Pride Festival 2010

June 26th and 27th

11am-8pm

Official Pride Parade at Noon on Sunday

ST. LOUIS PRIDEFEST 2010

PARADE GRAND MARSHALS

L: christine elbert - G: colin murphy

B: blue - T: michelle smith

CHRISTINE ELBERT - lesbian

A native of Washington, Mo., Christine Elbert knows the importance of community. She is currently a Mortgage banker for USA Mortgage in the City office and prior to that, worked for the family Pontiac, Buick and GMC dealership for 20-years.

Christine is a Board member of the Tower Grove Business Association and Council member of Rockhaven Ecozoic Center. Her involvement in the LGBT community includes working with Wired Womyn in the 1990s; with Joan Lipkin and That Uppity Theatre Company and being Emcee of the “L Word” party for the Human Rights Campaign.

Proud to be in recovery for over 22-years, Christine appreciates both her biological and chosen family members. She cites amazing teachers in her life; women like Kathy and Mo of MoKaBe’s and most especially, a woman named Star.

“She was there through my crazy teenage stuff, saw me through my coming out process and still introduces me as her first kid,” Elbert said. “This has now become a term I use for some of the amazing younger men and women I'm lucky enough to have as part of my life—the ones who become tribe, who become family.”

COLIN MURPHY - gay

Born in St. Louis, Colin Murphy has been a part of the Gateway City’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community since 1990. He has been a well-respected voice in LGBT media for over 18-years and is Senior Writer/Web Editor for Vital VOICE magazine.

A prolific scribe, Colin has written countless stories on our region’s prismatic community and his op-ed, “1 Out of 10 Ain’t Bad!” is one of the longest running columns in St. Louis.

Through his writing or hands-on activism, Colin has been intimately involved in the fight for LGBT equality and against HIV/AIDS. He is an avid gay history story buff and has collaborated with the St. Louis Lesbian and Gay Archives at UMSL and The St. Louis Gay History Project.

Colin has previously written for The Show Me Guide, TWISL, Kolours, Missouri Pride, and Slam! magazine. He is a member of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, The Vital VOICE Advisory Board; and a former Vice President of The Late Knights of Pythias, a now defunct LGBT philanthropic organization based in St.  Louis. Colin currently lives in O’Fallon, Ill. with his husband, Kurt whom he legally married in Iowa on March 12.

BLUE - bisexual

Muriel Lynn “Blue” Jones is the Executive Director of The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community Center of Metropolitan St. Louis in addition to being an accomplished performing artist.

She has been an activist for 20-years and has been advocating around bi-issues for 16-years.  In terms of bi-activism, Blue has given workshops and spoken at events and panels nationally, including at Creating Change—The Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s annual conference.

Knowing the severe harm that the issue can cause individuals along with a community as a whole, Blue continues to work toward bi-visibility both here and across the country.

She would like to give honor and recognition to The Bisexual Alliance of St. Louis (BASL) and its past and present leaders for their 15-years of hard work. 

“They have changed the lives of so many bi people through the years and continue to do so to this day,” said Blue.

MICHELLE SMITH - transgender

Michelle Smith has been supporting the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community for over five years. 

She is president of the Boeing Association of Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Transgender Employees and Friends (BEAGLES) Affinity Group; a leader and former office-holder for the St Louis Gender Foundation; a former Secretary for Pride St Louis, where she still volunteers; and is a co-founder of TransHaven Missouri.

Michelle began working at a National Level in 2008 with Out & Equal Workplace Advocates—the largest and most effective national, non-pro?t organization dedicated to achieving workplace equality for LGBT employees and professionals. She holds a position on Out & Equal’s Transgender Advisory Committee which provides guidance on transgender issues. 

In 2009, Michelle joined a group of LGBT corporate leaders to form an Out & Equal Regional Affiliate to bring Out & Equal’s mission and programs closer to home. She is one of its current co-chairs.  The regional affiliate sponsored an LGBT Diversity Leadership Training course to representatives of Boeing, Monsanto, Pfizer, MasterCard, Hallmark, Johnson&Johnson, Pepsi and others, in February of 2010. 

Michelle has also co-presented workshops on transgender transitions for the Boeing Company at Out & Equal’s Annual Workplace Summit.