Kamloops Pride kicks off with unveiling of new rainbow crosswalk | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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Kamloops Pride kicks off with unveiling of new rainbow crosswalk

A new rainbow crosswalk was unveiled at the B.C. Lottery Corporation Kamloops headquarters Monday, Aug. 19, 2019, to kick off pride celebrations in the city.

KAMLOOPS - Kamloops just got a little more colourful.

A new rainbow crosswalk was unveiled at the B.C. Lottery Corporation Kamloops headquarters this afternoon, Aug. 19, to kick off pride celebrations in the city.

B.C. Lottery Corporation staff, pride committee members and other members of the community were in attendance for the ceremony, which also saw the raising of a rainbow flag and a transgender flag.

"As someone who is transgender and lesbian, I can say when I came out to the job and started transitioning, I was scared because I didn’t have any indication how the people and the company would react,” says Katelyn Boughton, a senior technical analyst with B.C. Lottery Corporation and a Kamloops Pride committee member.

Boughton worked with the lottery corporation to create their own company pride committee, which she says has helped her and other staff to feel accepted and respected.

Members of Kamloops Pride raised the well-known rainbow flag, as well as the flag that represents the transgender population.
Members of Kamloops Pride raised the well-known rainbow flag, as well as the flag that represents the transgender population.

The crosswalk cost the lottery corporation $2,000, according to Ted Ockenden, director of corporate services and facilities. He says the idea to install a rainbow crosswalk came six weeks ago, and he notes that it will get annual upkeep if need be. 

Nicole Stanchfield is the vice president of Kamloops Pride, and she is happy to see Kamloops growing towards becoming a more inclusive community.

“Publicly displayed symbols of diversity and acceptance benefit the entire community by providing a shared understanding of diverse gender identities, expressions and sexual orientations in the LGBTQ2S+ community,” Stanchfield says in a media release. “I applaud the B.C. Lottery Corporation for installing this internationally recognized symbol at its front door.”

After raising the flags and cutting the ribbon, onlookers were welcomed to walk along with the new installation. There were boxes of rainbow sprinkled donuts on hand to keep with the theme.

The Kamloops pride parade will happen on Aug. 25.

You can check out a schedule of pride events here.

From left to right: Ted Ockenden, Katelyn Boughton, and Nicole Stanchfield cut the ribbon on the rainbow crosswalk in Kamloops, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.
From left to right: Ted Ockenden, Katelyn Boughton, and Nicole Stanchfield cut the ribbon on the rainbow crosswalk in Kamloops, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

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News from © iNFOnews, 2019
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