2024 Sponsorship guide
Capital City Pride has become one of the most trusted voices for the LGBTQ+ community in the Des Moines region, and we invite you to participate in the ongoing work of advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion by partnering with us. It is these partnerships that ensure Des Moines remains a place for LGBTQ+ people to live and thrive.
As you look through our Sponsorship Guide, we hope you are excited to jump in and get involved with CCP! To put together a Sponsorship Agreement, please contact our Executive Director, Wes Mullins, via the link below. We look forward to meeting you, working with you, and building a better tomorrow for all the people who call Central Iowa home!
READY TO BECOME A SPONSOR?
Pridefest Sponsorships
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$7,500 PRESENTING SPONSOR – GOLD LEVEL
JUNE 8, 2024
$3,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride hosts Drag storytime. The event is just what it sounds like—drag queens reading stories to children giving them glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 8, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
The Capital City Pride Family and Youth Zone was created to accommodate our growing family population. The Family and Youth Zone is designated for those who would like to enjoy a family-friendly environment with a variety of activities for kids of all ages and interests.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride promotes healthy living and socialization for the LGBTQ+ community through physical activity and sports. Partnering with Pride Sports League, we dedicate a zone at PrideFest to the celebration of fitness, education, health, and wellness to further bring our community together. Past activities included a dunk tank, weight lifting challenge, bags tournament, and more. Booths are also available to learn how to get more involved in personal fitness, health and wellness, and local leagues.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 8, 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Being a winner for diversity and inclusion has no age limit, so race into the future with these soon-to-be leaders and change-makers. The event features multiple age categories, making it a perfect family-friendly activity and takes place in our family zone right off the main PrideFest street closure. Easily the cutest fun run in all of Iowa!
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR – PLATINUM LEVEL
JUNE 7-9, 2024
SPONSORSHIP LEVEL VARIES
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Amid the vibrant and colorful festivities of PrideFest, there’s a special zone that’s just for our furry friends and their human companions. This dedicated pet zone is a space where the unconditional love and companionship between pets and their LGBTQ+ families are celebrated. Here, you’ll find playful pups, fabulous felines, and a menagerie of other lovable creatures, all adorned in their rainbow-hued finest. From the pet parade to pet-friendly vendors, this zone is a testament to the diverse and loving bonds that exist within our LGBTQ+ community.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 9, 2024
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$7,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
A celebration of community and culture, the annual Pride Parade is an important occasion for the Des Moines community, LGBTQ+ people and allies to come together and show unity. Traditionally, Pride Parade takes place Sunday of PrideFest weekend. The iconic route starts from the Statehouse and travels west on Grand Avenue. The parade is about being proud of who you are, and an opportunity to honor the origins of LGBTQ+ movement. The parade is a positive stance against discrimination and violence towards LGBTQ+ people and an opportunity to promote their self-affirmation, dignity, and equal rights. In addition, it increases the visibility as a social group, builds community, and celebrates diversity.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 8, 2024
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$7,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Celebrate diversity, love and acceptance at PrideFest by joining Capital City Pride‘s fastest growing event, the Pride Stride 5k. In just a few years, this race has grown by over 300% with more than 450 participants signed up to race last year alone! Be yourself or an ally while supporting a great cause! All proceeds benefit Capital City Pride, helping to fund year-round programming and events for members of the LGBTQ+ community, family, and friends. All athletes recieve a t-shirt, medal as well as a race bib for registering. The race starts and finishes on E. Locust St in the Historic East Village, and will take you along the Principal Riverwalk, John Pat Dorrian Trail, and Meredith Trail as you enjoy views of the Downtown Des Moines skyline, the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers, and more. Whether you walk, run, or strut your way to the finish line, let’s make strides towards a more inclusive world!
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 7, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride hosts a silent disco on the Friday evening of PrideFest. This is an event where people dance to music listened to on wireless headphones. Rather than using speakers, music is broadcast to the wireless headphones worn by the participants. Those without the headphones hear no music, giving the effect of people dancing to nothing. A silent disco.
The Silent Disco is an all-ages event. To ensure that everyone can participate in the celebration of our diverse community and culture, there will be a time slot designated for the kids disco and a separate time for the adults disco.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
The Capital City Pride Teen Zone was created to offer a much-needed space for LGBTQ+ teens and allies. As more and more youth gather to celebrate, Capital City Pride is finding it necessary to create a dedicated safe space for today’s teenage population. This area aims to provide activities that cater to the interests of an older youth population while creating an environment that makes them feel accepted for exactly who they are. Teens need safe public spaces where they can come together, engage in activities related to their interests, and freely express themselves. They will be encouraged to use this space as somewhere to use their voices, hear others’ stories, socialize, and make new memories and lasting friendships!
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
JUNE 7-9, 2024
$10,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR – PLATINUM LEVEL + Logo on front of shirt
2024 Sponsorship Guide
Program Sponsorships
Every other month at local partner venues
$3,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride Book Club provides a safe space for all members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies to read and discuss LGBTQ+ literature; stories that are not only for us but that are often by us as a community. It is through these stories that we can better understand our rich history. It is through our diverse opinions, individual insights, and interactions with one another that we, as a group, can gain a better understanding of our present and future community.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
winter 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
The Broadway Singalong is a LGBTQ+ classic. Historically, LGBTQ+ Broadway performers in NYC would meet at a local piano bar after the Sunday Matinee. Since there were no Sunday evening performances, the performers and the community could come together, sing, laugh, and have an evening of fun. Capital City Pride aims to capture the essence of this time told tradition of singing and celebrating life together.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
June 2, 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Drag brunch is one of the hottest-themed events to hit the LGBTQ+ community. From an underground scene to a pop culture phenomenon, drag shows have had many faces, with drag brunches being their most recent reincarnation. Capital City Pride presents their own rendition to celebrate Pride.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
Spring 2024 + Fall 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$3,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride’s Family Feud is a fun take on America’s favorite game show “The Family Feud.” Teams, such as drag houses, compete against one another to identify the most common answers to the surveyed questions. Capital City Pride commissioned a Family Feud studio set that can be used for the foreseeable future. In combination with Pinnacle Productions, audiences are bound to have a great time watching the fun unfold.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
March 2, 2024
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
1 AVAILABLE
$7,500 GOLD SPONSOR
3 AVAILABLE
$5,000 SILVER SPONSOR
5 AVAILABLE
$2,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
UNLIMITED
The Pride Gala & Awards Ceremony aims to support our mission of bringing together the members of the LGBTQ+ community, their friends, allies, and supporters. The Pride Gala & Awards Ceremony is Capital City Pride’s annual fundraiser and is essential to our ability to organize the free activities and events we put on throughout the year such as the Speaker Series, monthly book club, Storytellers Project, Pride Fest Weekend, the Pride Parade, and so much more! The Pride Gala also recognizes individuals and companies within the Des Moines community through the Pride Persons of Year, Pride Ally of the Year, and Pride Company of the Year. The Pride Gala is an evening of entertainment and fun for all!
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
April 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
An Intergenerational Conversation Panel is hosted that brings together members of the LGBTQ+ community who represent Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z for a panel discussion about history, trends, controversial topics, and everyday happenings. Through the panel discussion, we begin to realize that although we are all members of LGBTQ+ community our place in time, our generation, weighs heavily on our thoughts, ideas, and opinions.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
June 1, 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$2,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
The Pride Pageant is a long running Capital City Pride tradition. Contestants vie for one of three crowns Mr. Pride, Ms. Pride and Mx. Pride. In 2019, the Mx. Crown was introduced to open a new safe space for non-binary participating pageant contestants.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
3-PART SERIES
$13,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
WHOLE SERIES
$5,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
SINGLE EPISODE
Queens in the Kitchen is a live cooking instruction series combining interesting recipes and lots of laughter as our guest chef and resident drag queen demonstrates how to prepare and cook a delicious dish. Capital City Pride provides a recipe and grocery list for community members and viewers to follow along at home! The Capital City Pride website and social media platforms provide each episode’s theme, recipe, and grocery list allowing viewers to pick up their supplies before the demo. Each episode lasts approximately 15 minutes.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
Summer 2024
$3,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$1,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
The Rainbow Scavenger Hunt is a family friendly event hosted by Capital City Pride. Clues are provided to participants via Facebook and the CCP website and the first 50 teams to complete all the clues and make it to the rainbow arch “finish line” win a gift bag.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
Summer 2024
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$5,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Rainbow Safari is a family-focused evening hosted at Blank Park Zoo. The Rainbow Safari is an opportunity for the LGBTQ+ community to come together in an inclusive space and enjoy an evening of animal gazing and feeding, carousel and train riding, eating and drinking, and general merriment.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
Winter 2023 and Spring 2024
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
$2,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
Capital City Pride partners with the Des Moines Science Center to offer a family friendly movie screening, Movie Under the Stars. Typically, a G-rated cartoon / movie with cultural sensitivity is selected for viewing.
* Exclusive sponsorship rights are available for this event. If interested, ask us about the additional costs and benefits of being the sole sponsor.
$20,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
WHOLE SERIES
$5,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
INDIVIDUAL SPEAKER
The speaker series is Capital City Pride’s year-round educational series. Each month, we feature one LGBTQ+ speaker who has succeeded in some area of life (professional field, personal life, sports, education, accomplishment, etc.) and is able to speak to an audience about how being LGBTQ+ was part of their journey. The speaker series aims to give comfort to people who may be looking for direction, who may need role models, who need paths to something bigger than the issues they may face today. Speakers help to educate the community and our allies on various elements of being LGBTQ+.
JEFFERY MARSH
SEPT. 14, 2023
As a pundit for cable news, Jeffrey Marsh was the first openly nonbinary activist to appear on national television. Jeffrey is also the first nonbinary author with a “Big 5” publisher, Penguin Random House. Jeffrey’s bestselling self-esteem guide How To Be You, is an innovative, category-nonconforming work that combines memoir, workbook, and spiritual self-help.
SAM SCHEDLER
OCT. 12, 2023
Sam Schedler is a queer comedian working as a Registered Nurse in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. When off the clock, he takes to social media and provides a fresh perspective on hard-to-talk about topics like religious trauma, misinformation and LBGTQIA+ issues. Sam is passionate about making sure everyone in the room feels welcomed and valued.
TIQ MILAN
JAN. 11, 2024
Tiq Milan speaks and writes about intersectional leadership, transgender rights, and racial justice. He shares stories of his life and how his transgender experience has informed his views on masculinity, race, and the gender binary. A journalist for over a decade, his work has appeared on MIC, Buzzfeed, NBC and CNN.
BREA BAKER
FEB. 15, 2024
Brea Baker is a skilled communications strategist, influencer engagement professional, activist/organizer, and social impact advisor. She has contributed to dozens of electoral and advocacy campaigns including the 2017 Women’s March (where she served as the youngest national organizer), the 2018 student walkouts against gun violence, Jumaane Williams’ successful bid for NYC Public Advocate, and more.
MICHAEL ARCENEAUX
MAR. 21, 2024
Michael Arceneaux, the New York Times bestselling author of the 2018 memoir I Can’t Date Jesus: Love, Sex, Family, Race, and Other Reasons I’ve Put My Faith in Beyoncé. His latest release is the upcoming essay collection, I Don’t Want To Die Poor.
ALICIA ROTH WEIGEL
APR. 11, 2024
Alicia Roth Weigel is a Forbes and New York Times published change agent, working to improve the political and social landscape for marginalized populations in the South and around the world. As a partner for the Pride Fund, Alicia raises and invests capital to grow LGBTQIA-led companies.
ANTHONY RAPP
MAY 9, 2024
Anthony Rapp is best known for originating the role of “Mark Cohen” in the Tony Award-winning rock opera Rent. Rapp also serves on the board of the non-profit organization Friends In Deed, which provides emotional support for anyone with a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS, cancer or other life threatening physical illnesses, their families, friends, and caregivers.
Winter 2023 + Spring 2024
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
BOTH EVENTS
$7,500 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
SINGLE EVENT
The Capital City Pride Storyteller event features 5 to 6 community members who write, memorize and share a 10-minute story about being LGBTQ+ or having an LGBTQ+ person in their life. Some stories are charming, some touching, some funny—all from people creating families, creating lives, and creating a city and community culture. The event is designed to be brief and heartfelt, and to include the idea that in sharing our stories, we feel more willing to invest in our neighbors with our time, our resources, and our hearts.
Every other month at Varsity Cinema
$15,000 PRESENTING SPONSOR
WHOLE SERIES
$3,000 SUPPORTING SPONSOR
INDIVIDUAL FILM
Empowering storytelling through film. In partnership with Varsity Cinema, this series of screenings is dedicated to providing a vibrant cultural experience to Des Moines by using the unique expression of films with a specific focus on the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) community to foster awareness, inclusion, and diversity.
Additional Sponsorships
An opportunity for all to show support with this individual and small business donor program. Show how loud & proud YOU are to support Capital City Pride and the LGBTQ+ community, both year-round and during PrideFest.
INVESTMENT $500
BENEFITS
- One 6′′ x 4′′ window cling and two 3′′ x 4.5′′ stickers to place anywhere
- Official digital certificate
- 50% off a Pride Guide Ad (5×8′′ regularly $1,000, 5×4′′ regularly $500)
- Dedicated Page in the 2024 Pride Guide
- Listed on the Capital City Pride Website with 2024 Sponsors
An opportunity for all to show support with this individual, small business, specific fund directed donor program. Show your support to Capital City Pride and the LGBTQ+ community, both year-round and during PrideFest.
INVESTMENT $1,000
BENEFITS
- One 6′′ x 4′′ window cling and Two 3′′ x 4.5′′ stickers to place anywhere
- Official digital certificate
- 50% off a Pride Guide Ad (5×8′′ regularly $1,000, 5×4′′ regularly $500)
- Dedicated Page in the 2024 Pride Guide
- Listed on the Capital City Pride Website with 2024 Sponsors
- Free parade entry