Help Us Celebrate Pride in Charleston

To host this year’s Charleston Pride Festival, we need to raise $20,000 by next Wednesday, October 12. Please consider supporting us financially in order to make this celebration a reality!

For more than a decade, Charleston Pride has been serving, empowering, and promoting the well-being and visibility of LGBTQIA+ and allied communities. Like many non-profit community organizations, we experienced a decrease in donations, sponsorships, and engagement throughout the pandemic. And, just like so many other organizations, we are also adjusting to the new “post-pandemic” normal. Because of your financial support and enthusiasm, we held our first Pride Parade since 2019 this past June. Since then, we have been so energized to see our community out and proud to celebrate PRIDE!

Now, we need your help. This year’s Pride Festival truly cannot happen without you. Despite careful financial planning, we still need to raise $20,000 to guarantee this year’s festival. Your continuous, dedicated support is what has made past Charleston Pride Festivals so successful. Your financial contribution to Charleston Pride shows your care and dedication to Charleston’s LGBTQ+ community — and lets us know you’re ready to celebrate with us at Riverfront Park in November.

As a community organization, our goal is to bolster Charleston’s LGBTQ+ community and find ways for our community to celebrate Pride all year long. Our board provides valuable expertise, resources, and planning to run the Pride Parade, Pride Festival, and other gatherings, but we have always relied on donor support and sponsorships to fund our events.

In full transparency, hosting this year’s festival will cost over $70,000. As a non-profit organization, we’ve been working with the funds we have to manage the budget for this event. With the ongoing support of generous sponsors, as well as selling vendor and food truck spots, we’ve been able to maintain a working budget in the interim.

But, we still need $20,000 in donations.

So, how can you help?

Right now, we’re asking you to donate to this funding campaign to crowdfund the festival and make it happen. Without your financial support, we will not be able to host the 2022 Pride Festival. In addition to donating, please share this campaign far and wide.

I want to be a vendor/sponsor!

Great — we’d love to have you. Please visit our website, charlestonpride.org, for more information, and contact us with any questions.

Will I have to purchase a ticket to attend this year’s Pride Festival?

Yes. In addition to crowdfunding, this year’s Pride Festival will be a ticketed event. A ticket link will be released following a successful fundraising campaign.

We've worked hard to offer great value for your admission price (general admission $10; 2 and under free) - including upgraded size, parking, and facilities with our move to Riverfront Park, plus expanded food options, a larger family area, great views, and fantastic entertainment.

Please note that donations to this fundraising campaign are strictly donations. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer discounted and/or VIP tickets to donors at this time.

What happens if we don’t meet the goal? What about Pride Week?

If we don’t meet the goal of this campaign, donations will be used by Charleston Pride for other, smaller events. Regardless of the outcome of this campaign, we have an exciting and diverse line-up of Pride Week (November 6-13) events for all ages.