The group celebrates its formation with its first gay pride festival, attracting a couple of protesters. One came to save souls.
By STEVE THOMPSON
Published October 26, 2004
NEW PORT RICHEY - Marc DiGregorio glanced out toward the lonely pair of protesters and smiled.
"You can't pay attention to that," he said. "They're welcome to it."
As he talked, a lesbian couple were playing guitar and singing while others swayed to the music. People ate hot dogs and shish kebabs. Some sat in lawn chairs taking in Saturday's sunshine.
It was the Pasco Pride Coalition's inaugural gay pride festival.
"This is our first big event," said DiGregorio, 45. "It's our coming out party."
DiGregorio and others formed Pasco Pride in May. It aims to give the county's thousands of gays and lesbians an organization to plug into, "whether they feel like going to a social or need some sort of health support," DiGregorio said.
Other gay, lesbian and transgender groups exist within the county, he said, including dinner clubs, going-out clubs and HIV support groups. Pasco Pride hopes to supplement these by providing them with a forum for networking.
Pasco Pride isn't the first such organization to make a go of it in Pasco. For many years, the Hernando-based Tri-County Citizens Against Discrimination filled the void. But that group became inactive in 2000.
"I think it was just too early for its time," DiGregorio said. Now, he says, the time is right. "It's time to move the county into the 21st century."
Not everyone, of course, agrees. Victor McCleskey stood with his fiancee along Thys Road, where the festival took place at the Spirit of Life Metropolitan Community Church. McCleskey's sign read: "Repent or Perish."
"We're trying to keep people out of hell," said McCleskey, 42. "... The Bible calls them Sodomites. King James. If you get a modern version of the Bible, it's all watered down."
His presence drew amused expressions from the folks he said he was trying to save. Mostly, they ignored him as they mingled near the bake sale or danced near the band.
David Knowlton manned a booth, selling rainbow bracelets, candles, anti-Bush pins and other trinkets from Impulse Gifts in St. Petersburg.
"I'm really impressed," he said of the day's turnout. "This is their first year and they've only been planning it for a couple of months." He grinned. "And then the protester was funny. At least one of them showed up."
