Joanne McQuarrie, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter | [email protected]
Drag shows, helicopter tours and the only gay ski week in the Canadian Rockies: those are just a few of the events planned for this year鈥檚 Jasper Pride & Ski Festival.
Running April 1-10, the festival is put together by the Jasper Pride Festival Society.
鈥淟ike the last few years, Pride 2022 has been very unconventional in the planning,鈥� said Maggie Sammon, co-chair for the society, in an email.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been brainstorming and fundraising since December 2021, but we weren鈥檛 really able to pull the trigger on our events schedule until we had an idea of what April鈥檚 COVID restrictions would look like.
鈥淭his means a huge portion of Pride has only really come together in the last month. It鈥檚 been a whirlwind.鈥�
The struggle for LGBTQ+ rights has been a long time coming, reads the Queer Events website, starting with the decriminalization of homosexuality.
鈥淓ven though the world is becoming a more inclusive and accepting place as time passes, there鈥檚 still a lot of work to be done,鈥� Sammon said.
鈥淧ride Week is a chance to raise awareness and visibility of the LGBTQ2S+ community in our region. And equally as important, it鈥檚 a chance to boldly show the world that Jasper is a place where everyone can feel safe and welcome just as they are. It鈥檚 a chance to show our locals and visitors that Jasper has their backs.鈥�
The Jasper Pride Festival first occurred in 2010 and was originally a weekend festival.
In 2015, it expanded to a four-day festival in March and later moved to April.
鈥淭his will be the first year doing a ten-day, Gay Ski Week festival,鈥� Sammon said.
As well, the Jasper Pride Festival Society will host its first-ever awards brunch on April 3.
Awards will include Person of the Year, Youth of the Year, Proud Business of the Year, and LGBTQ2S+ Community Organization of the Year.
The festival is being organized this year with an unofficial theme of 鈥淧ride for Everyone,鈥� recognizing that the LGBTQ+ community was not monolithic in nature.
鈥淪ome folks are coming with families, some want a slower pace, some want more meaningful programming,鈥� Sammon said.
鈥淲e know there鈥檚 huge love for our parties and ski days, but we wanted to offer some more diverse programming so everyone attending feels like there鈥檚 something for them.鈥�
Organizers also wanted to showcase more diversity among the community with events such as S芒kihitowin: Indigi-Hauz Takeover, a drag evening by an Indigenous drag house out of Beaver Hills.
鈥淲e hope we鈥檝e really hit a balance with programming this year,鈥� Sammon said.
鈥淲e encourage everyone to keep an eye on our website and social media as new events are being added even now.鈥�
OUT Jasper is a peer and advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer/questioning people in Jasper, including visitors.
Mychol Ormandy, executive director of OUT Jasper, said the group has been part of Jasper Pride events for about 13 years.
鈥淛asper Pride Week gives the gay community and its allies a way to express themselves for who they are, in the loving nature we have fought for every day since before the Stonewall movement,鈥� Ormandy said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 to be able to express how we were born to be. The diversity and inclusiveness of Jasper is not just during Pride Week; it is all year round, an amazing feeling.鈥�
OUT Jasper will be at the kick-off party at the Whistle Stop from 5-7 p.m. on April 1, and it will host the Loud & Proud Drag Show at 10 p.m. at the Whistle Stop.
There will also be a pop-up meet-and-greet at the Wicked Cup on April 3 from 2-3 p.m.
A full list of events can be found at
Editor's note: The first year of the festival was 2010, rather than 2009 as initially reported.
