This Saturday, a Disability Pride Celebration will happen at Soldotna Creek Park and activists want the community to come out and support the cause.
Nikki Marcano, the employment specialist with Frontier Community Services, is one of the organizers of the event at the park. She said Tuesday that the celebration, which is part of a statewide initiative, will be an event for everyone.
“It will be a bunch of activity booths that we try to make as inclusive as humanly possible,” Marcano said.
The celebration commemorates 32 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which was passed by Congress on July 26, 1990.
One of Marcano’s goals for Saturday is to provide a space where neurodivergent and neurotypical people can participate in the same activities. She said the more different groups mingle, the more likely they are to interact in public — even if someone walks, speaks or processes things differently.
“It’s about trying to bring the community together,” Marcano said.
The event is the third annual Disability Pride celebration. Operations had to be altered during the last few years during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’re kind of just getting our feet wet again,” Marcano said.
Garrett Dominick, a disability activist, said Tuesday that he hopes people come out to support the community.
“This is your time to show who we are and about what we are,” he said.
Disability Pride will be at the park from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. There will be activities, booths, food and entertainment free of charge.
“This is an all-inclusive event,” he said. “If you just want to have a good time, come to Soldotna Creek Park.”
Reach reporter Camille Botello at camille.botello@peninsulaclarion.com.
