A Hot Time at St. Pete Pride

Posted by: Angelina Bruno in Arts & Entertainment, St. Petersburg June 27, 2018

Jon Ziegler of Gulfport showed off his colorful, handmade getup at the festival. Ziegler made the show-stopping piece by using sequins and two LGBT pride flags. “I’m out here representing Gulfport,” said Ziegler.

St. Pete Pride finished off a colorful weekend of celebrations with an all-day street festival on Sunday, June 24. From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., crowds donning rainbow gear flooded the streets of Grand Central District, eating, drinking, shopping and dancing. Vendor booths included everything from clothing boutiques to churches to auto insurance, and the variety of businesses participating in Sunday’s festival seemed to highlighted the inclusivity St. Pete Pride brings to the city. The average temperature on Sunday was 91 degrees, but the crowds braved the heat to have a good time.

According to the St. Pete Pride website, this year’s pride festival was predicted to bring in more than 50,000 people.

Cal Morris, covered popular tracks on his violin while outside of Urban Brew and BBQ at the St. Pete Pride Festival on Sunday afternoon.

Don, Echo and Diane Murrowany pose for a photo together in front of the Lion’s Paw Antiques. The family, sparkling in purple glitter, was celebrating their second year at St. Pete Pride. “It’s really cool to have my parents out here with me,” said Echo.

Partygoers waded and danced through a foam pit outside of Old Key West Bar and Grill on Sunday afternoon.

Sue Harle, left and Jody Robinson spent Sunday promoting the city of Gulfport at the festival. “Last year no one had really heard of Gulfport,” said Harle. “This year, everybody has heard of us!” The tent was sponsored by the Gulfport Merchants Chamber. The two volunteers gave out magnets with the city’s logo.

Jerry Hobson, owner of The Blue Cottage on Central Avenue, poses inside his shop Sunday. “I’ve been busy. I didn’t anticipate selling as much,” said Hobson. “I opened more for the exposure, but I’ve been busy.” The Blue Cottage is a new shop, with eight weeks on the books.

Lois Milne and Eric Espinoza, of Gulfport, headed to downtown St. Pete for the evening Pride Parade on the waterfront. “We were worried we wouldn’t get any beads,” said Espinoza. Photo by Maria Loinaz.

St. Pete Pride hired an outside company to handle t-shirt sales for this year’s St. Pete Pride weekend. Kenny Foster, an employee with the shirt vendor said his company handles the t-shirts for most of the pride events around the country. “There’s been three times the sales this year, than last year,” said Foster. Proceeds from the sales benefit the St. Pete Pride organization.

The Gulfport Trolley represented Gulfport at the nighttime Pride Parade on the waterfront in downtown St. Petersburg, along with several other entries from Gulfport. Photo by Maria Loinaz.