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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Springfield readies for busy weekend with triathlon, Pride parade, convention, graduations
SPRINGFIELD — Visitors should buckle up for a busy weekend downtown with tens of thousands of people expected to converge for multiple major events. The Pride parade, block party and You Ball is expected to attract some 10,000 people on Saturday, and the Ironman competition will bring in more than 1,300 competitors, plus family and friends who will watch on Sunday. And that's just a start. The Massachusetts Veterans of Foreign Wars is holding its 105th convention, restaurant week is kicking off, MGM is offering a free concert, the Springfield school district is hosting its third Family Expo for its 23,700 students and their families, and there are multiple graduations and one prom scheduled, said Springfield Police Lt. Brian Elliott, who is part of a team of police who have been preparing for months for one of the city's busiest weekends of the year. Elliott said, yes, there will be traffic, especially with the road closures from the Pride events and Ironman, but the city is prepared, and there will be police in cruisers and on bikes at the ready, and others stationed in key areas to keep vehicles moving. 'It's a good problem to have. Things are beginning to jell in Springfield,' he said. When asked if so many events benefit the city or just cause chaos and turn people off, most agree with Elliott. 'I say, 'Bring it on,'' Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said. 'As long as we can cover it logistically, the more the merrier.' Mary Kay Wydra, president of the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau, said she only sees good things coming out of the combination of events. With many athletes coming a day or more early, for example, she said they can take advantage of the city's restaurant week. Neither she nor Sarno said they are worried about parking, especially with the recent opening of the new 817-space parking garage across from the MassMutual Center. There are also multiple other garages and on-street parking spots scattered across the city. 'A lot of activity shows the city is vibrant, which is good,' Wydra said. 'People will say, 'Wow, I want to come back here.'' Sarno urged people to be patient with the traffic, but added police, fire, Public Works and parks employees all have been working together for weeks and even months to develop a logistical plan to ensure everything goes smoothly, so people have fun first. On Thursday, about 75 people from area police and fire departments, state police, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, emergency medical personnel and others gathered in West Springfield to go over the final details of the Ironman competition on Sunday. Some of the biggest road closures on Sunday will be the Memorial Bridge from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Hall of Fame Avenue between the bridge and State Street from 4 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Main Street between Hall of Fame Avenue and Longhill Street between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Court Street will be closed on Saturday and Sunday, but there will be one travel lane left open to give people attending graduations easy access to Symphony Hall, Elliott said. The race will go through seven communities, including Agawam, Southwick and Suffield, Connecticut. Public safety officials said they already have posted no parking signs along the route, and letters have been mailed to residents who live on the streets where cyclists will ride. There were some concerns about cyclists' safety in the past, so race officials rode with police to review the route. They identified potential trouble spots, and those will have extra personnel to ensure everyone is safe. There will be additional road closings in Springfield on Saturday because of the Pride parade and block party. State and Main streets will be closed a little before noon for the parade, which will begin at Springfield Technical Community College, travel down State, turn onto Main Street and end on Worthington. The block party will follow at Stearns Square with a short section of Worthington and Bridge — between the park and Main Street — to be closed for the free event, said Taurean Bethea, president and founder of the Springfield Pride Parade. Pride also has spent countless hours with city officials to develop a plan to ensure people can get in and out without problems. 'We have a great partnership with the Springfield Police Department, and we bring in our own security team,' he said. 'We are in trying times, and we want to make sure everyone is safe and protected.' Like many, Bethea said he sees the busy weekend as more of a plus than a minus and said Pride is welcoming to everyone, so he hopes people who come to Springfield for the Ironman or the other events also will check out the wealth of entertainment at the block party. He said he thinks there is plenty of places to park for all the events, especially with the new parking garage. He also hopes those coming to the city to attend Pride will consider stay an extra day to watch the triathlon. 'I think it will be amazing,' he said. 'People get to see a weekend full of events from Pride (to) Ironman, and they get to see how great this city is.' Ironman is owned by Advance, which also owns The Republican, and Reminder Publishing. Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Springfield Pride Parade steps off this year in support of city's LGBTQIA+ youth
SPRINGFIELD — Show up, stand proud and let's make history together. That's the message of the fourth annual Springfield Pride Parade, which steps off next weekend amid a time that is tense and uncertain for the LGBTQIA+ community. 'Being a Black man of the community, those are two things that are truly under attack, people of color and the LGBTQ community,' Taurean Bethea, who is executive director and founder of the Springfield Pride Parade Organization, said. 'Springfield has just an array of different backgrounds and all types of people. We want to make sure that our youth feel seen and supported, especially in this time.' President Trump's second administration has set forth a flurry of executive orders, largely aimed at the LGBTQIA+ population, including the restriction of gender-affirming care and the removal of federal funding from organizations that support 'gender ideology.' The American Civil Liberties Union has reported a total of 588 anti-LGBTQ bills in the United States as of May. While Massachusetts only accounts for five of those bills, the political atmosphere has many in the LGBTQIA+ community feeling tense and uncertain about the future. 'This is not the time for us to cower or be victims,' Bethea said. 'We need to stand up and be loud and proud and really hold our elected officials to account and make sure that they're taking care of our needs.' Bethea is a gay man. The idea for the first Springfield Pride Parade came from a hate comment that was posted his social media in 2017 about his sexual orientation. At the time, he was closeted. Now, he's loud and proud about who he is, and he wants to spread that message and encourage everyone to live who they are unapologetically. And this weekend in Springfield, there will only be joy, acceptance and above all, pride. The Springfield Pride Parade is not just a one-day event, but a weekend-long celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community in the region. It begins on Thursday, June 5, with a flag raising ceremony at Springfield City Hall at 10:30 a.m. and a youth community panel at Springfield Technical Community College from 1-3 p.m., featuring Springfield Pride Parade DJ Kenneth Kyrell. The You Ball gala will be held in MGM Springfield's Aria Ballroom the following night, June 6, starting at 6 p.m. The gala's theme is inspired by Studio 54, a former nightclub in Manhattan, and true to its name, the night will be full of sparkles, sequins and all things disco. General admission tickets are $200 and can be purchased on Springfield Pride Parade's website. Funds raised from the You Ball gala will support the Pride Parade organization's Safe Space program, an afterschool initiative to empower and provide a safe community for LGBTQIA+ youth in grades 6 to 12 in Springfield schools. 'It almost feels like we have to shield them to make sure that they still have their head held high and are confident, even in these very trying times,' Bethea explained. 'We really want to make sure that they know that they are our next generation, because there is going to be a lot of work to do.' The Safe Space program offers a combination of both summer and after-school programs year-round for LGBTQIA+ youth, including guest speakers, internships and leadership opportunities, advocacy workshops and more. Pride weekend culminates with the Pride Parade and downtown block party on Saturday, June 7. This is the fourth parade – the first parade was expected to have a turnout of 'around 500 people,' Bethea said, and they ended up welcoming more than 6,000 people into the city in that first year. The number has only grown since then, he said. 'This year is a little different because we are actually trying to take our messaging more national, so we're reaching out and expanding our reach overall,' Bethea said. 'So, we're reaching into Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut and really just trying to gather everybody within the region to come and celebrate and support.' The result of which, Bethea hopes, will be an even bigger celebration this year. The parade steps off from Springfield Technical Community College at noon sharp, but if you're participating in the parade, plan to be there by 10 a.m. 'I'm very adamant about the 12 o'clock [step-off],' Bethea said with a laugh. Those interested in marching in the Springfield Pride Parade can register on the organization's website, Students interested in marching can reach out directly to their schools and programs. Everyone is encouraged to line the streets to Stearns Square and be 'loud and proud,' Bethea said. 'Everyone is welcome to march with us,' he said. 'We need as many people as possible because we have to make a statement this year.' Following the parade, a free block party will be held in Stearns Square from 1:30 to 6 p.m. The party will include food, vendors, live music by DJ Kenneth, and special guest Dawn Richards of Danity Kane, a 2000's R&B/pop group best known for songs like 'Damaged,' 'Show Stopper' and 'Ride for You.' 'Come out and let's make our pride loud a-f,' Bethea said. 'That's our theme this year. It's a pretty edgy kind of hashtag we're using, but I think now is the time for us to be loud.' For more information about Springfield Pride Parade events, visit Read the original article on MassLive.
