Resources:
Lee Van Roth's Feature Article: Ypsi Pride returns with July date, longer hours, expanded programming
Transcription:
Lee Van Roth: You're listening to 89.1 WEMU. I'm Lee Van Roth, and this is On the Ground Ypsi. Ypsi Pride is returning to Depot Town with a new date, expanded hours, and its largest lineup of vendors and performers yet. Organizers say this year's festival reflects years of community feedback while creating a more accessible and sustainable celebration for attendees, volunteers, and entertainers alike. Joining me to discuss this year festival is Britt Barron, the Logistics Chair for Ypsi Pride. Britt, thank you so much for being here today!
Britt Barron: Yeah! Thank you so much for having me! I'm excited!
Lee Van Roth: So, this year's Ypsi Pride, I think the biggest change is the date. In previous years, it has run on the first Friday in June, and now we have moved to Saturday in July. Can you give us a little bit of insight into what led to that change?
Britt Barron: Yeah, absolutely! So, the big thing is moving it to a Saturday. We love first Fridays. We love doing things on Fridays in Ypsi. We, as an organization, as Ypsi Pride, as a community, had just outgrown that Friday model. It was only about four to half to five hours as we're like pushing our sound limit to be able to do things. And so, it really becomes the same entertainment, the same vendors looking at that. And then also, it's really, really hard on our volunteers, our vendors, our entertainment to have to take a day off work, especially with the economy, the way that it is. And really, for our volunteer board, it was two or three days that we were taking off work to get ready for a Friday. And lots of feedback was coming in from everyone from our volunteer boards, from vendors, from entertainers, that we really, really need a Saturday model. So, we made a decision early last year to put 2026 on a Saturday. And then, it's just navigating the other events that are happening in Ypsi when the Freighthouse is available. And we were able to settle with July 18th as a date. We went a lot back and forth on if this is going to work, what reactions were going to be, and we ultimately decided to just test it and see how it goes. So, we're still kind of in that testing phase. I'll let you know on Saturday. I do think it's going to go well. We have gotten a lot of feedback, but also a lot of support from the businesses in Depot Town, from vendors, from entertainers that if Saturday and even in July really, really works. And then also, just like personally, I don't have to take like three days off work to get everything set up and ready to go, so, that's kind of selfish on my part. But it does make me able to enjoy Pride more the day of.
Lee Van Roth: And I know you had mentioned with moving to a Saturday, now there's the opportunity of making Pride, Ypsi Pride, a lot longer of an event. I mean, it seems like there is stuff going on from the beginning of the afternoon all the way into the evening. Can you give us a little taste of what attendees can look forward to this year?
Britt Barron: Yeah, absolutely! So, we will have programming that starts at 12 PM, so right at noon, that is more family-friendly and low STEM. So, it'll be all in Riverside Park. We have some really great partner orgs coming in to do some hands-on activity and then also have some low STEM entertainment out there. And again, that was feedback from parents who bring their kids to Pride. Not that our Pride is not always family-friendly, but it's loud, it's hot. Can there be a place where they can let their kids run around a little bit more? So, that's why we chose Riverside because we'll be right at the pavilion with the playgrounds, and they have like their own porta potties out there. So, it's all ages, but it is more like family and youth-focused out there. And then, right at 2:00, we will start our entertainment lineup on the main stage. And the Freighthouse stage, we'll have some vendors who are ready to go at 12, but not all of them will be. But all the vendors will be set up and ready to do at 2 PM. And then, so we'll have Pride, all of that happening from 12 to 10. And then, we actually have an after-party at Mash afterwards. It's very fun! They typically have a really, really good DJ. And they have beads and fans that they're giving out to people. And there's drink specials. And it's just a really, really good time to go like wind down from the event and just have like some community and talk to people who got to go. And I got a lot of feedback when I was there last year from people. So, we kind of have things going from 12 to 12, essentially, so, like, a full 12 hours of programming.
Lee Van Roth: I know you had mentioned working with business owners in the Depot Town area. Obviously, there is this huge number of local vendors and community partners that will be present. There is a scavenger hunt planned with the businesses that are in the area, which is, I mean, just sounds like so much fun. But why was it important especially this year to build Ypsi Pride, really, as a full community encompassing event, as opposed to something that is this is a fun thing for us to do on a Saturday.
Britt Barron: Yeah. I think because it is a Saturday, right? So, we go around and we talk to every single business in Depot Town, pretty early on, to let them know that we're going to have a street closure. Here's what it looks like. And then, we ask them really, what questions do you have or feedback for us, right? And, one of the business owners brought up that like, "Well, I'm worried about foot traffic not coming into the building because there's vendors around." And I'm like, "Oh, that actually makes a lot of sense." And a Friday model, when it's such a short amount of time and a lot of places close at 6:00, a little bit different, right? But when it's Saturday, all day that we're taking up like, "Oh! Well, we have to do something to at least get some foot traffic into the building." So, a scavenger hunt was actually recommended by said business owner over at A2 Vintage. And we're like, "Oh, we can easily do that!" I am a former camp director. There's nothing I love more in this world than a scavenger hunt to keep people entertained and engaged. And it's like such an easy thing that we can throw together. And then, we can have printouts at our info table. We can have it on our social media. And then, people are getting in the doors to all of those businesses, right? And we cannot have Ypsi Pride if not for our community partners and the businesses in Depot Town allowing us to be there, right? And so, how can we give back? And this is like a very, very easy way to be able to give back and make sure that people are getting in their doors. I think when we think about community as a whole, like there's obviously a very dedicated and specific queer community in Ypsi. I think we can all agree on that. But all of those queer people in Ypsi also are the people who own all the businesses and work in the city and run city events and plan city events and make sure that no one is breaking the glass in the Freighthouse. So, you can't have city events in Ypsi without the queer community. And so, when we're putting the whole community together, really great things happen! So, we tried really hard to do that this year.
Lee Van Roth: This is WEMU's On the Ground Ypsi. I'm Lee Van Roth speaking with Britt Barron, the Logistics Chair for Ypsi Pride. So Britt, you had mentioned part of the reason for the the date change was to also to accommodate the volunteers that make Ypsi Pride possible. This is a fully volunteer-run event. Are there any opportunities still available for folks listening to come out this weekend and be a part of the magic that makes Ypsi Pride?
Britt Barron: Yeah, absolutely! We need lots of volunteers for cleanup. And I know that's not the fun, glamorous part of walking drag queens to the main stage or getting to wear your fun little safety vest at the train tracks. But cleanup is such a huge thing. We have to leave Depot Town better than what we came to. So, if you check out our Instagram, which is @ypsipride, there is a link in our bio to sign up to volunteer. The very cool thing is that you get an exclusive volunteer t-shirt that you can pick up on Friday night in Depot Town or Saturday when you check in. And cleanup can be as easy as sweeping or picking up garbage, or it can be breaking down all of the vendor tents and the tables and loading those into our U-Haul. Yes. Very, very gay. And then, you get to come celebrate with us after the fact at Mash.
Lee Van Roth: I feel like every time I have attended, it has just gotten bigger and better. You know, once Saturday rolls around and you are witnessing everything unfold, what are you hoping that folks take away from this year's event, whether they are longtime attendees or if this is their very first Ypsi Pride?
Britt Barron: Yeah. Oh, that's a really good question! Last year was my first year on the board, and it was very chaotic. And I didn't get a chance to like really stop and see things, other than bringing my kind of conservative mom to Pride and having her just be like really proud of me and really enjoying the community. So, I hope that this year, I do get a chance to actually enjoy it and see all the vendors, and I just want everyone to see all the care and craft that went into everything and also be able to feel like this is their Pride. Like, they are represented in some way. Like, they had a say in something if it's as small as a vendor that they might want there or a certain sticker that they may want from a vendor or that we made sure that there is now a new ramp from the Freighthouse parking lot into the triangle where the porta potty's are, so that you can get your wheelchair or your walker up into that area right now. So, there are these really, really micro things that people care about so much. And then, there's these huge, huge macro things that do make Ypsi Pride a community event.
Lee Van Roth: Britt, thank you so much for joining me here today and for sharing how Ypsi Pride keeps on growing all while creating this very welcoming community for our LGBT neighbors and allies throughout Ypsi!
Britt Barron: Yeah, absolutely! Thank you so for having me!
Lee Van Roth: For more on today's conversation and a link to the full article, visit our website at WEMU.org. On the Ground Ypsi is brought to you in partnership with Concentrate Media. I'm Lee Van Roth, and this is your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU, Ypsilanti.
Non-commercial, fact based reporting is made possible by your financial support. Make your donation to WEMU today to keep your community NPR station thriving.
Like 89.1 WEMU on Facebook and follow us on X (Twitter)
Contact WEMU News at 734.487.3363 or email us at studio@wemu.org
