Building Lexington Pride with Jason Schubert!

Behind every glamorous Pride festival is a lot of unglamorous work. Someone has to wrangle permits, manage budgets, and keep the food pantry stocked on a Tuesday. That someone is Jason Schubert, a Lexington community leader who helps steer the Lexington Pride Center and the Lexington Pride Festival, and we're so glad he finally sat down with us. 

In this episode, we cover the Pride Center's day-to-day impact, from support groups and a community library to the People's Market food pantry, which serves 70 to 80 households a week. Jason also breaks down why festival locations change, what accessibility really means when you're setting up hundreds of vendor booths, and how planning starts quietly in late summer before turning into a full-on sprint by June. We also talk Frontrunners Lexington, an LGBTQ walk-run group building connection and funding real outcomes through the Pride Run 5K, grants, and scholarships.

And yes, we get honest about handling protesters without letting them steal the day.

Transcript

Meet Jason And His Civic Roles

SPEAKER_01 0:06

Brandon, we're good? Great. Welcome back to Inside the Block Podcast. And I am joined by Jason Schubert or Schubert, as we were discussing earlier. Who is, I mean, tell us all about yourself. What all do you do? Where did you grow up? Everything I want to know.

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Yeah, sure. It's like applying for a job. Wow. Absolutely. No, so my name's Jason Schubert. Um, I uh the the full-time boring stuff, I work for UK. I do Salesforce Database Administration for the University's Economic Development Collaborative. So I've been at UK for about six years. Um, I came back to Lexington in September 2020, during the middle of the COVID pandemic. So I had a couple different jobs at UK bounced around, but very much enjoy where I'm at now. Um I'm a two-time graduate of UK. I have a bachelor's in community and leadership development and a master's in public administration. So go cats. Love that. Both and you won, you got both degrees at UK.

SPEAKER_01 0:57

At UK.

SPEAKER_00 0:57

Amazing. Through and through. Perks of working there full-time is the master's is essentially free. So that was great with no student debt.

SPEAKER_01 1:04

Were you clever?

SPEAKER_00 1:05

Yeah. That was good. Um, and then outside of work, um, very active in my community, do a couple different things, um, and the board president for the Lexington Pride Center. So uh a couple of weeks ago, we had the Pride Festival, which was our organization's largest event, our largest fundraiser, and our chance to be out in the community um celebrating the LGBTQIA plus community. I'm also the board chair for Frontrunners Lexington. We're an LGBTQ walk run group here in town. Um we have 80 registered members. We meet twice a week to do walks and runs. And we have folks that walk two miles a week, folks that run 40 miles a week everywhere in between. So um part of that is we do an annual Pride Run 5K, which raises money that we grant out to individuals and organizations working to make the Bluegrass region a better place to work, live, work, and play. So every year we do about $15,000 in grants and scholarships to organizations and people in central Kentucky. Um, and then I'm also super involved in the pedestrian safety spaces here in town, partly through frontrunners, partly on my own. So last year I was a member of the street safety task force, which stands for shared travel requires engineering education and enforcement of traffic. So we were looking at quick, easy things that the city could implement to make our streets safer for everyone. Um, they've all kind of just been designed for cars, and we want people to do other modes of transportation: walking, biking, uh, wheelchair, stroller, bus, things like that. Um I can keep going.

SPEAKER_01 2:22

Go. No, I mean, like you're so busy.

SPEAKER_00 2:25

Um, I've helped, I worked on Liz Sheehan's campaign in 2024, and I'm the volunteer coordinator for Dan Wu's campaign this year for At Large Council. Um, so enjoy dabbling in politics, especially at the local level. So civic. I love that it is um nonpartisan, that it's really about the issues, that it's about connecting with the community. So really enjoy that aspect. So um jumping in with Dan Wu's stuff, um, which has been really great. He's really respectful, all that he's done for the city. So excited to be a part of that team.

SPEAKER_01 2:49

Yeah. I mean, what don't you do?

SPEAKER_00 2:51

Oh, I'm also an election worker. That only happens right now. That one's fun because we get paid. So that's part of why I do it. But it's a long day. Uh, like as in you work the polls. I work the polls, yes. Okay. Um, so this you see everybody.

SPEAKER_01 3:04

Oh, yes.

SPEAKER_00 3:05

It's like working at a bank or a grocery store. You see the entire public. Um, so this year I was at Centenary Baptist Church, uh, was my polling location. Um, so yeah, we get there at like 5 a.m. and we're there until about 6 30 or 7 p.m. until everything gets torn down. Um and sitting on those like foldable church chairs, they were not designed to be sat on for 12 hours. So that was that was that was the hardest part. So like four o'clock, I was like, it hurts to stand, it hurts to sit, but I can't like lay down on the floor. That would be unprofessional. So we were just we made it through that. It was great. I love doing that stuff and it's fun

What The Lexington Pride Center Does

SPEAKER_00 3:36

to do for a day.

SPEAKER_01 3:36

So take me back to Pride because first of all, when I found out that you had up Pride, I had assumed that was like your full-time job that you were paid for that. Yeah. And you're like, no, no, this is volunteer-based, which is wild to me. So, like, I think a lot of people might have the same question. It's like, we have a Pride Center here in Lexington and our like, what does that include? Where is it? What do I get when I go? And then how does that volunteer? How does that differ from like the volunteers that run like the Pride Festival?

SPEAKER_00 4:05

Yeah, absolutely. So the Pride Center is uh Kentucky's longest continually operating LGBTQIA plus focused organization. We were founded in 1977, so we're celebrating our 50th anniversary here in 2027. So we're excited for that. Um, we are on Waller Avenue by the Jimmy Johns and where that railroad crossing is kind of in that area. Oh, okay. Yeah, we've been there for 30 years. Um, so since 1996, that has been our location. Um, it is, you know, just an office strip mall type thing. So it's not necessarily the most welcoming or the most inviting place, but it's a place. Um, and you know, we're actively looking at what does it look like to expand or move or change that location.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

But don't have some historic like downtown.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

Real estate, of course, is very expensive. So that's a whole thing.

SPEAKER_01 4:47

Yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:47

Yeah. So um that's our location. Um, it's great for what it is, and we really enjoy, you know, that we have there. We have a great relationship with the landlord, so that's wonderful and all that. Um, we have two full-time staff positions right now. So we have an executive director. That position is currently vacant. We're doing a search right now to select our next next executive director. Um, so hopefully we'll have some of that final.

SPEAKER_01 5:05

And you wouldn't consider it?

SPEAKER_00 5:07

No, I like doing it for fun.

SPEAKER_01 5:08

Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:09

Okay, gotcha. Um, so we have an executive director and then we have a food pantry manager. Um, so we run the People's Market, which is a grant funded food pantry here in Lexington. So that's funded through the ESR grant, uh, which is operated through the city. So GOS Pantry, Movable Feast, a couple other organizations get these grants from the city. Um, so that grant supports the salary and some of just the like the general facilities maintenance for the food pantry. Um, we are the only food pantry in town that does delivery. So that's one of our like stakes in the ground of what we're very proud of and how we differentiate ourselves. Um, we average about 70 to 80 households per week, which equates to around 200 to 225 individuals per week. And it's all run on donations. We're connected with the Gods Pantry Network. So we have volunteers that go out to Walmart and Kroger and Starbucks and Target and places and pick up the things that are either past their Best Buy or approaching their Best Buy date or just a variety of canned goods and things like that. Um, and then our food program manager and our couple volunteers package those up into bags that weigh about 25 pounds and then hand those out or deliver those uh to the community. And then we've got two volunteer positions right now, an office coordinator and a volunteer, an events and fundraising coordinator. Um, so they've been with us for about a year. We're of course looking to expand into full some more full-time, part-time positions. Um, but you know, it's all a work in progress. So that's the Pride Center. Um, our main activities are we have programs and groups that meet. Um, some of them meet once a month, some of them meet meet every week. It just depends on the group, ranging from a GSA for high school kids to a um board game group to Trans Kentucky. Um, Trans Kentucky generally averages over 50 people in attendance every month. Um, we're one of the only trans-focused kind of community support groups in Lexington. So we have folks that will drive two to three hours once a month to come to Lexington to be at the Pride Center to have that community. Um, so we're always looking for ways to expand the programs. We also want to make sure that those programs are meeting a community need. You know, we don't want to have someone sitting there to facilitate a group that no one shows up for. That's not useful. So if you have an idea, if you want to do a group, you know, you can reach out to us and work with us. Um, we also have a library with over 2,000 books. We have an event space that you can use if you need to do a community meeting or something like that. Um, and then we have a computer lab as well. So that's the Pride Center in a nutshell. Um, and it's um I joined the board in August 2024, um, and then became board president in January 2025. So um finishing out my first term on the board here during the summer, and it's been um really fun jumping in. We've got a great group on the board right now. Really enjoy working with them a lot.

SPEAKER_01 7:34

Yeah. So are you gonna be continuing to be on the board?

SPEAKER_00 7:37

So I'll continue on the board and continue as board president um for another two years. Our terms are two years. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 7:42

So are you tasked as board president for putting on the Pride Festival?

SPEAKER_00 7:46

I have been, but it's not the way it should be set up. So, because that's a lot, a lot on me. My shoulders are broad, but they're not that broad. Yeah. And I I love doing the event stuff. It's great, but I also understand that like I can't do all of it. So it was more of just it happened the last two years, it kind of just became my thing. Sure. So um, we're we've got um a couple of folks that have been on the Pride Committee, the Pride Festival committee the last couple of years that are stepping up to do more, and then one of our festival committee members is joining the board full-time or full-time volunteer to head up the Pride Festival, be that main person. Um, but I'll still be involved with it,

How Lexington Pride Festival Evolved

SPEAKER_00 8:19

of course.

SPEAKER_01 8:19

So, what does it take to put on a Pride Festival here in Lexington, Kentucky? Like how early did you start planning?

SPEAKER_00 8:26

Yeah, so um, we'll do a little more context on the Pride Festival. So um in the 80s, there were some community picnics throughout the 90s, early 2000s, different community picnics, kind of community-led things. Um, at the time, the Pride Center was called um Pride Community Services Organizations, and before that was the Gay and Lexington Services Organization. They did Pride Weeks and things like that. So there are different things that happened. And then in 2008, the Pride Center really like took on the Pride Festival full time. So 2008 was the first Pride Festival. It was at the Fifth Third Pavilion downtown. It's a different name then, I'm sure, but that's where it was. And then it moved to the Courthouse Plaza and I think 2010, 2011. We were inside Central Bank Center 23, 24, and then 25, 26, we were outside at Oliver Lewis Way. And our plan is to continue being there. Uh I think it's a great spot.

SPEAKER_01 9:10

Yeah, I think it was smart.

SPEAKER_00 9:12

Yes. I, you know, obviously I wish there was shade. I can't plant 30-year-old trees. That's just beyond my abilities.

SPEAKER_01 9:18

Come on with the budget and all.

SPEAKER_00 9:20

Talk to the director. You know, it would be great to be back downtown, but we're just too big. There's not enough space.

SPEAKER_01 9:24

There's no And was that the reason for the move to rub?

SPEAKER_00 9:27

Yes, that was that was the main reason for the move to central bank center, is that it's just too crowded down there at that Corkhouse Plaza.

SPEAKER_01 9:33

Gotcha.

SPEAKER_00 9:34

Um, and it it is a great space, but it's not the most accessible, it's not flat ground, it's hard to set up vendor booths. Sure. Um, so yeah, the move to central bank was partly precipitated by that. And in 2022, which is kind of the first year back after COVID, it was like so freaking hot. I don't know if you were here. So that was, you know, it was the lack of space, the lack of accessibility, and the temperature kind of all collided to like, okay, we need to do something different.

SPEAKER_01 9:56

So did you like having it in Central Bank Center? Like, why the move to Cover Lewis?

SPEAKER_00 10:00

There were so Central Bank Center. Um, there were a lot of perks, you know. It was it allowed us to do different things. Like we had an 18 plus room, we had a quiet room, you know, we had game rooms, we had all these different spaces that we can't necessarily do outside. Sure. Um, the main reason moving back outside was number one, the community wanted it. You know, we're we're responding to the community. We want to make sure that they're having a good time at the Pride Festival. Folks wanted to be a back outside, they wanted that element. Um, and frankly, the cost. It's expensive to rent out the entire central bank center. Um and central bank center, they were great partners. They worked with us, they were super supportive, they loved having us. Um, but they're a business just like we are. And at the end of the day, they have a bottom line just like we do. And so um, we moved back outside to Oliver Lewis Way in 2025. We've been very happy with the location and had great support from the city.

SPEAKER_01 10:44

It's just so cool too. And like for anybody who's listening that might not have attended Pride the past couple of years when it's been on Oliver Lewis, it's like it's a really cool loop. Like you can do because it's on both sides of this boulevard.

SPEAKER_00 10:54

It's a mile long, so it's really two miles. It's crazy.

SPEAKER_01 10:56

Yeah, yeah. So you walk it down one way and you have the stage right in the middle, or almost in the middle, and then you can just walk the whole thing back the other and just keep like looping around. Oh, genius. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:07

Yes. Um, so yeah, two miles of space. And this year we were running out of space for our vendor and sponsor booths. We had so much, which is great.

SPEAKER_01 11:13

You know what I loved this year? There were so many churches.

SPEAKER_00 11:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:17

So many churches that really that created their own swag that wanted to be there, like wanted to be very much a part of the it, it was it was more than I think that I've ever seen at a Pride Festival.

SPEAKER_00 11:29

I think that's been very strong. Um, so in 2024 is my first year with the Pride Festival. I was the vendors coordinator that year. And that's what I noticed. I was like, there's all these churches. And like as a festival attendee, I didn't really notice it. Um, but then managing the vendors and seeing all of it, you know, we had all the vendors and then we had two churches that were sponsors. Um, Christ Church Cathedral has been a consistent sponsor year over year, and then the Unitarian Church was a new sponsor this year. Um, they've been, you know, donating in different ways throughout the year. So we kind of bumped that to that sponsorship level this year for recognition.

SPEAKER_01 11:56

Yeah, yeah. So what are the like what are the issues with getting on pride? I want to know. Like what what's what's like the challenges? What's difficult?

SPEAKER_00 12:06

Um, so I think back to like maybe the question you first started with when

Planning Timeline And Volunteer Challenges

SPEAKER_00 12:09

do we start planning? So when do you start? Yeah, pride, um, targeting that early June timeline again, late May, early June for next year. So we'll start meeting in August. Um, and August and September are kind of general meetings for folks. Like, let's come, let's talk about the Pride Festival, what went well, what didn't go well, what did you like, what ideas do you have? Um, and then at the September meeting is when we kind of decide our position. So we've got, I think, if if there's someone for every position, we've got, I think, 15 different positions, how we've broken things out. Um, so we assign those positions in September. Um, in October is when the Pride Center sets our budget because our fiscal year starts October 1st. So by the October board meeting, we're able to kind of have the final numbers of the previous year. We can set that budget, and then that directs the Pride Festival committee of what they are able to spend and what our budget limits are. Um, so November and December were kind of laying the groundwork, and then we really hit the ground running in January. So January, February, March, April is really the main planning period. Um, you know, we want to be as planful as we can, but also we can't, you know, recruit a vendor in November for something it's in June. Not everyone plans ahead that way. We can't ask a drag queen in November, hey, save this random date in June, you're gonna be there. Because like that love drag queens, but that's not how they work. Yes. Sometimes day to day. Yeah, so it's it's um, I think that's probably maybe one of the hardest parts is the balance between being as planful as we can be, but also understanding that no matter what we do ahead of time, like the last three weeks of May leading up to the festival are gonna be crazy because you're gonna have people, oh, can I change my music? Oh, I didn't realize the vendor app closed. Can I apply? Oh, I want to do the parade. Oh, I have a sponsor that wants to do a special thing. Like all of these last minute things that pop up, and that's just part of it. That's just part of the fun, I think.

SPEAKER_01 13:44

I'll see your friends out like in May. And I'm like, where's Jay's? And they're like, Pride Erica. I was like, they're like, you won't say him till June. I was like, oh yeah, I forgot. Yeah. If he's not running, he's running pride. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 13:56

Yes.

Drag Headliners And Pride After Dark

SPEAKER_01 13:57

So this year you had Lexi Love. Yes. Right. And that was like a huge get. And for anybody who doesn't know, that's like a major drag from Kentucky. From Kentucky, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

So she used to be a performer at the bar complex. Well, um, it was actually really sweet. Her after her first number, um, she got on the mic and she was talking of like, I used to perform at Pride as like this like Lexington Pride as like a regular entertainer. And so for her to have that full circle moment, for us to have that full circle moment was really great. Um, and it was great. The we got great media coverage leading up to the festival. And so there was a hero leader article that talked to Lexi and Scarlet Envy, and then Mystique Summers Madison was at the bar complex Friday night before Pride, just talking to them about what it means to be a drag entertainer in the current state of the world and what it means to be performing in Kentucky. Um, so yeah, the Lexi Love piece was you know, that was some feedback we got after last year. People wanted more drag queens and they wanted a big headliner. And so um it was just a cold outreach to someone had like the email, and so we reached out um and they responded. We texted back and forth, we emailed back and forth and got it all figured out. Um, and then after we announced Lexi Love, we got an email from Scarlet Envy or maybe our Instagram message. I don't remember which one it was, but she was like, Hey, I'm in Louisville. Can I come perform too? We're like, Yeah, sure. So it ended up working out. We had two headliners, they were great. Um, and that really helped draw a lot of people to that evening show. Um, that was another thing we changed this year was we shifted it instead of 11 to 9 from noon until 10 p.m. We wanted to capture more of that golden hour time period. Folks wanted to have that cooler, you know, it's different when you're experiencing drag in that like 8 p.m. timeline as the sun is setting. That's a very magical time.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Golden hour. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

We love it. So um there was a huge crowd there for that. It was absolutely great. We had a stacked show, so many local queens, um, which we really wanted to showcase.

SPEAKER_01 15:39

And it's all just so family friendly. Exactly. Yes, that's always the goal. Like, yeah, you're really hitting all the different like demographics of people who want to come, especially keeping it at Pride and it maybe not being at the bar, nothing wrong with the bar complex, but that's definitely like a 21 and up type thing.

SPEAKER_00 15:52

And that's what um, you know, back to when we were inside, we had 18 plus rooms and we could do different things there. So when we moved back outside, we talked to the city about it, and they're like, you can do it, but you have to have like a tent with four walls, you have to have a bouncer, it has to be a secure location. We're like, that sounds like a lot of work for some volunteers. So that's why we have that pride after dark event series. So that's like burlesque or drag at Blue Stallion, Strippers at Crossings, the Rocky Horror Picture Show. You know, we're continuing to expand that to allow folks, you know, we pride should be family friendly and we want it to be family friendly, but we also understand that for those of us that are 18 up or 21 plus, pride should mean something different. And we want to make sure that we have that space for pride to mean that for those people that are of that age.

SPEAKER_01 16:30

That's great, amazing. Well done. Congrats. I mean, it was like a really I mean it's always good, but like this past one was like very, very good. But we're very happy with it. Yeah, the whole team is a big old pat on your back. Yeah, yeah. No, no, no, I know it's not just you. Yes, oh yeah, yes, you, I'm sure you have an incredible team of volunteers.

Frontrunners Lexington And Pride Run Grants

SPEAKER_01 16:47

Tell me about frontrunners, yeah. Um, more gay things checking down the list.

SPEAKER_00 16:53

Uh yeah, so Frontrunners is an LGBTQ walk run group. Um, we trace our roots in Lexington at least back to the 1980s. Um we started in the 80s, and frontrunners were part of an international organization. So there's about 135 chapters around the world. Um, it was started in the 70s in in San Francisco, shocking. Um, and it kind of grew from there. Um, so yeah, we started in the 80s, um, and I think it kind of just like fizzled out by the 90s here in Lexington. And then um Roy Harrison, who had lived in DC and had lived here and moved back here, kind of restarted it around 2019. Um, COVID happened right after that. That took a major hit to us. So kind of came back in 2021. And I remember like when I first started on a Wednesday night in, you know, using the winter, because that's always our lowest time because it's cold, you know, it would be like five of us Wednesday night at Ecton Park. And now we're regularly seeing 30 people on a Wednesday night in the middle of winter at Ecton Park. Like last week we had probably close to 50 people at our Wednesday runs. We have 80 registered members. So we've grown significantly since then, which is really great to see. Um, and with it being kind of an international group, you know, as I travel and people travel to different cities, they get to go to the frontrunners. So I've ran with the Chicago, the DC, the New York group, the Boston group. Um we've had friends that ran with Philadelphia. Um, I don't know if we've like touched the international groups yet, but like would love to. Um, and one thing that I'm really proud of that is that we definitely punch above our weight in terms of what our organization does compared to some of the other frontrunners. You know, Lexington is a small community. Um, and you know, we can compare ourselves to like New York has over a hundred, a thousand registered members. We're not gonna get there.

SPEAKER_01 18:28

Sure.

SPEAKER_00 18:28

Um, you know, but some of the bigger cities I feel like don't do as much as we do. We're very out in the community, very active in that.

SPEAKER_01 18:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:34

Um, so we have our Pride Run that I talked about that raises money for scholarships and grants that we hand out every year. Um, so a cornerstone is that is we do two um $2,500 scholarships to graduating LGBTQ seniors that are going off to trade schools or higher ed or for just some sort of higher education. Doesn't matter what it is. We'll give you $2,500. Um the last couple of years we've been able to do three because we've gotten a donation from the Valvine Prism Resource Group. Um so they give an extra $2,500, which allows us to do a third scholarships. Um and then we do grants to AVOL, to the Pride Festival, to Richmond Pride and Capital Pride, Kentucky Black Pride, all the different organizations here in town to kind of support central Kentucky. So that's our big our big event. We have the Pride, the Pride Run. Um we're active in the street safety stuff, so making sure that our streets are safe for pedestrians, for runners, for walkers. Um, we've done several different drag show fundraisers. Um, so this spring we did a get out the gay vote um, where we had the primary candidates were there. We had legal women voters there that were registering voters. They said they didn't register a single voter. All the gays were very civically active, which is great, but it's good to have them there still. Um, and then in that night, we raised $2,000 that was then split with Kentucky Health Justice Network. And then in the fall, we're gonna do the same show and split that with the Kentucky Youth Law Project. So using those fundraisers, um, we coordinated in 2023 when the statehouse was looking at passing a lot of anti-LGBTQ bills. We did um a Lex Hab Pride initiative that really got a lot of focus on city council. We delivered a petition to city council that over 5,000 signatures from local businesses and individuals around the city. Um, we had speakers, we had the first drag show in the council chambers with Uma Jules performing. Um, so that was that petition was a list of demands for our state, our local, our state, and our federal elected officials in terms of what they can do to protect the LGBTQ community. Yeah. Um, and of I think we had five demands for Lexington. I think all five of them were implemented. That's great. Um, so we continually do that. We run a track program, we're doing a couch to 5K program right now to get folks ready for the Pride Run.

SPEAKER_01 20:33

That would probably be where I would like if you had me.

SPEAKER_00 20:38

Whether you've never ran before, you're an experienced runner.

SPEAKER_01 20:40

Not in love unless it's like Torta Brownie. You know, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:44

So yeah, that started uh this week, but you can still join at any point that goes up until a pride run in September.

SPEAKER_01 20:50

Was one of these things that you were recently being auctioned off as like in a bachelor auction? What was that?

SPEAKER_00 20:56

That was for Avol.

SPEAKER_01 20:56

That was for AVOL.

SPEAKER_00 20:57

Okay, cool. Yeah, cool.

SPEAKER_01 20:58

How did that go?

SPEAKER_00 20:59

That was fun. Who got you? Uh my boyfriend.

SPEAKER_01 21:02

Oh, cheater.

SPEAKER_00 21:03

I signed up for that when I was still single. Um, so like technically what I think it was him plus a couple other friends contributed funds. Yeah. I think I think I went for $400, maybe. Oh my god. I was not the highest bid. You're worth more than that. Oh, don't I would rather the boyfriend spent money on me?

SPEAKER_01 21:20

I love it.

SPEAKER_00 21:21

Yeah.

Rapid Fire Life And Local Favorites

SPEAKER_01 21:22

Okay. I have questions for you.

SPEAKER_00 21:23

Oh, oh boy.

SPEAKER_01 21:24

Okay, you ready?

SPEAKER_00 21:25

I love it.

SPEAKER_01 21:25

Um, what's the most used app on your phone?

SPEAKER_00 21:29

Oh, um Instagram and the weather apps. I I love the weather. Love I'm very love the weather. I just I um shocking. I'm very type A, very organized, like to know what's coming next. I like I like an agenda. I like to know what's happening, I like a plan.

SPEAKER_01 21:44

Oh, because your life's so organized.

SPEAKER_00 21:48

Yeah, so love looking at the weather. And then Instagram, I'm trying to like break that addiction, but it's it's hard. It's so hard. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Are you on TikTok too?

SPEAKER_00 21:54

No, I had to delete that because I got like too far too far in the addiction. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 22:00

I know. I hear you about it. I didn't know you love the weather. Like, are you do you consider yourself like a bit of a meteorologist, like a budding meteorologist?

SPEAKER_00 22:08

Not really.

SPEAKER_01 22:10

You're not checking like the NAM model.

SPEAKER_00 22:12

No, well, like weather.gov is like the best place to go. Like that's a bookmark on my phone because that like all the weather apps pull from weather.gov. Oh. Um, so that's kind of the base model of their of all their layers. Okay. Um, but then another side hustle, I do um events in the summer for an event production company. It's essentially like professional marching band. It's called Drumcore International. And so a large part of that, they're outdoor events. We have to be aware of the weather. So we have teams of meteorologists that support our events. So like it's always fun to work with them and see like the models. So there's like four layers in the atmosphere. And the models that we have are normally only looking at like layers one, maybe layer two, but like they're full-time meteorologists. So they're looking at all four layers so they can see a lot more, which is sometimes when like your weather app says, like, oh my god, it's gonna rain, they look at all four letters with sorry, all four layers, and they're like, No, it's actually not going to. It's just like a weird blip on the radio.

SPEAKER_01 22:59

There's secret info out there that they're not giving the well, that didn't talk me.

SPEAKER_00 23:03

No, this is not a conspiracy. This is the cost of the of like scanning all four layers for a free app. I see.

SPEAKER_01 23:12

I thought like everyone just knew, and they're like, nope, we're not telling them no, no, this is not a conspiracy to hide the weather from Eric.

SPEAKER_00 23:19

Go talk to the birds about that.

SPEAKER_01 23:20

So, does that mean that you were actually in a marching band?

SPEAKER_00 23:24

I yes, I was. What was the instrument? I was a tuba player, was my primary instrument. Tuba? I would not have guessed you for tuba. No, most people don't. Yeah. What do most people think you'd be? Most people say trumpet. Okay. Which is what I started on, but I couldn't get my like lips tight enough to make a sound. So they just like kept shoving me down the bigger instruments, and then I landed at tuba.

SPEAKER_01 23:43

And you liked the tuba.

SPEAKER_00 23:45

Uh I enjoyed band. Yeah. I did not like playing the tuba, nor was I very good at it.

SPEAKER_01 23:49

So is there any footage of you out there playing the tuba?

SPEAKER_00 23:53

Oh, I'm sure there is. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:54

Let's find that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:54

There's some pictures of me like in the Wildcat marching man at UK.

SPEAKER_01 23:57

Oh, I didn't know you marched for UK too. Okay, sorry. I thought this was like a high school thing that was then like did high school, yeah, high school and then undergrad too.

SPEAKER_00 24:04

I started as a music major in undergrad.

SPEAKER_01 24:06

So did you like I've always wondered because my daughter's about to go into like marching bands, so like there, that foot placement that is like hardcore. Like whenever they're I'm not sure.

SPEAKER_00 24:15

It's like muscle memory. Yeah, you yeah, you build it up over time. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:19

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 24:19

Absolutely. Yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 24:20

So were you like a bona fide like band nerd back in the day, or were you like, yeah. Yeah. I love it. Like the band nerds, I mean they had like a strong camaraderie. Oh, yeah. I was like a theater nerd. So like it was just like a different exactly. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:36

Same thing, different font. Yeah. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 24:37

Same name, different form. Exactly. Um, had no idea about the tuba. Amazing. Um, if you were a woman, what would you carry in your purse?

SPEAKER_00 24:45

Oh. Um so this is when you texted me beforehand. I did.

SPEAKER_01 24:49

I was like, I'm only telling you two of my questions in a chance.

SPEAKER_00 24:52

One of my friends Evan, he has my favorite purse ever. It's literally like big enough to hold like a chapstick and maybe a bottle of poppers, too. And that's it. So that's what I would carry because my man is going to carry everything else. It's just like, and like, what do you need besides chapstick? Yeah, no, you don't. And like my phone can go in my pocket. Yeah. Yeah, or or poppers. Do women do those? I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 25:11

Think about how much you can like carry in a tuba. I mean, you're going from a tuba to a teeny tiny. I did not Did you put anything in your tuba? Oh, you can't.

SPEAKER_00 25:19

You know, because that's like that would block the air if it goes.

SPEAKER_01 25:22

Darn it.

SPEAKER_00 25:22

I mean, you could, you just wouldn't be able to play.

SPEAKER_01 25:24

That would be the all right, fine. What is your worst pet peeve when it comes to like traffic, specifically Lexington traffic?

SPEAKER_00 25:31

Oh, I'm a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 25:32

I mean, you've already kind of gotten into this, like hitting pedestrians is like.

SPEAKER_00 25:36

Well, hitting pedestrians is obviously like a more than a pet peeve. It's like that's awful. Right. No, the cry. The the drivers here that like like you should only enter the intersection if you know you can exit the intersection. And so, like, when you're in like slow traffic and the like the light is green, sure, but they go into the intersection, but then you're like stuck in standstill traffic, and then the light changes and you're still stuck in the intersection. Like blocking the people that now have to go. Now it's go the other way. Yeah, don't block the box. Like you should not enter it without being able to access the box. Don't block the box. Yeah, that's a good driver side.

SPEAKER_01 26:08

Completely agree. Mine is slow turners, like when you're behind somebody and they're going so slow to turn that makes you come to like a it just drives.

SPEAKER_00 26:15

You have to accelerate through the turn.

SPEAKER_01 26:16

Absolutely. Yeah, we want fast turns. It's usually always like older people. No comment. I think old people are the worst on the road. Okay, favorite restaurant in Lexington. And what do you order?

SPEAKER_00 26:31

Um, I want some. I love I love Kentucky Native. Oh, and the menu changes a lot. So like it depends on which what you're there for. Um, I love they have like a kale. Love kale. There's like some kale salad.

SPEAKER_01 26:43

Of course you. Oh, he runs like 20 miles a day and eats kale.

SPEAKER_00 26:46

There's like a spicy peanut salad that's really good. There's a couple different like potato salad things. Um, like a bagel with locks is always a good choice there. They've got lots of different things. Oh, the in the spring they have like a strawberry thing, like strawberries and cream.

SPEAKER_01 27:00

Oh, burrata or like cheese. Maybe they have the strawberries and burrata. Maybe that's right. That's really, really good. But cream is really great too. Yeah. Our friend Zach told me a story about how when you were traveling with him, you were just eating straight butter at one point. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:14

Because you were like, I was in the midst of I had ran 16 miles that day. So that's so you're like, I deserve it. I'm hungry. I ate half a chicken and then I was still hungry.

SPEAKER_01 27:22

So you just had like the butter at the top.

SPEAKER_00 27:23

Yeah, it was left. I mean, we had finished all the bread. So, like, what else are you gonna do with it? Absolutely eat the butter.

SPEAKER_01 27:28

Yeah, absolutely. Eat the naked butter. I love it. Um what was your best subject in school?

SPEAKER_00 27:35

Uh social studies history.

SPEAKER_01 27:38

Yeah, my man. We like some history down here. Very good. What was your worst?

SPEAKER_00 27:42

Uh, math.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

Same. I hate it. I hated there's no like true, yeah. There's always like one right answer. I hated that. So I guess we kind of maybe already covered this. Guilty pleasure food. Are we gonna say butter?

SPEAKER_00 27:55

I mean butter. Yeah, I mean like when I'm baking and there's like extra like if you use seven tablespoons, I just eat the eighth tablespoon for the stick of butter, you know. Gotcha. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:03

Oh, that's right, because you bake.

SPEAKER_00 28:04

I bake a lot. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 28:05

You bake. Tell me about your baking.

SPEAKER_00 28:07

Uh yeah, I love doing it. It's lots of fun. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:09

Um that's the thing I think you post the most on Instagram that I've noticed.

SPEAKER_00 28:13

You're like, yeah, lots of baking. Yes. I would bake lots of bread. Yes. Yes. Um, no, I got um, I mean, like I grew up in a family, both my parents cooked and baked a lot. So like grew up doing that. And then in college, kind of got into it a little bit. Um, and then really like in the last couple of years, I've really got into it and really explored like baking bread and cheesecakes and all these other things. Last year I did um watch parties for Great British Bake Off, and we did, like, or not we, I would bake the technical every week with the full recipe. Wait, what does that mean? The technical. So in bake off, there's three challenges there's the signature, the bake off, and the showstopper. And so the technical, they get the recipe like that day, and it's like a stripped-down version of it. So instead of like, you know, it doesn't tell you the amounts, it just says like mix flour, sugar, and water to do this. Like it's very basic stuff. So, but when you follow online, they'll like post the full recipe. So I would make the technical, or if it was something like really gross, like when they do their like meat pies, I'm not.

SPEAKER_01 29:08

Yeah, there's a lot of like yeah, like sometimes there's a lot of blood sometimes, too.

SPEAKER_00 29:12

Like there was one this year, it was like hard-boiled eggs wrapped in pork inside a meat pie. I was like, We're not, we're not doing it. So I just but no, I love baking. Baking's lots of fun.

SPEAKER_01 29:25

Yeah, and you are do you dabble? I mean, I know you're into the bread, but and you've mentioned cheesecake, but like into desserts as well. Like some pieces.

SPEAKER_00 29:31

Um make birthday cakes a lot for friends. Um, have lovlovas are always great, those are super easy. They're just like egg whites and sugar. Um, and you just whip it up. Um, cakes, cook cookies are okay. They're very temperamental, so you have to be careful with those.

SPEAKER_01 29:44

Are they?

SPEAKER_00 29:45

Uh, but like breads and loaves and cheesecakes and yeah, everything. I love it all. Do you like a crispy cookie or a chewy cookie? Uh chewy.

SPEAKER_01 29:53

Same. We have so much in common. Okay, except for the running. Um get you there. Favorite, right? From couch to 5K. There she goes. Um, favorite types, favorite type of music.

SPEAKER_00 30:06

Uh, country. It's my country and classic rock are like the best. My favorite.

SPEAKER_01 30:11

And you know what? I think that lately Lexington is such a good scene for like, because I'm sure by country you don't mean like Nash, or maybe you do, like very like high-produced national.

SPEAKER_00 30:21

No, I mean like 1990 through 2010, primarily women. Yeah. Um, since 2010, some of the women are okay, but also like since then I've drifted far more into the like the like bluegrass folk, Americana. Totally that outlaws.

SPEAKER_01 30:34

Well, it's because country has done this amazing thing lately where it it's just so multifaceted with like all of its sub-genres. Yes. And it's definitely like moving in and out of different genres in and of itself. And so, and Lexington, I think, is really picked up on the fact that like this area has a want for that. And like I think the Burl does such a good job of bringing in like almost getting to the point where like like you trust certain actors. Like, I don't know anything about this movie, but I'll go see it because Meryl Streep's in it or whatever. Right. It's like that's how I feel about the Burl. I'm like, if you're playing somebody, like I trust your judgment enough, like you're bringing in these up and coming, and they they have like pretty, I mean, they've had people on their stage that have gone on to be like huge. It's like, I don't know, it's a good, it's a good spot. Absolutely. Yeah, you know what's funny about the Burl too. I was there the other day and I was asking the bartender um when it's tough to be like a bouncer, or when it's like the when it was like the country shows are actually like like when the people are a little bit more aggressive, yeah. Which I was like, huh, that's so interesting. You'd think it'd be more like, I don't know, sometimes I had like harder rock or like a little bit more punk or whatever, but it's like the country shows bring in lots of different people, and apparently they're I'm like, well, Jason and I aren't, right? I'm not fighting anybody outside the world. No, no, no, not unless it's about ruining my manicure for that. Never okay. Um favorite toy as a child.

SPEAKER_00 31:55

Oh, uh that you play with. I loved Legos. I just Legos and Hot Wheels.

SPEAKER_01 32:00

Uh-huh. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 32:02

That was fine.

SPEAKER_01 32:02

Did you build giant um cities?

SPEAKER_00 32:06

Yeah. Yeah. I also like to build homes a lot. That was like my favorite. I wanted to be like an architect as a kid, so I would build homes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 32:12

Yeah. So was that like your dream like the entire time that you were a child? Or did it change everything?

SPEAKER_00 32:17

Like, uh, I mean, I went through like I want to be a marine biology phase. Like, we all do.

SPEAKER_01 32:21

We all or something. I think it was like fed to us. Well, you're young. How old are you?

SPEAKER_00 32:24

I am 33.

SPEAKER_01 32:25

Yeah, yeah. And I'm 41. So like we definitely have like, but there was something I feel like it was sometime in third or fourth grade where it was like, don't you love dolphins? You should be a marine biologist. And every kid.

SPEAKER_00 32:34

And you can't say I don't love dolphins.

SPEAKER_01 32:36

Exactly. It's like, what third grader's gonna say this? Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. Yeah. That's so funny.

SPEAKER_00 32:41

So an architect and a marine roller coaster designer was another like well, you're doing all those things now with pride. I'm creating spaces. Yes, you are. Yes, you are.

SPEAKER_01 32:52

Yeah. Absolutely. Okay, well, so what else is going on with you?

SPEAKER_00 32:55

Um, I'm

DC Pride And Handling Protesters

SPEAKER_00 32:56

going to DC Pride this weekend, which I'm very excited for.

SPEAKER_01 32:58

So tell me more. Is that like the national pride?

SPEAKER_00 33:01

I don't think there's like a like world pride. But it's like, I wouldn't say there's like a national pride in the play.

SPEAKER_01 33:08

Like an e- Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 33:09

Good to do. So it's just so um the prior sorry, the parade is on Saturday and then the festival's on Sunday.

SPEAKER_01 33:14

And what does that entail?

SPEAKER_00 33:15

Um I don't know. I've never been. So my boyfriend lives in DC for eight years, so I'm excited to like get more of the tour from the local and see what it's like.

SPEAKER_01 33:22

And tell me what you were saying before we started recording about how you can't help but go to these events. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 33:27

Like, I mean, I love going to big events, they're fun, but also every time I'm there, I'm just like, okay, let me open up my notes app, let me take some notes, see what they're doing, what I like, what I don't like. Or I'm just like constantly thinking about like, okay, there's this many workers and this many porta potties, and the police cost this, and the streets and roads cost like you're just like, yeah, what is yeah, I I guess I do sometimes.

SPEAKER_01 33:44

Yeah, I was gonna say you're using the math. Simple math.

SPEAKER_00 33:47

Simple math. Um, but yeah, but that's also part of like figuring out it's just like a big puzzle. That's I think why I like the Pride Festival and other things. It's just putting together a big puzzle and finding all the different pieces that could fit.

SPEAKER_01 33:58

What have you heard about going to DC with the political climate that it is right now and our president, how he feels about like, is there what's the hubbub around that?

SPEAKER_00 34:06

Um, I don't know if there's too much. I went to DC in April 2024, or no, April 2025, after he was inaugurated. And it really like the vibe wasn't that different at that time. It was still early. Um, but yeah, I'm interested to see what happens this time. I think it will be a lot more of like like having it a common enemy and antagonist, like it makes things stronger. So I think pride is going to be stronger, and I think people are gonna be out louder and prouder and doing more things because of that. So, and I like the local government, the DC government is very supportive of it. Um, so I'm not too worried about it.

SPEAKER_01 34:39

Yeah, yeah. On the flip side of that, whenever the it's strong in that sense, is the opposition as equally as strong, do you think?

SPEAKER_00 34:47

Like in terms of like protesting against um no, because like pride protesters are not organized or like committed to the bit, you know? Like we really go on. We had like uh I we had I saw them. Yes, we had a few protesters at our pride this year, like three or four. And they left it four. Yeah, they left at like 1.30. They got tired and went home. Um last year we had one protester and he rode the free shuttle that we provided that went from downtown Lexington to the festival crowds. I love that story. Um obviously, that is not like you know, that is one story that is not true for all the prides. Obviously, like we saw in Corbin that they are having significant issues down there with um the white supremacist organization that targeting the pride organizer and targeting the city. Like, don't you dare do a pride in our city, we'll come get you type of thing. So, like it's still very real out there. Like, I want to like we, I think in Lexington, we're a little bit, we're very lucky. We're very privileged in that like we have the support of our local government and our local businesses and the people and things like that. Um, and some of the smaller communities, you know, you don't, you're not that lucky, unfortunately. And so uh, but we've been in contact with the Corbin Pride talking about it and how we structure things and how we work with our city government. So um I think Queer Kentucky just posted something about they're still having their pride and they're going forward with it. So I'm excited to see that. Um, but yeah, it's um I think the people that are so anti-pride, you know, there it's just a lot of keyboard warriors too, in some ways.

SPEAKER_01 36:06

Um they're not like pounding the pavement and actually coming to these.

SPEAKER_00 36:10

Yes, yeah, sometimes, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:12

Sure.

unknown 36:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:13

Well, I thought it was really interesting, and it was I brought my daughter to Pride This Pat and I saw your the four protesters. And at one point, they had wanted to protest and they like made a giant walk of going all the way down Oliver Lewis and all the way back up. Yeah. And they were holding, it was like you know, Bible verses or something. And then as they're walking, they're kind of yelling things out, like not like in a hateful way, but just like, you know, I don't remember what it was. But you also had like pride participants who were like all in rainbow walking alongside them, like just very peacefully. And they also had like some cops on either. So it was like both sides walking together peacefully, just kind of saying what I mean. Obviously, I didn't like the opposition, but like the it was a way to do it, and like if you had, I don't know. I thought it was really interesting.

SPEAKER_00 37:02

And it was just very organic that happened, you know. We didn't stage that or anything.

SPEAKER_01 37:05

No, of course not, and it looked organic, and there was like somebody with like a drum, yes, yeah. From the the March Madness March again. I can't even tell like who was who and what was happening. It was like such a great conversation starter for me and my daughter to talk about like how how do we express ourselves, like how and in what ways do you protest? I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 37:22

It was it was it was very interesting, and it, you know, in ideal world, we wouldn't be able to have the protesters, we'd be able to kick them out. But like the First Amendment or whatever that you know prevents that. And we've had back and forth with the city about what that means because we're reserving the street, like, you know, yeah, what does that look like? So it's um from my perspective, it's not necessarily a settled issue, but I think from the city's perspective, you know, it's a public roadway, we can't limit access type of thing. If it was a ticketed event, we could, but because it's not, we can't do that. Right.

SPEAKER_01 37:49

And you don't want to ticket.

SPEAKER_00 37:50

Yes, yeah. We want we want pride to be free, open to everyone. And it's just there's so many entry points we couldn't logistically do it. So um, but yeah, I mean, our our message is always, you know, there might be protesters, just ignore them. You're there to enjoy yourself and have a good time and celebrate pride. Yeah. If folks want to engage, that's fine. But I don't think screaming at them, shouting at them, it's not gonna change their opinion. They're setting their opinions, they're not gonna change their opinions, we're not gonna change ours. Just let them be and they'll get tired by 1:30 and go home. You know, that's that's what's going on. Which they did. They did. Yes, they'll catch the shuttle and they'll probably shuttle to be provided.

SPEAKER_01 38:21

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 38:22

The gays love public transit.

SPEAKER_01 38:24

Of course. I love it. If they're not running, they're on public transit.

SPEAKER_00 38:27

Exactly. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 38:28

Well, Jason,

Final Thoughts And Thanks

SPEAKER_01 38:29

thank you so much for being on the podcast. I mean, it's such great. You just have such a like light about you. Yeah, you're so easy to talk to. Yeah, great. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 38:36

Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_01 38:38

Bye.