“We were born to unite with our fellow men, and to join in community with the human race.” - Cicero
Back in November 2008, a group of eleven individuals came together to form the Pride Calgary Planning Committee, an organization dedicated to the planning and implementation of the Pride 2009 festival. In taking on this challenge, the new Board of Directors had a legacy of 19 past Pride celebrations in Calgary to live up to. Being one of these Board members, I, along with the remaining 10 volunteers on the Board threw ourselves into the task at hand.
No sooner than we began planning the next year’s fundraising and events did we learn that we still owed the City of Calgary about $2600 from outstanding permits from last year’s Pride celebrations. This outstanding debt had been virtually ignored by previous Pride Chairpersons and Treasurers, and knowledge of it was never passed along to the current Board. In order to be permitted to have an actual Pride Celebration this year we needed to pay off our outstanding debt as soon as possible. With only a few dollars in our bank account, we had a major issue.
To add insult to injury, we had more financial issues ahead. To combat our outstanding debt, we were made aware that there were numerous grants available to non-profit Society’s in Alberta. To our dismay, we soon discovered that Pride Calgary was no longer registered as a society, let alone a non-profit organization. So the Board had to rectify this and become a properly registered Society in order to gain non-profit status, to allow us to apply for these grants. Not only that, the ability to give Charitable Donation receipts to our sponsors was a major selling point for us to secure sponsorship. A couple of hundred dollars later we applied and are still waiting on confirmation.
So, the question remained at that point, how are we going to make Pride happen this year when we are beginning the year in the red? For the past three months you may have noticed constant Facebook messages from the Pride Calgary group asking for Sponsorship and inviting you to fundraising events. If you frequent Money Pennies you may have taken part in our weekly 50/50 draws or been kind enough to purchase a $5.00 Pride membership. It is with these countless efforts by each member of our volunteer Board that we have been able to pay for our outstanding City of Calgary debt.
Going forward, we have many more expenses to overcome. The bottom line is that Pride Calgary 2009 will not happen without Sponsorship and Community support.
To run Pride, it costs approximately $12,000. On top of all the City Permits and insurance, we need to get, we also need to rent tents and tables, pay for security and Police, buy the alcohol for the Beer Gardens, pay for the sound equipment, and for a facility to hold our Pride Dance. There is currently about $20.00 in our bank account and eleven Board members are working tirelessly everyday to find sponsors and plan fundraising events.
Sam Casselman, President of the Pride Calgary Planning Committee is concerned about Pride’s financial state. “If the community as a whole is not going to pitch in, Pride will not happen this year.” It is after all an event that supports and celebrates the community. “If everyone in the community donated $5.00 or more to our organization, we could spend more time on planning the events, rather than working on how we are going to pay for it.”
By moving Pride to the September long weekend, among other considerations, we are giving some more time for fundraising efforts. We are also promoting Calgary as the city to be at for the long weekend, so we chose a weekend when Calgarians wouldn’t be travelling to other cities to enjoy their own large and upscale Pride celebrations. Why can’t Calgary also become a major Pride destination? As Sam says, “If we all came together it would be a Pride worth travelling to.”
As Cicero says, “we are born to unite with our fellow men.” Calgary’s GLBT community is strong, albeit divided. Coming together is the only way to make Pride happen.
Throughout the new Board’s five months of operation, we have attempted to reach out to each part of the community. The amount of enthusiasm, concern, and pride amongst everyone is tremendous. We all want the same things - recognition, and a home to be proud of. Let’s come together as a cohesive community to make Pride happen this year. The economic situation is tough, and money is hard to part with. We are not asking for much. We are asking for cash of course, however we are also asking for products and services for our Silent Auctions, in-kind donations, and asking you to spread the word.
Please check out the Pride Calgary Planning Committee’s website, www.pridecalgary.ca to see how you can help.
