Aurora community comes together for Pride celebration, not without determination
Friday preparations were underway at Winged Melody Park in The Aurora Highlands for the 2026 Aurora Pride celebration, but organizers with Out Front Foundation say getting to this point wasn't easy.
"It's been a really chaotic 10 years," said Addison Herron-Wheeler, the President of Out Front Foundation.
They've been hosting the event since 2017, but, in 2020, there was the COVID pandemic. In 2022, they had an Mpox vaccine clinic at their event for fear of the spread of that disease.
"There's also been some political shifts in Aurora that made it more difficult during certain years to have an event at all," Herron-Wheeler said.
In 2025, Aurora City Council decided to defund the event.
"What happened in the last couple of years was really a fluke," Aurora Mayor Pro Tem Allison Coombs told CBS Colorado.
But, this year with a mostly new city council, Coombs says they were able to secure a $5,000 sponsorship for Aurora Pride, and it will continue to work with Out Front to host the event in the future.
"I think people underestimate the value of just that recognition. That our community matters to our city," Coombs said.
But the primary challenge this year was where to hold the event. Last year, they held it at Fletcher Plaza in downtown Aurora, which they say wasn't ideal.
"It doesn't have a lot of greenery or grass. One of the things we noticed is people weren't really wanting to hang out," Herron-Wheeler said.
That's why, this year, The Aurora Highlands stepped up to let them use their community park. The commnity says it would have done it for anyone.
"Aurora Highlands is a really inclusive community," said Carla Ferreira, the CEO of The Aurora Highlands. "We are so happy to share our park, not just with the LGBTQ plus community, but also with all of Colorado and anybody that's visiting."
Herron-Wheeler says, even though it took a village to get the event off the ground, finally, they are ready for this year's event.
"I'm just really excited for everyone to see this space and see what the event can look like," Herron-Wheeler said.
