On Saturday, June 18th, Pike County Extension Fine Arts joined with local community organization Pikeville Pride for a fun, colorful day together. A “Pride Picnic” was held that drew over 300 people to Pikeville City Park from around the region, including West Virginia, Ohio, Tennessee, and beyond. Entire families and people of all ages and backgrounds gathered to feel accepted and to show support for the LGBTQ+ community.

At the Pride Picnic, Pike County Extension Fine Arts set up a booth tent and offered free face painting. We painted over 200 faces and handed out over 200 activity and information bags! We also offered a temporary tattoo station, rainbow ribbon dancer toys, art craft to-go bags, and brought sidewalk chalk so everyone could get creative and brighten the park. We were also able to hand out flyers, advertise for upcoming arts events, and make some valuable connections with people interested in volunteering and collaborating with Pike County Fine Arts. 

Pikeville Pride is an all-volunteer community led group whose mission is to strengthen and highlight LGBTQ+ visibility in eastern Kentucky and central Appalachia. The group held its first Pride celebration in 2018—the first public Pride event in Pike County and most of the region. Since then, the organization has held several other events. 

News coverage for the Pride Picnic event reached a wide audience, including both print and video content from The Advocate, Ohio Valley Resource, Mountain Top News, Appalachian News-Express, MYMT-TV Hazard, WSAZ-TV Charleston, WFLP News Louisville, The Fairness Campaign, Just Fund KY, and The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky.