Empowering LGBTQ+ Communities:
A Spotlight on Blue Ridge Pride

The LGBTQIA2S+ community in Western North Carolina thrives through connection, advocacy, and support, and organizations like Blue Ridge Pride play a crucial role in fostering inclusivity. As a proud supporter of LGBTQIA2S+ professionals, WNC Queer Professionals is excited to feature Blue Ridge Pride and highlight its incredible work in empowering the queer community.

The Mission of Blue Ridge Pride

Blue Ridge Pride is more than just an annual festival—it’s a movement dedicated to ensuring visibility, equity, and inclusion for LGBTQIA2S+ individuals in Western North Carolina. The organization advocates for equal rights, provides resources, and fosters a sense of belonging through various programs and initiatives.

Their mission is simple: Advocate, Celebrate, Educate, Serve (ACES). They strive to create an environment where LGBTQIA2S+ people and allies can feel safe, supported, and encouraged to thrive.

Why Blue Ridge Pride Matters to Western North Carolina

The impact of Blue Ridge Pride goes beyond the LGBTQIA2S+ community—it strengthens the entire region. By promoting diversity and inclusion, the organization contributes to:

  • A stronger local economy by supporting LGBTQ+ businesses
  • A more inclusive society that welcomes and values all individuals
  • Greater awareness and education about LGBTQ+ issues

Many individuals and businesses have flourished under the support and guidance of Blue Ridge Pride, proving that inclusivity benefits everyone.

How WNC Queer Professionals Supports Blue Ridge Pride

As a networking hub for LGBTQIA2S+ professionals, WNC Queer Professionals shares the same mission as Blue Ridge Pride—empowering LGBTQIA2S+ businesses and professionals. Through our partnership, we:

  • Promote Blue Ridge Pride’s initiatives to our members
  • Encourage LGBTQIA2S+ business collaboration within the region
  • Provide networking opportunities for professionals to grow and connect

Together, we are building a stronger, more connected LGBTQIA2S+ business community in Western North Carolina.

Programs and Initiatives

Blue Ridge Pride Festival

The Blue Ridge Pride Festival is one of the year’s most anticipated celebrations, drawing thousands of people together in a colorful, joy-filled tribute to diversity and inclusivity. This dynamic event pulses with live performances, local artisans, delicious food trucks, and interactive experiences—all showcasing the vibrant spirit of the LGBTQIA2S+ community. More than just a festival, it’s a powerful gathering where people can express themselves freely, forge meaningful connections, and revel in the beauty of belonging.

Blue Ridge Pride Business Alliance

Championing equity, inclusion, and economic empowerment, Blue Ridge Pride is dedicated to uplifting LGBTQIA2S+ and allied communities across Western North Carolina.

At the heart of this mission is a carefully curated network of welcoming businesses, organizations, and community groups—each committed to affirming the right of every individual to live authentically, free from discrimination. Whether you’re a customer, client, employee, visitor, or vendor, you’ll find open doors and open hearts, ensuring that everyone belongs.

Education & Outreach

The Blue Ridge Pride Welcoming Spaces curriculum invites organizations, businesses, individuals, and community groups on a journey of learning and connection. Through engaging discussions, interactive exercises, and powerful firsthand stories, participants gain deeper insight into the rich diversity and lived experiences of the LGBTQIA2S+ community.

More than just education, this program is a call to action—an opportunity for allies and those on the path to allyship to move beyond tolerance and into true belonging. By fostering understanding, we lay the foundation for policies, practices, and spaces that don’t just include the LGBTQIA2S+ community but embrace and celebrate it.

Mental Health Counseling

Compassionate, affirming, and rooted in community—mental health services are now available at the Blue Ridge Pride Center, offering a safe space where LGBTQIA2S+ individuals can seek support without barriers.

With sliding-scale fees ranging from $0 to $40, care remains accessible to those who need it most. Services are open to individuals 18 and older, including those in relationships, partnerships, and multi-partner dynamics. Group counseling sessions, thoughtfully designed for the LGBTQIA2S+ community, provide additional opportunities for connection and healing.

Their approach is deeply intentional—body-positive, fat-affirming, queer-affirming, and trauma-informed. Whether facing depression, PTSD, anxiety, or other mental health challenges, individuals will find a team that truly sees and supports them.

Located at 1330 Patton Ave., Suite A, the Blue Ridge Pride Center also offers a welcoming space stocked with food and essential supplies—because healing starts with care, and community starts with belonging.

Oral History Project

Founded in January 2019, the Blue Ridge Pride LGBTQIA2S+ Archive serves as a living testament to the rich, complex history of queer life in the South. This cultural heritage repository preserves the voices and artifacts of the past—capturing everything from PRIDE festival memorabilia and travel scrapbooks to grassroots publications, buttons, and T-shirts that tell the stories of resilience, joy, and resistance.

Thanks to dedicated community volunteers and undergraduate researchers, the archive now houses over 112 oral history interviews and thousands of images, each offering a glimpse into the lived experiences of LGBTQIA2S+ individuals across the region.

Guided by the “counterstory” methodology of Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy, Zora Neale Hurston, and Aja Martinez, the archive actively challenges mainstream narratives about what it means to be LGBTQIA2S+—especially in the South, Appalachia, and among those who are deeply rooted, transient, or newly arrived. Through YouTube videos, educational media, and academic research, they work to make these histories visible, accessible, and deeply human.

Want to be part of this ongoing story?

🌈 Share your story—connect with a trained volunteer to begin your oral history journey.
📖 Learn the craft—attend an oral history workshop and partner with an oral historian.
🎥 Make history come alive—volunteer remotely to digitize materials or transform existing interviews into educational media.

Together, we preserve the past, illuminate the present, and shape the future of LGBTQIA2S+ history in the South.

2024 WNC LGBTIQA2S+ Health Equity Survey

Between April and June of 2024, Blue Ridge Pride embarked on a comprehensive survey of health equity within the LGBTQIA+ community in Western North Carolina. With 380 responses, 351 of which met eligibility criteria, we gathered invaluable insights into the health and well-being of our community.

The survey covered a wide range of topics, including healthcare access, experiences with coming out and discrimination, chronic illness, housing, safety, and more. Over the following month, we meticulously analyzed the data, breaking it down by race, ethnicity, gender identity, age, and ability/disability to ensure a deeper understanding of the nuanced experiences of our diverse community members.

Because food insecurity was one of the top findings from the study, Blue Ridge Pride now offers a Food Pantry on Wednesdays from 2 p.m. – 6 p.m.

Health Equity Findings

Fostering Connections

Creating Safe and Loving Spaces for LGBTQ+ Children and Foster Parents

At Blue Ridge Pride, we’re proud to partner with Caring for Children to help expand the number of safe, welcoming spaces for foster children, regardless of where they fall on the sexuality and gender identity/expression spectrums. Through targeted marketing, foster parent training, and actively recruiting LGBTQIA2S+ foster parents, our goal is to ensure every child can find a loving home where they are fully seen and accepted.

“One Weekend a Year”

When many people think of fostering, they picture long-term placements that come with both profound joy and challenges. But sometimes, foster children in Western North Carolina simply need a temporary, safe haven for a weekend, a few days, or even just a single night—whether it’s while their regular foster family is away or during a short break for a family in the process of reunification.

To meet this need, we’ve launched the “One Weekend a Year” campaign, inviting LGBTQIA2S+ households to consider offering a temporary home for a child in need. Even the smallest act of care can have a lasting impact. If you’re interested in making a difference, simply complete an interest form on their website. Your compassion could be the safe space a child needs to feel supported, loved, and valued.

How to Get Involved

Want to support Blue Ridge Pride? Here are some ways you can make a difference:

Attend Events and Volunteer

The best way to show support is by attending Blue Ridge Pride’s events and getting involved as a volunteer. Whether you’re helping organize the festival, assisting with outreach programs, or spreading the word, your contribution makes an impact.

Join the Blue Ridge Pride Business Alliance

If you own a business or are part of a company that supports LGBTQIA2S+inclusion, consider joining the Blue Ridge Pride Business Alliance.

Support LGBTQIA2S+ Businesses

One of the easiest ways to support the community is by buying products and services from LGBTQIA2S+-owned businesses and hiring LGBTQIA2S+ professionals. Every dollar spent helps sustain and grow businesses that are committed to inclusivity and diversity.

Donate to Blue Ridge Pride

Donating to Blue Ridge Pride helps support a non-profit organization that promotes equality, safety, and quality of life for the LGBTQIA2S+ community in western North Carolina.

  • Support community programs: Your donation can help fund programs like the Generation Plus Program for Seniors, the WNC Oral History Project, and the Blue Ridge Pride Community Partner Fund. 
  • Support the annual Pride Festival: Your donation can help make the annual Pride Festival a success. 
  • Support year-round programming: Your donation can help sustain year-round programming. 
  • Support professional staff: Your donation can help fund the salaries of the executive director and other professional staff. 
  • Support the LGBTQIA2S+ community: Your donation can help build a stronger, more diverse, and welcoming community.