagara Falls, NY 14303. | | |  | Niagara Pride is looking for volunteers to assist with Rainbow City Pride on Saturday, June 24, 2023. The event runs from 12pm to 5pm. Set up is from 11am to 12pm. Volunteers would assist vendors with finding their tent locations, handing out flyers about Niagara Pride to attendees, handing out vendor maps, asking people to sign up for the e-newsletter. Volunteers need not be present for the whole event. To volunteer, please contact Ronald and Sherry at info@niagarapride.org. | | ONGOING PROGRAMS & SERVICES | |  | Niagara Pride is committed to helping businesses, institutions of learning, local/state/federal agencies, and community providers, whether local in WNY or throughout the United States gain more knowledge about and be empowered to implement Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategies and techniques.
Cultural literacy or cross-cultural care (formerly referred to as cultural competency) is important both to individuals and to society. As an individual, your cultural literacy will help you to successfully interact with people from diverse backgrounds, including the LGBTQ+ community. Cultural literacy reduces prejudice and inequality based on culture; increases the value placed on diversity; and. increases participation in the social practices of that society, including access to institutions and services.
Courses: Niagara Pride is currently offering 4 different LGBTQ+ trainings to local businesses, organizations, and agencies. LGBTQ+ 101…SOGIE and Pronouns: This training reviews common LGBTQ+ terms so that everyone has a common vocabulary and understanding of the LGBTQ+ letters; the training also dives into topics including a better understanding of the differences between Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression; finally, the training also covers pronouns and pronoun usage. Duration: 1 hour LGBTQ+ Diversity and Inclusion for Business and Organizations: This training covers topics such as the need for Diversity and Inclusion trainings, disparities in the LGBTQ+ community, workplace harassment and discrimination, 12 best practices to improve diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and NYS laws and regulations employers should be aware of with regards to sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Duration: 1 hour Comprehensive LGBQT+ Diversity training: this training combines our LGBTQ+ 101 and LGBTQ+ Diversity trainings into a single presentation. Duration: 2 hours LGBTQ+ 101 For Schools in NYS: This training reviews common LGBTQ+ terms so that everyone has a common vocabulary and understanding of the LGBTQ+ letters; the training also dives into topics including a better understanding of the differences between Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression; pronouns and pronoun usage; finally, the training covers the current NYS laws covering LGBTQ+ diversity in schools. Duration: 1 hour
Cost:
Trainings cost $100 per training per organization. This will allow multiple employees of participating organizations to take part in the training.
Trainers:
Ronald Piaseczny, JD, LMHC - Ronald holds BA's in Psychology and Public Administration from the University at Buffalo (UB), a MA in Rehabilitaion Counseling (focusing on physical health, mental health, and addictions), from UB, and a Juris Doctorate from Widener University School of Law, focusing on civil rights and criminal law. Ronald has extensive work experience with community-based mental health clinics and agencies throughout WNY. Currently, Ronald serves as an EEO, Harassment Prevention, and Diversity Programs team lead for several federal regional offices around the United States. In 2022, Ronald co-trained over 7,000 individuals nationwide.
Rev. Susan Frawley - Sue is a minister for the Unitarian Universalist congregation in Hamburg NY. Sue is a retired educator; having been a school counselor, administrator and professor of sociology. Sue currently works for the Center for Elder Law and Justice; previously for GLYS. She is an expert on child abuse reporting, practical applications for school law, special education advocacy, and LGBTQ+ youth and family issues; Sue brings passion and humor to her presentations. Sue's specialty is taking complex issues and breaking them down into lay person terms with easy-to-understand examples and practical applications. She has been a speaker for over 25 years.
If your agency or business is interested in having Niagara Pride conduct a training for your employees, please contact us at info@niagarapride.org or at (716) 298-7656. | | |  | Virtual Support & Wellness Groups
Niagara Pride has partnered with Rochester LGBTQ+ Together to offer 6 virtual groups to the WNY LGBTQ+ community. Individuals are now welcome to join the below listed virtual Peer Support & Discussion groups on Monday nights and the Wellness Wednesday Peer Support Groups on select Wednesday nights, along with those in Rochester, Monroe County and neighboring Finger Lakes region counties.
1st Mondays: Bi-Omni-Pan-Poly+ 2nd Mondays: Lesbian & Queer Women 3rd Mondays: Trans, Non-binary & Intersex+ 4th Mondays: Gay & Queer Men 2nd Wednesdays: Grief Support 4th Wednesdays: Stress & Anxiety Support
Meeting Links: https://linktr.ee/roclgbtqtogether (Click on "Virtual Program Meeting Links," then select the program name under "Peer Support & Discussion Groups" or “Wellness Wednesday.”)
Note: All groups take place virtually via Zoom. For safety and security, all attendees must be willing to join on video. These groups are not facilitated by a mental healthcare professional and should complement, but not replace, professional help, if needed. 18+ only.
Questions? Email us at roclgbtqtogether@gmail.com.
| |  | Know Your Status – Sexual Wellness and HIV/STI Screenings & Free Condom Distribution
Niagara Pride offers the Know Your Status campaign. Through this program, individuals are able to go to the www.KnowYourStatus.NiagaraPride.org website, where they can find providers throughout all eight counties of WNY offering HIV and STI testing.
As part of that program, Niagara Pride also has free condom and sexual wellness items available for distribution at their offices. Organizations or agencies wishing to have condom packets delivered to them for distribution, please contact Ronald Piaseczny at president@niagarapride.org.
| | |  | Attention WNY Community Service Providers....Niagara Pride is looking for community service providers to be included in our free, online LGBTQ+ Community Service Provider Directory. This free online directory serves as a listing of local community service providers who either have LGBTQ+ specific programs/services or their services are LGBTQ+ and gender affirming.
The directory includes: Counseling services (mental health and addictions); Health Care; Accounting/Financial Services; Legal Services; Community Supports; Youth Programming; Domestic Violence Services; Food Pantries/Houseless Services; Crisis Intervention Services; Senior/Elder Care Services; Medical Insurance; Spirituality and Church Services
Other service types also welcome.
Community service providers wishing to be listed in the LGBTQ+ Community Provider Resource Guide can complete the Provider Registration at: https://portal.niagarapride.org/provider-directory
To view the directory, go to: https://niagarapride.org/directory-info | |  | Niagara Pride & Community Partner Collaborations:
Niagara Pride collaborates with community partners to offer the following health and support services:
Addictions recovery support for LGBTQ+ individuals in partnership with Save the Michaels Starting January 12, 2022, Save the Michaels will be offering an LGBTQ+ Recovery Meeting. Meeting location: 81 Walnut Street, Lockport, NY 14094 This meeting is for recovery from all substances or any form of addiction. Looking forward to experience, strength, and hope to empower the LGBTQ+ community!
Housing discrimination services in partnership with HOME (Housing Opportunities Made Equal) HOME provides free, comprehensive support to victims of housing discrimination and offer paralegal counseling to help resolve landlord and tenant disputes. They also record and investigate complaints of housing discrimination by utilizing testers to corroborate complaints and gather evidence of systemic housing discrimination, compiling facts, interviewing witnesses, reviewing documents, and counseling individuals on their housing rights and options under federal, state, and local laws. There are 3 ways to report housing discrimination:
Support and educational resources for parents, families, and friends of LGBTQ+ individuals in partnership with PFLAG Buffalo/Niagara Group meets on the third Sunday of each month from 1:00-2:30. Currently, meetings are virtual. Please leave contact information on the helpline and you will receive the Zoom meeting codes. PFLAG Buffalo/Niagara
P. O. Box 617
Buffalo, NY 14207 Email: info@pflagbuffalo.org Helpline: (716) 883-0384 (You should receive a call back within 24-48 hours)
| | HELP SUPPORT NIAGARA PRIDE |  | Your continued financial support of Niagara Pride helps make our programming possible. At the present time, Niagara Pride receives no Federal, State, or County funding. Virtually all of our programming is paid for by donations. To help support Niagara Pride and its mission, please click the Donate To Niagara Pride button immediately below.
Thank you for your support!
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