Cooperstown Hosts 1st Pride Weekend

Cooperstown Hosts 1st Pride Weekend

Oneonta Site of Block Party, Parade on Saturday, June 3

By WRILEY NELSON
ONEONTA

Otsego Pride Alliance and local businesses will present Cooperstown’s first-ever Pride Weekend at the beginning of Pride Month. The festivities will start at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, June 1 with a Pride flag raising at Village Hall. Former Cooperstown Trustee MacGuire Benton will attend to kick off the weekend with a special performance by Cooperstown Central School’s Identity Alliance. Stagecoach Coffee will offer complimentary hot chocolate and coffee.

On June 2, Brewery Ommegang will present a special Pride Month Fire Pit Friday from 7-10 p.m. The all-ages event will feature food, drinks, a bonfire, an address by Cooperstown Mayor Ellen Tillapaugh and a live DJ set by DJ TRUMASTR. There will also be a firework display. Local businesses will sell Cooperstown Pride Weekend merchandise.

The main Otsego Pridefest Block Party will begin with a parade at Foothills Performing Arts and Civic Center in Oneonta at 1:30 p.m. on June 3. The parade lines up at 1 p.m. It will lead to Main Street, where the block party will feature live music, family-friendly drag shows, kids’ activities, vendors, speakers, yoga, community and volunteer resources, and more.

The Landmark Inn and Barnyard Swing have partnered to present Family Pride Day from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 4. It will feature face painting, spin art, fossil safari, mini golf, music by DJ Raphael and a special appearance by Rapunzel. The Susquehanna SPCA will be in attendance with pets available for adoption. A portion of the proceeds from Family Pride Day will be donated to the Cooperstown Central School’s Identity Alliance organization. Visitors wearing rainbow-themed clothing will receive a free soft-serve ice cream.

The weekend was organized by OPA and Identity Alliance. Identity Alliance seeks to “create space where students have a network of safe adults and peers, a place to find and secure needed resources and tools as they navigate their way.” According to a release, OPA hopes to celebrate what makes Cooperstown unique and gather the entire community to promote equality and diversity.

OPA Co-Founder and President Elayne Mosher Campoli said she was grateful that the community and businesses pulled together to present a new Pride tradition.

“When we started Oneonta Pridefest in 2017, we had a vision that it would continue for years and expand throughout the county,” she said. “We’re very excited that the Village [of Cooperstown] has planned these events. It’s so good to see Pride in this area growing beyond our original network. We’re very proud of everyone who organized this.”

In addition to the aforementioned businesses and organizations, Pride Weekend is sponsored by Weinert Elk Creek Farm. For more information, visit https://www.otsegopridealliance.org/.