Celebrating Pride Month: Highlighting LGBTQIAA+ Voices and Working Toward Equity and Justice for All

By Loria Yeadon, President & CEO, YMCA of Greater Seattle 

Celebrating Pride Month is a longstanding tradition at the YMCA of Greater Seattle. We are proud to have Y staff, volunteers, and members engaging in our community throughout the month, culminating in a celebration at Seattle’s Pride Parade.  

Join us this year as we highlight LGBTQIAA+ voices, provide resources to support LGBTQIAA+ youth, and continue our work toward equity and justice for all. We asked our staff what message they would want community to hear, and this message from Youth Development Registrar, Noelle, stood out: 

“Being a lesbian is the least interesting thing about me and I love that. I forget queerness is controversial until I experience hatred. I find it so odd because I'm married with a dog child. I think normalizing queerness in our lives is super important. For instance, I mention my wife in conversations the same as someone would mention their hetero partner. I relate to them on relationship topics and hope to help normalize queerness in their lives. Getting others to realize we're just regular people is what I aim to do through little interactions." 

To read more staff voices and find ways to engage in community, visit our Pride website. Here is a sampling of what you’ll find.