Greenwood showed out for its first Pride event.
Craig Park, in the heart of downtown Greenwood, came to life Saturday afternoon. Crowds of people donning rainbow-colored outfits, accessories and Pride flags filled a small parking lot where the city’s first-ever Pride block party took place.
Community members of all ages, from Greenwood and Indianapolis, showed up to visit the different vendors, eat food and enjoy live entertainment. Organizers said roughly 3,000 people attended the five-hour event Saturday.
Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers kicked off the festivities, delivering a speech at the opening ceremony. He pointed out that nearly a year ago, he spoke at a Black Lives Matter rally in the city. Greenwood strives to be an open and accepting community, he said.
“The term Pride is in Greenwood’s city motto, and this event aligns with our values,” Myers said. “Being here today for Greenwood’s first Pride event is a huge milestone I will not forget.”
Myers has many people close to him who are members of the LGBTQ community, and he is glad the community has a place to celebrate Pride in Greenwood, he said.
“It’s good they can finally feel comfortable setting this up in our community. There’s a lot of different opinions, but Greenwood is a community that is open to everybody. We love everybody no matter their race, religion, or what their sexual orientation is,” Myers said.
For many Greenwood residents, this was their first time attending a Pride event. Bella Suiters, a student at Greenwood Community High School, was excited to experience Pride for the first time in her hometown.
Suiters is a member of LGB Teens, a club at school for teens in the LGBTQ community. She was working the booth Saturday afternoon.
“This is awesome to me because I get to see people that are in my town who support or are part of the community,” Suiters said. “There are a lot more people than I thought there would be, which makes me feel so amazing.”
Greenwood resident Kendra Smith Crouch was also a first-timer.
“It’s about time. This is awesome,” Smith Crouch said. “There’s a wide range of people here, which is great.”
A variety of booths filled the parking lot representing different local businesses and organizations including the Johnson County Public Library, Adult and Child Health and Coffee Junkees.
Hoosier Brewing Company, one of the main sponsors, served beer and cocktails. And for the kids, they could get their faces painted, or listen to stories read by local drag queens on the live stage.
All proceeds collected went to Trinity Haven, a nonprofit in Indianapolis that provides support and transitional housing placement for local LGBTQ youth and young adults who are at risk of homelessness. Exactly how much was raised was not available Sunday afternoon.
A drag show late in the afternoon was the main event. Drag performers from all over central Indiana dazzled the excited Greenwood Pride crowd with lip sync routines that included dancing and some acrobatic tricks, too.
Kendra Stone, the emcee for the live entertainment and a performer in the show, told the crowd she was impressed by the excitement at the city’s first Pride.
“You showed … out for your first Pride,” Stone said.
John Michael Jones, an organizer of Greenwood Pride, was filled with emotions at the end of the day Saturday. He founded Greenwood Pride two years ago with Heather and Matthew Smith, and none of them expected it to grow to this level, he said.
A lifelong Greenwood resident, Jones is happy to finally have a space for the LGBTQ community in the city.
“Greenwood 30 years ago is not the Greenwood we have today. To be able to see everything that’s happened today, and to see everyone that’s turned up for it, it’s so exciting,” Jones said.
Next up, Greenwood Pride plans to host more events throughout the year, including a drag zombie walk and a Christmas pageant, Jones said.
“I don’t want Greenwood to keep having that reputation that it’s had in the past,” Jones said. “I think today we proved that Greenwood is a better place to be no matter who you are, what color you are, who you love.”
