Thank you to everyone that helped make Mardi Gras a wonderful celebration for our community.

Fair Day saw us knee deep in craft and kids activities for the entire day, as well as providing information and networks to Rainbow Families community members.   It was a brilliant day and great to see more and more Rainbow Families every year. Thank you to the army of people that volunteered at Fair Day.

The Luna Park Rainbow Families day was a sell out, with LGBTQI families having a fantastic time watching the drag shows, and making the most of the rides and space to enjoy the day. We have already spoken to Mardi Gras about hosting a similar event next year, and have agreed that we need double the tickets in 2019!

There was a special screening of Zootopia thanks to Queerscreen. This year there was more entertainment for the kids with a face painter and entertainer to make the day even more exciting for our families.

The fifth Rainbow Families LGBTIQ Antenatal Class welcomed seven expectant couples. Janet Broady – midwife educator – volunteers her time every three months to run this amazing resource for our community. The March class saw a venue change to Macquarie Bank’s event space. Rainbow Families would like to thank Macquarie Bank for their ongoing support.  The Rainbow Families Antenatal Class is an LGTBIQ focused, inclusive, parenting education class run quarterly.

The Mardi Gras volunteer sub-committee worked many, many hours liaising with Mardi Gras organisers, developing float costumes and themes, scouring shops and beyond for all things gold and sparkly………there may be no gold paint available in and around Sydney for some time! The result was slick, sparkly and gorgeous. The City of Sydney also gave Rainbow Families a grant to help make Mardi Gras extra fabulous - we would like to thank The City of Sydney for their ongoing support. We could not put on all of the events throughout the year without our wonderful team of volunteers. If you would like to get involved at our upcoming events please contact us.

For those marching with Rainbow Families it was a fabulous evening! The marshalling area was full of entertainment. The kids had a ball watching the other floats practice their dance moves, and the sense of community was amazing. Once we started marching, the kids didn’t know where to look. With so many people to high five and wave to it was a night they will remember forever.

In response to the overwhelming call for tickets from our community, the Rainbow Families Committee negotiated tirelessly for some secure viewing space for Rainbow Families unable to get tickets to march.  And finally Mardi Gras agreed, though only a week out - an extra 400 people were able to join us and celebrate Mardi Gras. The family viewing area was a safe inclusive space for our community to come together to watch the parade. As Mardi Gras only allowed us to use this space with one weeks’ notice, we weren’t able to fundraise to cover the costs of the area. If you would like to contribute towards these costs please donate here.

Thanks again to everyone that volunteered throughout Mardi Gras.