history
Alan Belaiche, the founder of the pride & remembrance run, had always seen philanthropy as an incredibly valuable exercise. In 1994, during a conversation with his dear friend, Richard-Robert Leroux, Alan realized he hadn’t done anything to support the 2SLGBTQ+ community. When Leroux died of AIDS in 1995, that germ of an idea that his late friend had planted began to grow into what would become the pride & remembrance run in early 1996.
The race was initially conceptualized as a bike ride from Toronto to Niagara Falls. However, facing logistical challenges, organizers pivoted to a five-kilometre run starting and ending in The Village (Church and Wellesley) and looping around Queens Park - the route we still run today!
With no idea what to expect that first year, an agreement with Starbucks was secured to stock registration forms and hang race posters in all Toronto locations. Over 300 people participated on race day and raised $8,000 for The ArQuives (formerly known as the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives) and the AIDS Memorial. The success of this first year showed the Run’s potential to become athletic-focused Pride event which raises funds for the community.
Since its inception in 1996, the Run has become a staple in many Torontonians’ Pride Month celebrations. Alongside the scores of newcomers participating in the Run each year, there is a strong contingency of community members that have been participating or volunteering for upwards of ten, or in some cases twenty, years. The race is also responsible for raising over $2.7 million dollars to benefit over two dozen 2SLGBTQ+ organizations.
When current and past stakeholders of the Run were asked what made the pride & remembrance run so unique, many referenced the extremely passionate Board, staffed by volunteers who spend most of the year planning for race day to ensure each year is fun. fast. fab!
after party, 2004
