Thank you for the honor to celebrate the strength, life, spirit, determination and unswerving CREATIVITY of our community. Celebrations are essential to our well-being and our work. They bring out the best in our creativity and provide important moments to gather and rejuvenate and reflect on who we are.
And rejuvenate we must. You are doing hard work! The LGBTQIA movement is pushing back on an 
entire lifetime of socialization. An entire lifetime that has misrepresented the breadth and depth of the full range of our human experience. Socialization that has lied to us over and over and crammed the complexity of our humanity into narrow categories. A socialization that has created a narrative of division instead of unity.
But we are changing that narrative. We are adding our voices and our light. And we are breaking through that darkness of fear and control with the light of the truth of who we are and the society that we want to live in.
In the face of this hard work, it’s easy to get tired. So, we must celebrate.
Celebrate the years of unrelenting work. Rallies, marches in the rain and snow, trainings on how to organize, strategy sessions, and fights for funding for space to call our own.
Celebrate your perseverance for enduring the long, frustrating discussions with legislators who look through you with indifference and apathy.
Celebrate your discipline. The feeling of the hard marble Statehouse floors under your feet as you stood for hours, hand over mouth, your body cramped and shaking before you were ushered to jail.
Celebrate your absolute strength in the face of real threats of violence. The strength to continue to speak up, to show up, to never back down from fear and hate.
Celebrate the local leaders and entities that have added the words “sexual orientation and gender identity” to their local ordinances, who have flown the Rainbow flag on their city hall steps and have called for inclusion and fairness and justice.
Celebrate the teachers in our school systems that are incorporating inclusion and are educating themselves on how to create compassionate school communities. One teacher last night told me she was going to start a Gay student Alliance at her school.
Celebrate the queer youth and allies who are showing up every day stronger and more vocal. And celebrate the parents, clergy, neighbors and teachers who support them.
Celebrate the amazing clergy who show up to hearings, marches, and rallies and who continue to spread love, hope and truth in our communities.
Celebrate the elders among us for their rich experience and wisdom…for their perseverance and for the sheer fact that they have been on the planet longer and sustained what they have sustained…For their knowledge of history so we never forget the valuable story of our journey.
Celebrate your beautiful, full selves. Your truth. Your journey. Your joys. Your flaws. Your unique gift to this world.
Celebrate the creativity of the committee of people and the business (Rocky Mountain) who donated these beautiful lights for the Statehouse.
When I first asked “permission” to have the Capitol lit with rainbow colors for Pride Celebration and the request was denied, I was disappointed. After the massacre of the Orlando citizens at the gay night club, I went back again, thinking there would have to be a change of heart. To light the Statehouse in beautiful rainbow colors would be a show of support and love and a message that hateful violence against our citizens who are LGBTQIA will not be tolerated. A message that we will protect you. But when the answer was no again, a group of hard-working committee members did what they always do. They got creative.
How many of you saw the lights on the Statehouse last night? I didn’t realize until the moment I drove around the corner and saw that building lit up, just how important those lights were going to be.
It’s not just the lights, it’s what they stand for. As I drove up, I saw people lounging on the grass, laughing and smiling. I saw people taking “selfies” in front of the lights (myself and my dog included). I heard roaring laughter. I overheard some younger kids talking about how important it was to see these colors show up so strong. I witnessed a group of half-naked bikers in the “dare to bare all” community bike ride. I felt sheer joy and enthusiasm. I felt safe. I felt a deep feeling of celebration.
Thank you to the committee who didn’t take no for an answer. Thank you for your determination, hard work and long hours without sleep, so our world in Boise, Idaho would be a brighter for our celebration this weekend.
Thank you for teaching me once again, that we must not take no for an answer. Everything matters! Just as the violet color on the original Rainbow flag symbolizes, we must continue to celebrate our SPIRIT of love, courage, and creativity.
As we close, I want you to think of one thing you want to commemorate and celebrate today. Share it with each other. Enjoy each other. Laugh with each other. And Celebrate with Pride with each other.
Thank you for the honor to serve as this year’s Grand Marshall I am so proud to be celebrating with you today and everyday!