2019 PRIDE Collection
When Kaleigh and I started Powers Provisions in the fall of 2018 I was already thinking about what I wanted to do for Pride month. Admittedly as a queer woman I've never actually celebrated Pride. I've never been to a parade or any other kind of Pride event (unless you count the time we hiked a pride flag to the top of a mountain in Maine for my birthday a few years back), but I knew that I wanted Pride to be something we celebrated on Powers Provisions.
I reached out to my friend Wyn Wiley to hear from him a little bit about what Pride means to him, what it's like to be @pattiegonia and invite him to share a bit about the organization we are donating a portion of our proceeds to, Bravetrails. SO Wyn, tell us about yourself!
Outside of boots I’m a full-time photographer which is also one of my biggest passions. I love to take photos but more importantly I love to make good things with good people and try to see as much of the world as possible. I’m super passionate about the outdoors in general outside of boots and inside of boots. As Pattie, in boots, I’m an advocate of the getting outdoors and for people getting in the outdoors in anyway, whether that is the LGBTQ population or not ally’s in any way. I love to make videos and make myself into a drag queen and entertain and educate and make peoples days. I love to be a voice in the community and I love to learn. The biggest thing for me as Pattie is that I have gotten to learn so much and meet such amazing people who are doing such incredible things in the outdoor space - you too Gretchen.
We are donating a portion of the proceeds of this collection to the LGBTQ summer Camp Brave Trails. Can you tell us about your involvement with them?
Camp Bravetrails is a camp who's mission is transforming LGBTQ youth and families into leaders through summer camp and innovative programming. This summer I am going to go to camp at Bravetrails to speak and also to just join in on the fun and get to meet all of the people going. I love summer camp I was raised on summer camp as a kid and had some really wonderful queer counselors and summer camp was the first time I got to meet out LGBTQ people so it’s super cool and important to me that Bravetrails is a safe place where LGBTQ kids themselves to grow into their own and see what that looks like and do so in nature.
What does Pride month mean to you?
I think that Pride has this connotation of being something very outward Show your pride, demonstrate your pride, march in the pride parade, post about pride, post being gay or being an ally or being a member of the queer community. I think that first and foremost we have to have pride inside ourselves pride for who we are pride to love ourselves, the path we want to take or make, take a step back and look at how far we’ve come to be the people we are.
Wyn introduced me to the talented Latasha Dunston of Jitterbug Art who I asked to paint a design for this year's Pride collection that could embody what we love so much about the outdoors.
Tell us about yourself and what Pride month means to you
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