Toronto Pride Week 2009 was held June 19 to 28, 2009 in Toronto, Canada. Pride Week 2009 was the 29th annual Pride Week celebration. It included special
events, three days of entertainment, a weekend street fair, Family Pride, the Dyke March and the Pride Parade as well as a host of other events.
Pride Toronto is a non-profit entity which produces Toronto Pride Week, "an annual mosaic of cultural events in Toronto that celebrates, empowers and
supports the diverse and delightful community of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, intersex and queer people." [www.pridetoronto.com] Pride
Toronto's one million dollar budget is paid by "aggressive fund raising" such as the toonie drive, individual & corporate donations, the Pride Gala
Awards Show which was held June 24, 2009 at the Carlu and supported by the City of Toronto, the Government of Canada, the Ontario Trillium
Foundation, and the Toronto Arts Council. According to Pride Toronto, Pride Week contributes about $ 80 million to the local economy.
Pride Gala Awards
Pride Toronto held its third annual Pride Toronto Gala and Awards on June 24, 2009 at Toronto, Canada to raise funds for Pride! The 2009 Pride Toronto Gala & Awards included a reception, silent and live auction and dinner.
Besides raising funds for Pride, the most important part of the event, is the awards:
Pride Toronto's Awards of Excellence honour community members who have demonstrated extraordinary achievement to queer life in the following areas:
Salah Bachir – Lifetime Achievement
Matthew Cutler – Youth Leadership
Stephanie Johnstone – Sports
John Greyson – Arts & Culture
Leonardo (Leo) Zuniga – Human Rights
El-Farouk Khaki – Theme Award