Pride London is seeking community minded, service-orientated leaders to serve on Volunteer Committees, including Chairs and Members for the 2025 season.
Like many nonprofit, community-based organizations, Pride London has experienced a number of challenges since COVID. As well, today our acronym has changed from LGBTQ2+ to 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, and the ‘+’ acknowledges all other gender identities and sexual orientations), and are seeking greater representation from all sectors.
To address the loss of volunteers due to COVID and other factors, Pride London Festival is looking for recruits; many roles now remain vacant.
Pride London is a team effort. Volunteers should expect to spend up to 2 hours per week, or more depending on the responsibility undertaken and more during London’s Pride month of July.
Please submit your desire to volunteer for a Committee Chair/Member position by October 22 to the Pride Secretary at volunteer@pridelondon.ca along with a resume, a cover letter outlining your skills and rationale for volunteering for your particular committee. Members will be introduced at the 2024 Annual General Meeting (AGM) on November 21 in the CE Lawson Room at the Main Branch of the London Public Library: Doors 6:30 PM, meeting 7-9 PM (confirmed). Appointments confirmed at the first official Board Meeting.
Bylaw 16.01 Committee Creation
The Board may appoint committees whose Members shall hold office at the pleasure of the Board. The Board shall determine the duties of such committees. The chairperson of each committee shall be a Director of the Corporation. The President is a default member of all committees. All Candidates shall submit their intentions before the declared deadlines as follows:
- October 22, 2024
- *Must be a Member, and reside within the City of London. Pride London Festival membership is $10 a year and is to be renewed by September 30th of 2024: MEMBERS | Pride London Fest
- *Vulnerable Sector Check (NEW for 2024) Police Record Checks :: London Police Service :: Consumer :: Home (policesolutions.ca)
*Additional volunteer training may be available through Pillar Nonprofit Network. We want to build skills, capacity, and confidences so that each member can become a community leader in their own right.
Positions Available
Committee Chairs (unlimited, reliant of volunteers and program funding/fundraising)
- Pride Art Exhibit Chair *
- Awards Chair (Rainbow Youth, Ken Sadler, Volunteer Appreciation, Etc.)
- Entertainment Chair
- 2S (Two Spirit) Chair
- QIA+ Chair – Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, and the ‘+’ acknowledges all other gender identities and sexual orientations
- Ally Chair – P.F.L.A.G, Unions, etc. because London’s straight community WANTS us here
- Youth & Families Chair
- Senior Chair / Over 55 events
- Diversity (BIPOC) Chair – to reach out to London’s diverse diaspora that our community members live in in London
- Membership Chair – works with the Director of Membership/Volunteers, helps with recruitment
- Bylaw Chair - guide us through the updates needed, under Director of Legal, we need to put the Joy back into Pride, Mission Statement, Vision Statement, and updates are required!
- Drag Chair - we can do better to promote our up-and-coming stars
- Fundraising & Grant Writing – Under the President, new resources needed, old relationships need to be reestablished
- Parade Chair – the biggest single events of Pride and the most essential determined by community members
- Vendor Chair – weekend festival and other events
- Pride Guide – assimilate group info from other Chairs for the Pride Guide Community Directory
- Others as dictated by the Community/Borad of Directors.
*Denotes established Committee Chairs
Each committee will be required to establish administration standards moving forward, that can be transferred to the next committee chair. Committee Chairs are responsible for recruitment of members, if more than one person comes forward, that committee will then select its chair.
This is a start. If you do not see yourself or your interest in this, feel free to add in your own Chair Profile – there have been many suggestions like a 2SLGBTQIA+ POW WOW, or a Video Game Battle, Speaker Panel, a 2SLGBTQIA+ Film Chair to bring new cinematography to our community! This may include working with other 2SLGBTQIA+groups withing London. Resources exist to make all of this happen; we need people that can commit to doing the work! Thank you
About Ben Benedict:
Ben Benedict is a Co-founder of Pride London Events, the organization that eventually became Pride London Festival (2002-2012), and Pride London Festival’s Community Advocate for the 2024/25 season, and will serve in an ex officio capacity to new members seeking guidance.
In 2012, Ben Benedict was recognized as a “Community Trailblazer” by Pride London Festival for his contribution to the LGBTQ+ and Cultural Community of London as well as an “Influential Londoner” by the London Community Foundation. He earned a Master of Arts in Communication from Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, NS in 2017 and in 2020, was awarded the Canada Pride Citation from the Chief of Defence, National Defence Canada for his service to Canada.