By: Mike Koury | Woodward Talk | Published June 2, 2026
FERNDALE — The 16th annual Ferndale Pride festival took place this past weekend, bringing together thousands to celebrate the LGBTQIA community.
Ferndale Pride was held on May 30 on West Nine Mile Road in the heart of downtown. Whether it was wearing the colorful Pride rainbow or their specific colors for their identity, visitors in attendance came to express their pride and show support for others.
Speaking the day after the event took place, Event Director Julia Music said the festival went smoothly and she was happy to see so many smiling faces.
“Everyone was very peaceful and in a great mood,” she said. “Vendors said they had a great day. Everyone was dancing and enjoying the festivities. So, it’s great when you just see a very calm but happy and jovial party going on.”
Sally McChesney, of Columbus, Ohio, attended Pride with her wife, Lynda, and their children, as her wife’s family is from Ferndale.
McChesney said they love coming to as many Pride festivals as they can and love Ferndale’s because of its small, community feeling.
“Our family lives in Ferndale. Her mom has huge pride in the city itself,” she said. “Just what Ferndale itself as a city kind of holds with what they believe in — community. So, to go to a Pride in a town that you really feel like upholds your beliefs and who you are as a person, I think with Ferndale I really like that.”
What Pride means to McChesney is the ability to be who you are and accept who you are.
“With Pride in general is that to come together and just be around people who have the same kind of beliefs and systematically want the same as me and what I believe in,” she said.
Alicia Hines, of Ferndale, said that when you think of the word “pride,” it tends to hold ego in it, but not in the case of attending an event like this.
“The beautiful thing about Pride in this realm is that it comes from the opposite of it, of taking that word and trying to create a humble place to be yourself,” she said.
Music said she had the chance to be able to talk to people as she went through the festival, but it was the moments where she overheard people talking about their thoughts of the event that meant the most to her.
“I do overhear a lot of people saying things that I don’t know, and I think that’s probably the most genuine feedback,” she said. “That’s really interesting to hear when people are just saying things like, ‘Everyone’s smiling,’ or ‘I feel so good here.’ That’s a great feeling for the event.”