With 55-year-old roots in activism, the annual national recognition of the LGBTQ+ community known as Pride continues to focus on equal rights and “not accepting levels of violence, discrimination and harassment that was prevalent then and still today,” said Keeley Griego, digital and community educator at Inside Out Youth Services in Colorado Springs.

“We remember the trailblazers as we still fight for our rights to be free,” she said. “Our work isn’t done yet.”

Two big Inside Out events will be held Saturday centered on the population the organization serves — youth and young adults ages 13-24, along with their allies and supporters.

The following weekend of June 8-9 is the citywide Pride Fest celebration hosted by Pikes Peak Pride, a nonprofit organization that has produced the event for the past three years.

The seventh annual Rosie Run 5K by the local chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction will kick off Pride Fest at 8:30 a.m. June 8 at America the Beautiful Park.

A free public festival runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. both days at Alamo Square Park at the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, 215 S. Tejon St. A marriage and vow renewal ceremony is one highlight, along with vendors, entertainment and kids’ activities including drag story time.

A concert on Saturday night featuring Blake Lewis, who introduced beatboxing and won runner-up on American Idol’s season 6, begins at 8:30 p.m. at the Alamo Square Park.

A parade kicks off Sunday at 11 a.m. southbound on Tejon Street from Platte Avenue to Vermijo Street.

“It’s great we get to celebrate our pride,” Inside Out’s Griego said of the season.

Months of planning culminates Saturday, June 1, with “Pride: Inside and Out,” a family-style, sober event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Hillside Community Center, 925 S. Institute St.

Open to all ages of the public, the festival is free and will have security in the contained environment to ease anxieties, Griego said.

On the heels of the November 2022 mass shooting at Club Q, a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, last year’s Pride celebration of Inside Out drew 2,300 attendees, and organizers expect a big crowd once again.

Food trucks, vendor booths, art activities, games, performances, music and other entertainment combine for an event like no other, Griego said.

“You get to see people having a great time and young people saying it’s the best day of their lives,” she said. “They get to see people like them — other kids and queer adults. It’s a special place that feels like it’s just for them.”

Also spotlighting LGBTQ+ youth is the annual Queer Prom, a semi-formal dance party that happens Saturday following the festival. The chaperoned prom, for ages 13-24, runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Hillside Community Center. Tickets are $10 and are available at insideoutys.org.

Live drag performances, a live DJ, refreshments and a theme of “Travel Through Time” (think dinosaur decorations) will be on tap this year.

About 350 people attended last year’s prom, which is designed to help kids feel comfortable at a rite-of-passage tradition that they may not otherwise experience.

“Unfortunately, sometimes the young people we serve can’t go to their high school prom with the person they want because they don’t feel safe doing so,” Griego said. “You get to be your authentic self at our prom, you get to be with who you want and dress how you want. And you don’t have to be anxious or worried or scared about it.”

Donated prom clothing is free for kids at Inside Out’s clothing boutique, and some attendees have signed for free hair and makeup sessions before the prom, which Griego said has been a popular feature.

“A blanket of safety and security” is how 18-year-old Mia, an Inside Out client, describes what the organization provides youth.

Also, Thursday is the culmination of a month-long national fundraiser for LGBTQ+ organizations, Give Out Day. Inside Out has raised just over $4,600 toward a $10,000 goal, with proceeds supporting the organization’s new office and hangout center at 516 W. Colorado Ave., as well as its events.

A talk show with staff will be livestreamed on Inside Out Youth Services’ Facebook page and Instagram (insideoutys) at 10 a.m. Thursday, followed by a youth variety show from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The social media appeal wraps up with donors and volunteers in a livestream program from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Donations will be solicited during the online presentations.