Founder’s Message

Toronto’s pride & remembrance run is Canada’s first 2SLGBTQ+ organized and public sports event. It’s also the largest pride sports fundraiser in the country. Since its founding in 1996, I’m thrilled the Run has become a cornerstone of Toronto’s annual Pride celebrations. The Run has always played a special role within our city as the only family-friendly, athletic event that brings diverse facets of our community together in pride, celebration, and solidarity.

It’s truly remarkable that over the past 27 years, more than 50,000 2SLGBTQ+ community members and allies have participated in the Run during the last weekend of every June in the heart of the Church-Wellesley Village. Since its inception, I’m proud to share the Run has raised over $2.7 million dollars benefiting more than two dozen 2SLGBTQ+ organizations, a good number on multiple occasions.  Through the Pride and Remembrance Foundation, the Run's charitable arm has supported many additional charitable projects in the community.

The funds raised have gone to support charitable projects throughout communities in Ontario – and indeed across Canada – including organizations like the ArQuives, Rainbow Railroad, Women’s College Hospital, The 519, the Asian Community AIDS Services, and the Stephen Lewis Foundations, among countless other worthy organizations.

Looking back to 1996, it’s noteworthy that the idea that members of our community would run openly on the streets of Toronto was then a radical one. While we’ve made great strides as a society since then, when it comes to our hard-earned rights, we must remain vigilant and continue to honour the spirit of queer activism that led to our fundamental rights to equality.

As founder, the creation of the pride & remembrance run is intensely personal. In early 1996, after losing a close friend to AIDS, I asked two friends and fellow triathletes to help me organize a 5KM run to honour my friend. I also wanted to offer our community a new, public-facing way to celebrate Pride. More than anything,  as our community remained very much in the throes of real challenges, I wanted Torontonians to see another side of Pride and of our community. One that was rightfully proud and uplifting, yet still reflective in memory of the countless lives lost - and being lost - as a result of the AIDS epidemic.

In that vein, the Run has always blended the exuberance of Pride and physical activity with the sobriety of history and remembrance for those of us in the community who came before us. To this day, the Run’s name encapsulates its spirit and purpose.  

That first year, we had no idea how many people might participate in the Run. We were amazed when 326 participants raised $8,000 for one local and one national charity. The ArQuives (formerly the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives) and the AIDS Memorial (run by the 519 Church Street Community Centre) were the beneficiaries of the Run for the first three years. Since then, much has changed in our world – and in Toronto’s 2SLGBTQ+ community -- yet the Run’s spirit and purpose have never wavered. We’ve also grown dramatically over the past quarter century. In 2022, more than 2300 people took part, raising over $280,000 for charitable organizations benefiting the 2SLGBTQ+ community.

I'll always be deeply grateful for the steadfast community support and trust our event has enjoyed over the past 27 years. Without you, and your relentless passion for our cause, there would be no Run. Thank you so much for being an integral part of the pride & remembrance run family; I look forward to seeing you lace up your runners on June 24 for the best Run yet!

Yours in Pride (& Remembrance)

Alan Belaiche (he/him)

Founder, pride & remembrance run