Latest news with #Elswick
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Marysville, Westerville LGBTQ+ groups rally Pride funds as businesses pull support
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Marysville and Westerville LGBTQ+ groups said some businesses have shied away from sponsoring this year's Pride festivals, while others have stepped up to fill the financial gap. The Union County Rainbow Coalition, host of Marysville's Pride Fest, said it has encountered funding challenges as the coalition has spoken out against anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. That advocacy has yielded a drop in support from some local companies, according to organizers Christian Downey-Thompson and Betty Elswick. List: 2025 Pride Month events, festivals in central Ohio 'They've shied away because they're more performative,' Downey-Thompson said. 'They are all about throwing a party, but don't want to do any of the advocacy work that our group does to support the marginalized communities in Marysville. You can't just slap a rainbow on it and call it allyship; you actually have to do the hard work.' Issues have been ongoing since 2023, when a group named the Union County Faith Family Coalition began targeting drag performances and businesses hosting Pride events, like Walking Distance Brewing. The brewery permanently closed in February and hosted Pride events that were meant to further inclusion for Marysville's LGBTQ+ community. Members of the Faith Family Coalition began taking to social media during the summer of 2023 to denounce the brewery's drag queen shows, hurling unfounded accusations of pedophilia and grooming. Consequently, some local sponsors withdrew their support when the Rainbow Coalition spoke out in defense of Walking Distance and other LGBTQ-affirming businesses. 'We were told that they didn't want us speaking up against that, they wanted us to be quiet, and they wanted us to continue to have fun,' Elswick said. 'Well, we tried to tell them that this is not how this works. It was a really hard conversation for them and some of them were unwilling to have the conversation.' Out in Ohio: Stonewall Columbus gets ready for Pride 2025 Still, the Rainbow Coalition forged ahead with Marysville Pride Fest, taking place June 14 from 3 to 9 p.m. in Partners Park with vendors, nonprofits, animal sanctuaries, live bands and a comedian. The celebration is in part made possible by several Marysville families who stepped up to replace those local businesses with even larger donations. The coalition was also the recipient of prize money from Folx Health, an online healthcare provider for LGBTQ+ people. 'We've got more genuine giving, people are giving because of us standing up, which has been really nice,' Elswick said. 'It's kind of changed the tone of everything. It's been a positive thing on that front, is that people are giving because they want to do the work. They want us to continue our work and it's a little bit more genuine.' The Westerville Queer Collective, the group behind Westerville's Pride Festival, has also been the beneficiary of more intentional donating, according to organizer Lee Bradford. Bradford said this June's festival has about the same number of sponsors as last year, even though the collective has needed 'to do a little bit of extra campaigning' in the wake of President Donald Trump's reelection and anti-LGBTQ+ proposals at the Ohio Statehouse. 'As much as I kind of look out into the wider world of hatred and bigotry, I feel like there's a comforting amount of support here,' Bradford said. 'We've been doing a little bit more about reaching out to local businesses and trying to find support those ways.' The collective grew out of an effort in 2021 to fly a Pride flag outside City Hall, and is hosting Westerville's fifth annual festival from 5 to 8 p.m. on June 7 at the parking lot in front of Birdie Books, a LGBTQ-owned bookstore and longtime supporter of the collective. Bradford said the group has 'become a much larger part of the fabric of Westerville' throughout the past years and has garnered community support. Earlier this year, Westerville became the 13th Ohio city to ban healthcare professionals in the city from engaging in anti-LGBTQ+ practices known as 'conversion therapy' with minors. The practices falsely claim to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, and have been discredited by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association and more. Bradford said this year's Westerville Pride features more vendors, food trucks and an increased focused on resources from organizations. NV Gay, a nonbinary photographer known for 'This is Trans,' a gallery showcasing diverse identities within the trans community, will also be at the festival to sign their recent book, 'The Queer Allies Bible: The Ultimate Guide to Being an Empowering LGBTQIA+ Ally.' Ohio lawmakers call for 2026 ballot measure to overturn same-sex marriage ban 'I think the support here is actually way bigger this year than it was last year, everybody's been coming out and saying they're excited for it,' Bradford said. 'It's hard, but pulling it off and watching something that you worked so hard for come into fruition, and you see a big celebration in the middle of town, it's so, so worth it.' Marysville and Westerville are two of several central Ohio suburbs whose LGBTQ+ organizations have struggled organizing events while fending off anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. Delaware Ohio Pride, the organizers behind the city of Delaware's Pride festival, told NBC4 in March that some local entrepreneurs who previously backed the organization have cut off support and no longer offer their businesses as event space since Trump's reelection. The Fairfield County Rainbow Alliance faced targeting last September when a group called the Fairfield County Conservatives spoke out in protest of a LGBTQ+ event hosted in downtown Lancaster. The debate culminated in a city council meeting where the conservative group argued the event featured an 'obscene' drag show, but the city's top prosecutor said the performance was legally permissible and protected by the First Amendment. LGBTQ+ business owners in Lancaster said they saw a boost in sales when their shops were named to a list shared on social media by members of the conservative group. The entrepreneurs said the reverse happened when the group posted the list as part of an alleged boycott against businesses that support the LGBTQ+ community. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Teddy Bear Rally returns to Dickerson Park Zoo this year
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – When Jennifer Elswick joined Mercy in 2001 and started helping plan the annual Teddy Bear Rally, it quickly became one of her favorite community events. For more than two decades, Mercy and Dickerson Park Zoo co-hosted the event, which was a fun and interactive way for kids — and their teddy bears — to experience the zoo while also picking up health and safety tips from Mercy team members who patched up bruises, tears and minor injuries to the cherished bears, according to a Mercy press release. 'This event was always a huge draw for kids, and it was so much fun to participate in,' Elswick said in the release. 'I even brought my own kids when they were young, and it was just a joy to watch all these kiddos wander around the zoo with their teddy bears while our team taught them about everything from the importance of helmets to hand hygiene.' Although the event was paused for several years, Mercy and Dickerson Park Zoo have brought the rally back to life. It will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 3. The release said visitors who bring a stuffed animal will get half off entrance at the zoo. No other discounts or coupons apply. Sticking with Teddy Bear Rally's tradition, Mercy's Child Life team will host a teddy bear clinic where kids can become doctors to give their stuffed animals a much needed check up and fix any injuries, according to the release. Additionally, several other departments from Mercy will join zoo team members at booths set up around the zoo where visitors can learn about healthcare needs of both humans and animals. The Mercy Kids ambulance will also be on site for kids who love to explore the vehicles used by first responders, per the release. In 2006, more than 4,000 kids and their favorite teddy bears headed to Dickerson Park Zoo for the event. Now that the rally is back, the zoo and Mercy are ready to welcome kids and their favorite stuffed animals. 'We are so excited to team up with Mercy to bring back the Teddy Bear Rally,' said Joey Powell, PR/marketing and events director at Dickerson Park Zoo, in the release. 'Events are great opportunities to welcome more guests to the zoo, and partnering with Mercy on the Teddy Bear Rally is the perfect event to showcase the amazing way Mercy cares for our community and DPZ cares for animals.' Between bandaging up their stuffed animals, checking out all the critters at the zoo and learning how to maintain their health, kids will have plenty of fun at the return of the Teddy Bear Rally. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
CI Hero: Stark Co. senior up for IHSA award for service
STARK COUNTY, Ill. (WMBD) — A Stark County high schooler didn't refrain from stepping up to lead her school's music classes when the district lost its teacher. Lauren Best is this week's CI Hero. 'Sometimes your mentor is someone who's been in your field for a million years and sometimes your mentor ends up being a 16-year-old and that's just how it turns out sometimes,' said Music Director Sophia Elswick. Best stepped up her junior year, along with a group of friends, to fill a void when the music director quit. She helped current music director, Sophia Elswick, transition into the program when she accepted the role in early 2024. She said music is her passion and she felt compelled to keep that experience for other students. 'I've made some of my best friends in music and it's really important to me that I get to be in a community with these people,' said senior Lauren Best. 'I've been a leader for the junior high recently and it's been really cool because I get to be their role model and they're really fun to hang out with.' Music moves Best, but so does education. She's graduating in the spring with her associate's degree and is up for valedictorian. Outside of her studies she's just as active. 'I'm on my robotics team through first robotics competition and I use my leadership skills there and my communication,' said Best. 'I'm also in a lot of music ensembles. At my church I play piano a couple times a month for offertory.' 'She got her Girl Scout Gold Award for a project she did in my room in helping me digitize all 5,000 titles of sheet music,' said Elswick. All this work led the IHSA to nominate her for the National federation of State High School Associations Heart of the Arts Award. 'It was really good for me to learn leadership skills because I am pretty quiet overall,' said Best. 'It took a while for me to learn how to be a leader and communicate well.' Elswick said Best is a student who's left an imprint on her heart and her teaching career. 'I am so grateful that our paths crossed in this way and to have her as one of my first students has been such an honor,' said Elswick. In the fall, Best will study industrial engineering at Iowa State University. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Yahoo
Four charged after chase through Frederick, Montgomery counties
A Prince George's County man faces assault, drug, and traffic charges, accused of leading police on a chase that began near Frederick and continued into Montgomery County on Thursday night. Shawn Ray Elswick, 25, of Riverdale, is charged with three counts each of first- and second-degree assault; one count each of unlawful taking of a motor vehicle, possession of drugs: not cannabis, possession of drug paraphernalia, and negligent and reckless driving; and numerous traffic charges. Three other people were in the vehicle with Elswick and also face charges, authorities said. Elswick was still being held after a bail review hearing Friday in Frederick County District Court, with another hearing scheduled for Monday. Court records did not list an attorney to represent Elswick. A sheriff's deputy was on patrol around Md. 85 and Grove Road near Frederick when he saw a white Nissan van turn down a narrow gravel road behind a shopping center, in what the deputy believed was an effort to avoid him, according to charging documents. As he followed the van down the gravel road, a computer search showed that the van was stolen and the deputy attempted to stop the vehicle. When the deputy turned on his emergency lights, the van went north onto Interstate 270, then to U.S. 15 before taking the exit for Motter Avenue and onto Opposumtown Pike toward Fort Detrick. After turning around, the van went back onto U.S. 15 and I-270, being tracked on radar at 100 mph, according to the charging documents. The chase continued into Montgomery County, ultimately exiting onto Shady Grove Road near Gaithersburg. At an intersection, the van rammed another vehicle waiting at the red light and pushed it out of the way. Two of that vehicle's three occupants were taken to Shady Grove Hospital as a result of their vehicle being rammed, according to charging documents. The van was stopped by the Montgomery County Police Department at a Sheetz store in Gaithersburg, where Elswick was found in the bathroom attempting to flush drug paraphernalia down the toilet, according to the charging documents. Drugs and paraphernalia were found throughout the van and in the possession of the three other men in the van, according to the documents. Reny Escobar, 24, of Frederick, Walter Cabrera Miranda, 28, no address given, and Jose Torres Juarez, 19, no address given, were charged with motor vehicle theft, possession of a controlled dangerous substance, and possession of paraphernalia. The three could not be located in online court records Friday, but Miranda and Juarez were both held on an Immigration Detainer Notice of Action, accused of being in the United States illegally, according to a press release from the Frederick County Sheriff's Office.
