August 29th, 30th, 31st, 2008
Dear Friends,
Welcome to Rainbow Festival 2007! Held in the heart of midtown Sacramento’s GLBTI Community, our hope this year is to draw even more people than last year’s record turnout! The core purpose of Rainbow Festival is twofold: To raise money for charities that have significant importance to the Lesbian and Gay Community and to raise public awareness of those charities; to create a celebration of our Pride that is pure fun!
The Rainbow Festival strives to make the community aware of the many services provided by the various charities it supports. These charities provide a plethora of services to Greater Sacramento, including Youth Outreach and Support programs, Issues-oriented meetings and social functions, and Information exchange. As the available government funding continues to dwindle, the needs of the Lesbian and Gay Community continue to grow. As GLBTI persons, we must never let our guard down. We absolutely need representation in our community. When we do not have numbers we do not have clout. The current administration is attempting to withhold our God-given right to be equal as any other people. We must help each other and all of our outstanding charities as they fight to meet these needs.
The success of the Rainbow Festival is due largely to an atmosphere of merriment and revelry, combined with pride in our community and ourselves. The event is an excellent outlet for politically oriented groups as well as those concerned with pure fun and leisure. Feedback from participants has included everything from successful voter registration and membership drives to merchandise sales to simply having a great time.
Over $500,000 given to charity since its beginning! Each year the donation made to charity from the Rainbow Festival grows. These worthy organizations provide services to each of the many colors and flavors of our rainbow. Women health and wellness issues, children living with HIV, youth needing outreach and education about health and social issues affecting their lives in the community, & of course the treatment and intervention services offered by these organizations are all causes we need to support!
Rainbow success depends on you! The Rainbow Festival would not happen at all without the much-needed participation and support from our community & their supporters. The reputation of the Rainbow Festival has grown to the point where it draws participants and attendees from all over the state of California. We look forward to this year’s event being the most successful yet!
There are many new additions to Rainbow Festival this year that will allow the festival to grow and reach out to a more diverse community. This year we will be joined by Mayor Ron Oden from Palm Springs who whole-heartedly supports our efforts to create awareness and strengthen our community. We will kick off Rainbow Festival this year on Thursday, August 30th at Faces Nightclub during our Brief Encounters program, a fun way to get things started. On Friday we will welcome DJ/Producer Tony Moran at Faces Pink Party the first in a series of parties tailored to welcome people from all over to celebrate our lives together as a community. So be sure to come out in your pink attire!
On Saturday, September 1st, we will hold the 2nd Sacramento Mr. Gay contest also located at Faces Nightclub. This new addition to Rainbow Festival comes to us after Sacramento Mr. Gay Grant Ermis’s success in achieving the title of USA Mr. Gay 2006. Striving to make a difference in the views and opinions of gay males, this contest provides the ability to make a difference through charity work and community interactions. We look forward to bringing home the title once more to Sacramento! Also Saturday night at Faces will be the Rainbow Circuit Party, an event we hope will grow into a signature event to bring people from all across the country. Across the street at 10:30pm The Depot will feature Mark Raddicio who is an American Idol contestant followed by their headline performance by Hedwig at 11pm.
And of course our main event Rainbow Festival Street Fair on Sunday, September 2nd will take place from 10am to 8pm this year! That’s right… we have expanded our festival to bring you even more fun! With headline entertainment and local acts and speakers, this year will prove to be an exciting celebration of diversity. For the first time at Rainbow Festival, The Depot will host a Queer Art Gallery sponsored by MMKGallery & Phoenix Gallery. With work by renowned Queer artists Steven Willey, Barrett Manning, Nancy Gottart, Michael Misha Kennedy & Tina Reynolds to name just a few. Each of these extraordinary artists will be showcasing their work and will donate a portion of their sales to the charity. Performing on the Diversity Stage during the Queer Art Gallery is Phil Putnam pianist & jazz singer, followed by a live drag show with out of town diva’s and CGNIE. All tips and fundraising from the stage show will be donated to the Rainbow Festival Fund to be dispersed to our local charities. Way to go guys!
As you can see once more our community comes together to show their support for one another while enjoying a drink, or just relaxing in the sun! It is for this reason alone that I completely support and dedicate my time to this wonderful charity. I look forward to seeing everyone at Rainbow Festival 2007. Together we can and will make a difference! | 
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