On Valentine’s Day, Hoosiers can celebrate their love for IU women’s basketball and the LGBT community through the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Alumni Association’s third annual Pride Day event.
This year’s Pride Day will feature a musical program, door prizes and a buffet luncheon. Two celebrity speakers, IU women’s basketball Coach Teri Moren and former WNBA Indiana Fever player Tully Bevilaqua, will also be in attendance and speak at the event.
“We feel like we have the best fans in the country, and amongst that fan base is the GLBT community,” Moren said in a press release. “We appreciate their support and are so happy they help make up Hoosier Nation. It is a privilege to be a part of a community and university that welcomes anyone from all walks of life.”
The event started two years ago, when then-women’s basketball coach Curt Miller teamed up with the GLBTAA to celebrate any IU athletes that were LGBT, whether they were out publicly or not, said GLBTAA board member Kim Davis.
“We thought it would be a good way to recognize — but not to call anybody out — GLBT athletes,” Davis said. “Knowing that there are GLBT people on the planet and in sports, we just wanted to recognize that and celebrate that.”
Athletics can sometimes be a difficult environment for LGBT people, and Davis said she is proud to offer an event joining the two communities.
“As a lesbian I played sports and I was very quiet about it,” she said. “Now that people are more comfortable with GLBT issues, let’s celebrate one area where we know there are people that matter too.”
Moren will give a brief pep talk, and then Bevilaqua will speak about her experiences as an out gay athlete in the WNBA.
Bevilaqua spent 14 years playing in the WNBA, five of which were with the Indiana Fever. She was awarded the WNBA’s Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award in 2007 and played on the silver-medal-winning Australian Olympic team in 2008.
Two IU alumnae, Rebecca Keith and Holly Bales, will provide entertainment through music during the luncheon. Keith, founding secretary of the IU GLBTAA board, will also sing the national anthem at the game against University of Wisconsin.
As of now, about 50 people are registered for the event. It will conclude at 1:30 p.m. to allow time for participants to head to Assembly Hall for the game.
Davis said she hopes the event helps LGBT athletes feel appreciated, wherever they play.
“I hope people come and get a sense of the support there is for GLBT athletes in our community here at IU or anywhere else in Big 10,” Davis said.
