Last Friday, Pride Week started in New Westminster at a flag-raising ceremony at City Hall. 

President of NewWest Pride Katie Stobbart was the master of ceremonies for the event...which included many passionate and warm-hearted talks by invited guests, and an open mic session where members of the community came forward to tell their personal stories.

The first speaker, Maggie C. Waldron, spoke of her 'coming out' as transgender and the challenging and sometimes funny aspects of that.

Katie also told a story of her getting involved in social justice issues somewhat serendipitously.

A number of local dignitaries spoke, among them Raj Chouhan, long-time local MLA. He spoke about his long history working in the area of human rights.

Former and well-respected MP for New Westminster-Burnaby Peter Julian told about the passing of the act in parliament declaring equality in marriage in 2005....a joyful event in the House of Parliament.

Mayor Patrick Johnstone remininced about the early days of pride week where maybe 100 people attended. There was 40,000 last year, making this festival the second largest in the Lower Mainland.

He emphasized the city's full support for the queer community.

After the raising of the pride flag - mid event - the open-mic session began. Councillor Nadine Nakagawa opened it with a heartfelt piece about the nurse logs in our forests who nurture the new crop of trees with an evident allusion to humanity's role in creating its future.

Many in the audience came forward to tell their stories as queer people grappling with their identities and finding their way in life. There were tears, laughter and compassion expressed by the audience.

The City's Poet Laureate, Janet Kvammen, closed off the proceedings with a poem urging all to take heart EVEN IN bleak times.