Springfield Black Tie

As we end PRIDE Month, we are honored to announce Wilson Cruz as the Keynote Speaker for the 2026 Springfield Black Tie Gala - Presented by Meridian Title Company! 💜🏳️‍⚧️✨🏳️‍🌈

His extensive humanitarian and advocacy work spans multiple decades, focusing heavily on youth safety, mental health, and LGBTQ+ rights.

LEARN MORE ABOUT WILSON ➡️
https://springfieldblacktie.org/keynote/

Individual Gala tickets go on sale September 1st.
Become a sponsor and secure your table today!
✨ www.springfieldblacktie.org/sponsors

Pride looks different for everyone. And that's exactly what makes it matter.

For some, it's dancing loudly and celebrating openly. For others, it's a quiet moment of finally feeling at peace with who you are.

For some, it's attending every event on the calendar. For others, it's simply living as their authentic self, no fanfare needed.

However you experience Pride, it's valid. It's yours. And it deserves to be HONORED. 🫶

Ten years ago today, on June 12, 2016, the LGBTQ+ community experienced one of its darkest days.

Forty-nine lives were taken and 68 others were injured in the attack on Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida. What should have been a night of friendship, celebration, and belonging became a tragedy that forever changed our community.

Today, we pause to remember the 49 individuals whose lives were cut short far too soon. They were loved. They were valued. They were family, friends, partners, coworkers, neighbors, and community members. Their lives mattered, and their memories continue to live on through those who love them.

Read their names. See their faces. Remember their lives.

Those who lost their lives on June 12, 2016, at Pulse Nightclub:

• Stanley Almodovar III, 23
• Amanda Alvear, 25
• Oscar A. Aracena-Montero, 26
• Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala, 33
• Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21
• Martin Benitez Torres, 33
• Antonio D. Brown, 30
• Darryl R. Burt II, 29
• Jonathan A. Camuy Vega, 24
• Angel L. Candelario-Padro, 28
• Simon A. Carrillo Fernandez, 31
• Juan Chevez-Martinez, 25
• Luis D. Conde, 39
• Cory J. Connell, 21
• Tevin E. Crosby, 25
• Franky J. Dejesus Velazquez, 50
• Deonka D. Drayton, 32
• Mercedez M. Flores, 26
• Juan R. Guerrero, 22
• Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, 22
• Paul T. Henry, 41
• Frank Hernandez, 27
• Miguel A. Honorato, 30
• Javier Jorge-Reyes, 40
• Jason B. Josaphat, 19
• Eddie J. Justice, 30
• Anthony L. Laureano Disla, 25
• Christopher A. Leinonen, 32
• Brenda L. Marquez McCool, 49
• Jean C. Mendez Perez, 35
• Akyra Monet Murray, 18
• Kimberly Morris, 37
• Jean C. Nieves Rodriguez, 27
• Luis O. Ocasio-Capo, 20
• Geraldo A. Ortiz-Jimenez, 25
• Eric I. Ortiz-Rivera, 36
• Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32
• Enrique L. Rios Jr., 25
• Juan P. Rivera Velazquez, 37
• Yilmary Rodriguez Solivan, 24
• Christopher J. Sanfeliz, 24
• Xavier E. Serrano Rosado, 35
• Gilberto R. Silva Menendez, 25
• Edward Sotomayor Jr., 34
• Shane E. Tomlinson, 33
• Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25
• Luis S. Vielma, 22
• Luis D. Wilson-Leon, 37
• Jerald A. Wright, 31

We remember them today and every day. Their names, their stories, and their impact on those who loved them will never be forgotten.

Faces in the crowd at PRIDE Brunch & Drag Bingo with this amazing community! 🫶🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

📸 Thank you Evergreen Horizon Portraits for donating your time and talent, we are so grateful.

TAG your buddy when you see them!