PEORIA — When you walk up to the River City Pride Fest gate this year, the first thing you’ll experience is education.
The 20-member Peoria Proud team that organizes the annual festival decided this year to install a digital timeline at the festival entrance. “We really want to instill that sense of pride in people before they even walk in to the festival,” says board president Cassie Lucchesi.
Above, clockwise from top left: Springfield singer/songwriter Ricki Marvel, performing at 1 p.m.; the River City Pride logo; Ada Vox, headlining Saturday evening’s show; Mars Hojilla, performing at 3 p.m.; Officer Andrew Connor, among several speakers at Friday night’s InQueery; Dominique Gulley, host of InQueery; and Jaharia, performing Saturday evening.
It’s just one of the special touches provided by the nonprofit that leads Pride efforts year-round for Peoria, known for reflecting the “pulse of the nation” (Peoria Magazine) through its diverse population and location in the center of the country.
This year, you’ll also find a massive graffiti wall where you can write your name and “leave your mark,” the festival’s slogan this year. River City Pride has also added more live performers, and shade, to its festival based on community response.
Admission also helps local “cradle to grave” nonprofit
River City Pride, an all-volunteer effort, is also one of the few Pride festivals that charges admission. Its $10 door fee ($5 if ordered online in advance) is less than what’s charged by Chicago, which charges $15, and the Quad Cities Pride Fest, which charges $10 a day or $15 for a two-day pass.
But at River City Pride, that door charge is melded with a food drive and a “love ticket” drive. The festival knocks $1 off of admission for every can of food donated to Neighborhood House, a nonprofit that provides “cradle-to-grave” support services for people in poverty.
Among the nonprofit’s many services for youth, seniors and anyone experiencing poverty: a food bank every 2nd and 4th Sunday, at Neighborhood House’s headquarters at 1020 S. Matthew.
Every year, donations drop off during the summer just at a time when demand peaks, says community impact director Noah Palm.
“This effort is important for our community,” Palm says. “A lot of people like to donate in the holiday season when everyone is more giving. In the summer, we always experience a drop in donations and an increase in need.”
Neighborhood House mostly services the zip code of 61605, which Palm said is among the most poverty-stricken zip codes in the entire state. He also emphasizes the pantry serves everyone in need throughout the Peoria area, not just those officially considered in poverty or in a particular zip code.
“The pantry is open to everyone. You don’t have to make a certain amount, you don’t have to present an ID … you only have to be over the age of 18.”
At River City Pride, donors receive $1 off of gate admission for every canned good they bring. This means that people who bring 10 cans of food can enter for free.
“It’s a mutually beneficial program, in that it feels good for people to give back to their community, but it’s also helping the neighborhood,” Lucchesi says. “The first year, we brought in 80 cans. The second year, we brought in 300, and last year, we brought in 600. It just keeps growing.”
Neighborhood House’s greatest need, Palm says, is canned vegetables such as green beans and corn, protein like canned ham and chicken, and canned fruit.
Above, treasurer Jake Bowers and president Cassie Lucchesi
Community service, meeting needs are part of Peoria Proud tradition
The Neighborhood House collaboration is an example of how Peoria Proud works to “foster our community organizations,” says treasurer Jake Bowers.
“We harness and nurture those relationships year-round. And in nurturing those relationships and taking care of them, we’re consistently willing to come together as a community in Peoria…. We almost cry over it daily. We’re so proud of the organization,” says Bowers, who has helped raise $10,000 through small sponsor donations in just the month of June.
Peoria Proud also offers “love” tickets: festivalgoers can pre-purchase $5 tickets for others for whom the admission is a burden. Community members who need them can actually pre-order their donated ticket by emailing Pridefest@peoriaproud.org. “There’s no shame, no judgment, it’s just walk up and get your ticket,” Lucchesi says.
Another change Peoria Proud put in place last year: more shade. It’s a request festival-goers made, and Peoria Proud responded by renting a large tent.
This year, the group also led a petition of the mayor’s office to ask the city to handle costs for lighting the Murray Baker bridge. In the past, Peoria Proud took on that cost.
Three days of events start Friday
Peoria Proud kicks off its three-day weekend Friday night with InQueery, a panel of local LGBTQ+ community leaders sharing their lived experiences.
The 7 to 10 p.m. event is at Peoria Heights’ Cafe Santa Rosa, features light refreshments, and is emceed by Dominique Gulley, a peer outreach specialist for Central Illinois Friends, model with“SELF,” and co-founder of the Peoria Black Pride Picnic.
Speakers include Alexa Cary, a Peoria Public Library assistant, photographer at Bella Baby Photography and member of the Peoria Guild of Black Artists; Andrew Connor, a sergeant with the Peoria Police Department, captain in the Illinois Air National Guard, and Peoria native; and Asher McMaher, executive director of Trans Up Front IL, senior adviser for Brave Space Alliance, and featured speaker at the Human Rights Conference in Washington, D.C. RSVP to InQueery is requested here.
In addition to Saturday’s big event, Sunday features another annual tradition: the Pride Drag Brunch featuring Drag n’ Paint and founders Megan Couri and Miss FloNoMo, plus drag stars Artemisia VanHo, DeCevia Mann, Gardenia, Victor VonVicious, DiDa Ritz & The Widow Von’Du performing while you paint, sip and snack. Tickets are $55.20 for this event at the Par-A-Dice Casino; grab yours here.
Saturday’s 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. River City Pride festival at the Peoria Waterfront features more than 100 vendors and three stages featuring more than two dozen drag performers including many regional favorites and Ada Vox of RuPaul’s Drag Race, and India Ferrah and Jaharia of Boulet Brothers; a half-dozen live original bands or performers; and the Peoria Prowlers roller derby and the Chicago Spirit Brigade
For a full schedule, see the graphic below. Pre-order tickets online for $5 instead of $10 here; order a Love Ticket by emailing PrideFest@peoriaproud.org.
Photos courtesy Peoria Proud. An abbreviated version of this article first appeared in the July 2025 print magazine from MainStream MultiMedia.
