Photo Credit: Allison Jones
June is an exciting month in San Francisco. The entire city comes together to celebrate diversity and support the LGBTQ community. If you’re looking to share the love, here are some fun ways to get your pride on before, during, and after the parade on Sunday, June 25.
The newest scoop shop in town, Salt & Straw, has created a special flavor just for pride. Head ice cream maker, Tyler Malek, used Skittles to make a beautiful rainbow sherbet. The ice cream will be available starting Saturday, June 24 until the flavor runs out. A percentage of the sales will benefit the SF LGBT Center.
If you prefer to celebrate pride doing something healthy, Barry’s Bootcamp is hosting a seven-day challenge. The campaign, called #unitedwesprint, invites workout enthusiasts to sign up for seven days of classes in a row between now and June 25. There’s a flat fee for the experience and all your favorite Barry’s instructors, including Michelle Moore, Vidal Carlin, and Shea Whelan, are participating in the fun and will cheer you along during the seven-day sprint.
The San Francisco Ambassadors of the Trevor Project is throwing a party at the Twitter building on Thursday night, June 22. The 19-year old non-profit operates The Trevor Lifeline, a confidential toll-free hotline number that offers counseling and suicide prevention for LGBTQ youth. Their party is the unofficial start of pride weekend and has a #youarelove theme. Guests are welcome to come as their best self and dress to impress. Jessica Childress, Honey Mahogany, and the Golden Gate Men’s Chorus will perform and there will be fresh cocktails and delicious food.
Wake up early on Saturday morning, head to Twin Peaks, and help set up the Pink Triangle. Every Pride weekend since 1996, a massive pink triangle has graced the side of the hill as a silent, but beautiful symbol of the gay community. At 7 a.m., the set up begins. It concludes with a commemoration ceremony at 10:30 a.m.
Seeing the parade a priority? Head to Bluestem Brasserie Sunday morning. Starting at 10 a.m., the restaurant will be hosting a pride party on their rooftop terrace that overlooks Market Street and the parade route. A $25 wristband grants you access to the roof and two special cocktails. The drink of the weekend is named for the gay DC Comics superhero, The Green Lantern, and consists of pisco, basil, cracked black pepper, and a salt and sugar rim. There’s also a tutti fruity pride popsicle available made from a rainbow of flavors—strawberry, orange, pineapple, kiwi, blueberry, and blackberry. Yum! Americano at the Hotel Vitale is also hosting a pride kick-off party from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on June 25. There will be a DJ on the back patio, rainbow vodka jello shots, bloody Marys, and mimosas.
Senator Scott Wiener is a champion of the pride spirit and is inviting his followers to join him in walking the parade. Four members of the State Legislature’s LGBT Caucus and Senator Nancy Skinner will be walking with Wiener in the parade. Afterward all walkers can meet Wiener in his office on the 14th floor of the State Building overlooking Civic Center Plaza for a special reception.
If you have friends visiting, be sure they book a hotel room at one of Joie de Vivre’s properties. Places like Hotel Vitale and The Marker are offering a special discount for rooms booked through December 31, 2017 when the promo code PRIDESF is used. The company is a major sponsor of SF Pride, so it’s one way they are giving back to the community.
