Savannah Pride Center will welcome thousands of people back to Forsyth Park on Saturday, Oct. 24, from noon to 11 p.m. for the 27th annual Savannah Pride Festival.
Approximately 5,000 attendees and more than 100 vendors are expected to fill Forsyth Park throughout the day for this year’s festival, centered around the theme “Chosen Family: Love Beyond Fear.”
“Pride is certainly a celebration, but it has never been only a celebration,” Michael Bell, executive director of Savannah Pride Center, said in a statement. “For 27 years, people have come together in Savannah to say that there is a place for us here. This year’s theme, ‘Chosen Family,’ speaks to something deeply rooted in LGBTQIA+ history — the families we create, the people who show up for us and the communities that remind us we are never alone.”
The festival will begin with a sensory-conscious market experience, designed to create a more accessible environment for attendees with diverse sensory needs before transitioning into the larger festival atmosphere.
Throughout the afternoon and evening, festivalgoers can expect local drag performers, DJs and live entertainment, games and activities, food trucks, drinks and a marketplace featuring more than 100 vendors and community organizations.
Returning to host this year’s festivities are beloved Club One comedy icons Blair Williams and Chi Chi Bonet Sherrington, bringing their signature humor and energy back to the Forsyth Park stage. The celebration will continue into the evening with Savannah Pride’s glow and foam party.
Behind the festival is also a year-round mission, Bell said.
Savannah Pride Center is a nonprofit serving Coastal Georgia and beyond, connecting LGBTQIA+ people with affirming healthcare, mental health services, HIV/STI prevention and testing, emergency housing assistance, support groups, youth and senior programming, and other community resources.
The center continues to expand its healthcare work with the goal of building a new model of LGBTQIA+ care in the Deep South — one that serves both insured and uninsured patients and addresses the significant barriers many LGBTQIA+ people face when seeking affirming medical care.
“The festival is one day, but the community we serve exists 365 days a year,” Bell said. “Someone celebrating with us in Forsyth Park may also be someone who comes through our doors months later looking for a doctor, counseling, housing assistance, HIV prevention services or simply a place where they know they will be welcomed. Pride creates those connections. It reminds people that the community is here — and that there is a place for them in Savannah.”
