Pride

“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.” Dalai Lama

We believe that celebrating Pride month is more important than ever. We have collaborated with our community partners to offer an entire month of celebration to honor LGBTQIA+ experiences and history. We hope this page inspires you to join us in connecting with our community through dance, film, literature, poetry, art making, and so much more.

Pride Events

All events occur in Waterville unless otherwise noted.

June 3 at 10am
The Children’s Book Cellar, at 52 Main St, will host Drag Queen Story Hour

June 3 from 12-4pm
Pride Parade and Celebration in Hallowell! The Hallowell Pride Alliance will begin with festivities at Granite City Park at noon.  The parade will begin at 2pm and go from 232 Water Street to 52 Water Street in Hallowell. Music by Random Ideas and Super Cat! For more information visit them here.

June 13 from 5:30-7pm
Ticonic Gallery + Studios, at 93 Main St, will host the series Constructing Identity: a 3D Printing and Psychology Course. In this special 4-week summer course, students will combine art, 3D printing technology and the psychology of identity to express personal ideas, style, and uniqueness. This course is open to all levels from beginners to advanced, ages 16+.  (Series dates: June 13, 20, July 11, 18) Register here.

June 8 at 7pm Maine Film Center, at 93 Main St, will show the movie To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar

June 16 Maine Film Center, at 93 Main St, will host a FORQS (Folks Organizing Reform for Queer Spaces) short film festival.
Click here for more info!

June 18 at 2pm Maine Film Center, at 93 Main St, will show the movie Rafiki

June 22 at 7pm Maine Film Center, at 93 Main St, will show the movie The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

 June 22 from 3–5pm Waterville Creates, 93 Main St, will host Art in the Park: Rainbow Art in Castonguay Square.

A Pride Family Picnic hosted by the FORQS organization at Waterville High School will follow from 4:30-6:30pm.

All Month long:

Waterville Creates, 93 Main St, will have Pride themed Creative Carts and Pride tee shirts for sale.

Waterville Public Library, 73 Elm St, will be displaying LGBTQIA+ fiction and nonfiction titles.

Colby College Museum of Art, 5600 Mayflower Hill, Looking for Queer Possibility in the Museum, a self-guided resource available at the Colby College Museum of Art’s campus location. Pick up a copy of Looking for Queer Possibility in the Museum, a visitor resource written by Margaret Middleton, independent exhibit designer working at the intersection of design and social justice. This resource prompts visitors to look for and create queer interpretations of art during their museum visit, and will include a way to contribute feedback on your experience that the museum will use for future programs and interpretative resources. Available at the Welcome Desk during open hours at the museum.

The Bankery & Skowhegan Fleuriste, 87 Water St Skowhegan, will be selling Pride chocolate bars (made by Wilbur’s of Maine) where part of the proceeds will support Equality Maine.

Pride First Friday

First Friday in June (June 2) is all Pride themed! Check out our First Friday page for information on other participants.

10am-5pm Waterville Public Library, 73 Elm St, The library is celebrating Pride – with our trusty button maker! We have supplies to make buttons featuring a wide range of Pride flags and pronouns. There will also be a free drawing for several new LGBTQIA+ books! Entries will be collected on Friday June 2nd, and the winners will be drawn and notified on Saturday June 3rd.

5-7pm Resources from community members, Family Violence Project, Maine Children’s Home, Universalist Unitarian Pride Committee, Central Maine Pride, Pflag, FORQS, Rainbow Quest game

5-7pm the Paul J. Schupf Art Center, 93 Main St, will be celebrating Pride with Ticonic Gallery + Studios making rainbow window art.  The Joan Dignam Schmaltz Gallery of Art  for art-making activities that support LGBTQ+ Pride month. Design a message of support and love on a pin, made with recycled matboard scraps. Do some folding and gluing to create your own handmade books that you can fill with brightly colored paper to share your own beliefs, stories, and creative practice; this project is inspired by the artist Paula Wilson’s books, on view in the exhibition, Ashley Bryan/Paula Wilson: Take the World into Your Arms. 

Buy your Pride tee shirt from the Ed Harris Box at Waterville Creates. 

6pm Waterville Opera House, will have a sneak peek of the upcoming production Rock of Ages, plus a chance to win tickets o the show!

7pm Greene Block + Studios, 18 Main St,  Open Mic celebrating LGBTQ+ voices.

8-10pm Greene Block + Studios, 18 Main St, All Ages Dance Party!