On Saturday, the annual Love Reigns: Grays Harbor Pride Festival was held at the Grays Harbor Historical Seaport in Aberdeen by the Out & Proud Grays Harbor Coalition.

There were a variety of fun activities to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community, such as family-friendly activities, vendors, music, entertainment, and a small yet welcoming unicorn-themed parade. At 7 p.m. a drag show was held, hosted by premiere Northwest drag king Ceasar Hart for this 12th year extravaganza and celebration of identity.

A tender moment was the unicorn parade, where any attendees interested were given horns and costumes to celebrate the way each and every one of those surrounding us is unique and special; all were encouraged to be an active part of the parade.

There was a strong sense of support and intricate planning put into every aspect of the day, always taking into consideration how LGBTQ+ attendees can feel validated and inspired.

Steven Puvogel, the chairman of Out & Proud Grays Harbor Coalition, and one of the organizers of Grays Harbor Pride Festival, made it a mission to make others feel welcomed and know that no matter their identity, they deserve to be visible and thriving just like everyone else in the Harbor.

“To us, Pride is a season. When we started this, there weren’t many community pride festivals, and now most communities have some form of Pride. Our community is here all the time; these are just a couple of days to celebrate. This is one thing we do to support and be visible every year, partnering throughout the year, so that everyone is getting the support we can through each other. We’re all in this together. It’s about making folks know they are okay the way they are,” Puvogel said. “This is an opportunity for them to see that there are other people like them and they do belong in this community. Being in the LGBTQ community shows there’s a whole host of different identities that people have, and by showing that and saying there are all different kinds of folks that are wondering. You’re wonderful, and let’s have fun, celebrate with each other. Hopefully you can meet someone like you, or meet someone older than you and see that they’re okay, and you’re okay.”

At 7 p.m., the drag performances began. The space was packed, seating a full house of people who traveled from all over Grays Harbor and in some cases, from hours away to attend. The cultural importance of drag shows goes back to the 1920s, though they became more prevalent in the 1970s, and they continue to stand as a form of celebration of one another, performance, and the LGBTQ+ community to join together to express their styles and personalities with ease.

Entertainment like drag is not widely available on the Harbor, and the drag queens and kings that performed drove all the way here from Seattle, Tacoma and Olympia to bring their energy and talent to the stage at the Historical Seaport, which was a sponsor for the event.

Ceasar Hart is a prominent drag king who has been practicing for 18 years, hosting Grays Harbor Pride for 12 years now, and has been involved with non-profits like Humanities of Washington.

“I feel most of our performers try to pick songs that help encourage and support our audience members and community members. They want to make sure that they’re trying to give representation for as many people as we can in the audience and that’s why I like to book such a wide variety of performers, so that we can try and cover the whole entire spectrum if at all possible,” Hart said. “Being able to watch the interactions between the performers and the community members and how excited people were through the performances and just the energy in the room, I’ve always said that I wish I could put like a thermal imaging camera on a room when the drag show is happening. Because that’s where our souls are dancing in the air. You’re in the seat and you’re enjoying it and you’re having a good time. I’m just imagining that above you is just your soul dancing where you are, enjoying the energy.”