Detroit Lakes Area Pride to host inaugural Pride Picnic in City Park on Wednesday

Detroit Lakes , MN (KDLM) – Detroit Lakes Area Pride is hosting its inaugural Pride Picnic in City Park, near the bandshell, on Wednesday evening.

The June 21 event is the first Pride event hosted by the group in Detroit Lakes and will feature free food, music, games and offers an opportunity for area residents to meet members of their organization.

Rebelle Marie, president of Detroit Lakes Area Pride, said the picnic will be very informal and serve as an introduction of the organization to community members.

“Our main purpose is to introduce ourselves to the community,” said Marie. “And also, some of our community members have been in Detroit Lakes for a long time and you may not have realized that they are a part of who we are. So, kind of re-introducing ourselves in some aspects and introducing ourselves in other aspects.”

Marie also said, the group wants to hold more events in the future, which will include drag performances, since a handful of the group’s Detroit Lakes members have expressed interest in performing at the shows.

“We are also hoping to host a couple of drag shows because that was one of the big things that people wanted from our group,” said Marie. “Getting a venue has been kind of challenging because I don’t think people are quite aware that there is a demand for drag shows in this area.”

She said the group isn’t really sure how the Detroit Lakes community is going to respond to their first event on Wednesday, but it is important for the group and its membership to continue building toward a brighter and more inclusive future, which starts with an informal picnic in the park.

“We are not sure how the community will respond,” she said. “It could be a really well attended event, or we may be over our heads a little bit. So far the response has been good. We’ve had well over 100 people RSVP on our official RSVP ticket.”

The Detroit Lakes Area Pride Picnic will kick-off in City Park on Wednesday evening from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

For more information about how to get involved with Detroit Lakes Area Pride, be sure to check their website at: dlareapride.org, or through the group’s Facebook page.