The storm clouds gathered and a few errant raindrops fell throughout the day, but Mother Nature withheld her fury and Ferndale Pride went off mostly without a hitch. That is until later in the day when a constant sprinkling persisted causing the crowd to thin out slightly. Still, those that stayed were not deterred.
"The bands played till the very end," said Julia Music, chair of Ferndale Pride. "We didn't have any lightning so we were able to keep them on. They all had audiences. There was even crowd surfing from (headliners) Sick of Sarah while they were playing. People were dancing in the streets until 10 p.m. under rainbow umbrellas."
The rain aside, Music said she was very happy with this year's Pride. "Overall, Pride was another success," she said. "We received a lot of messages, particularly from the transgender community, that people felt welcome and included in their Pride in every way."
Music estimated that 15,000 people were in the city for Pride events throughout the weekend. She also said that one of the highlights of the Pride weekend was what she called the first legal wedding ceremony at a Michigan Pride event since the Supreme Court legalized marriage for gays last year.
"The wedding was beautiful," said Music. "The three couples who got married couldn't have been happier. One of the couples had been together for over 30 years."
Melissa Kurily, who recently moved to Ferndale, was a first timer at Pride this year. "It's pretty awesome," she said of the festival. "I wish it was nicer weather, but it's still pretty awesome. I like the energy and everyone is super friendly and really nice and supportive. I moved to Ferndale from Waterford and it's just such a change. People on the street will talk to you and be nice to you and be supportive of whatever you want to do with your life."
Bob Shimmel from Wyandotte said he comes to Pride every year without fail. "I enjoy it," Shimmel said. "I meet all my friends that I haven't seen in a long time."
Ann Arbor residents Xavier Kimbrough and Ricky Bicknell said they had been to Pride before but not for a few years. "I think that there's a pretty good amount of people here," Kimbrough said. "I think there are a lot of important vendors here, too."
Bicknell said he wished he hadn't had to travel so far to celebrate Pride. "I love it," he said. "There's a lot of diversity here … a lot of LGBT people who are just out and about and enjoying the day. I like that. I wish that we had this in Ann Arbor. We have the Washtenaw County Family Picnic but we don't have a Pride, we don't have a parade, we don't have a street festival — even though we have a ton of gay people. So it's upsetting. But this is great."
Chelsea Charles of Detroit had been to Ferndale Pride several times in the past. Asked if organizers could do anything to improve the festival, she had this to say: "They need to make it never rain — unless it's raining men."
