The Woodlands Hosts First-Ever Pride Festival

THE WOODLANDS, TX – One of the Houston areas most affluent and conservative communities hosted its first Pride Festival last weekend. The Woodlands Pride event was at Town Green Park from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and attracted more than 4,500 visitors, officials said.

“This is definitely a game changer,” Emily Cassard said on the group’s Facebook page. “Super excited to see The Woodlands Pride happen.”

The free event was sponsored by Comcast and included a Kids Zone, food trucks, vendor booths, music, drink vendors and drag performances.

The Woodlands Pride is an organization with a goal of connecting, celebrating, educating and fostering relationships in the LGBTQIA community while promoting equality, unity, and love in The Woodlands and beyond.

In June, the nonprofit organization announced it was working closely with community leaders in The Woodlands and laying the groundwork for the festival.

Although The Woodlands is overwhelmingly conservative, organizers of the event encountered little interference and were able to easily apply for a permit to use the park. Gordy Bunch, chariman of The Woodlands Township told a conservative website recently that the process to use parks for events like The Woodlands Pride Festival was designed to be both fair and non-politicized.

Meanwhile, those who did attend the inaugural Pride Festival were happy with the turnout, the vendors and the entertainment.

“The performers were excellent, the energy of the crowd was fantastic. It was refreshing to welcome such diversity to The Woodlands,” Melissa Davis said in a Facebook post.

The Woodlands Pride Festival, which is already planning for 2019, is among several Pride festivals and parades that take place each year in the Houston area.

The Houston Pride Parade, one of the largest in the southwestern U.S., and the second largest event in Houston attracts more than 700,000 visitors each year.

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