Fayette Pride Offers a Place to Belong

When Joshua Tarro talks about Fayette Pride, he isn’t thinking about the entertainment or the vendors—he’s thinking about belonging.

Tarro, owner of Haunted Botanicals, will be among the 40 vendors at Saturday’s inaugural Fayette Pride celebration in downtown Fayetteville this next Saturday. As a husband, father and small-business owner, he says the event represents something simple but deeply meaningful: the chance for families like his to know they belong.

“Growing up queer, you are really made to feel othered,” Tarro said. “Not always intentionally by people, but that’s definitely the way that a lot of queer kids grow up feeling.”

He believes Pride events help change that.

“Pride events are really important to show people—especially young queer kids—that it’s okay to be you,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with you.”

Tarro and his husband moved to Georgia from Michigan more than a decade ago and now live locally with their six-year-old son, who attends school in Fayetteville. Seeing Fayette County host its first Pride celebration, he said, has been encouraging.

“It makes me really happy to see that Fayetteville is having a Pride festival,” he said. “I feel like Pride is really important to show people that there is a community that is welcoming and loving.”

For Tarro, Fayette Pride isn’t simply an event for LGBTQ+ residents. He hopes it will be a community gathering where allies, families and neighbors come together.

“I feel like in a city like Fayetteville, it will be more of just a community event,” he said. “People that are supportive of the LGBTQIA+ community, not only as allies, but also people like us that do have a son and are just a part of the community trying to feel like we fit in, and we’re not othered.”

That sense of community will be on display throughout Saturday’s celebration, which begins at noon on August 1, with welcomes from Fayetteville Mayor Ed Johnson and Dewayne Queen, director of LGBTQ Affairs for the Atlanta Mayor’s Office.

Throughout the afternoon, visitors can explore Pride Market, featuring 40 vendors, four food trucks, King of Pops, and an entertainment lineup that includes Grand Marshal TAYLOR ALXNDR, vocalist Tony Tone, Chris Pierce, Southern Arc Dance, the Atlanta Women’s Chorus, runway and dance contests, and a wrap party with TAYLOR and Friends before the festival concludes at 5 p.m.

One featured attraction will be Trans Joy’s 2026 Trans Community Art Project, Showcasing Our Superpowers, an interactive visual art installation that will later be digitally mapped and projected onto the Church at Ponce & Highland during November’s Trans Day of Remembrance.

At approximately 1:20 p.m., the Pride Parade will pass Pride Market along Stonewall Avenue. Participants include Grand Marshal TAYLOR ALXNDR, Fayetteville Councilman Joe Clark, Atlanta Freedom Bands and Color Guard, Friends of Fayette Humane Society, PFLAG Peachtree City, Southern Harm Roller Derby, Southern Crescent Indivisible of Georgia, Free Mom Hugs, local churches and other community organizations.

Interest in the inaugural event has exceeded expectations. Organizers say all 40 vendor spaces filled roughly 10 weeks before the festival after every available space around the Historic Courthouse Square was claimed.

Tarro will be there with Haunted Botanicals, the business he started after rescuing discarded office plants during the COVID-19 pandemic. What began as a hobby eventually grew into a small business specializing in hoyas, commonly known as wax plants. Today, he grows more than 600 varieties while creating handmade pots, trellises and accessories to help fellow plant enthusiasts succeed.

After leaving his corporate career, Tarro said the business allowed him to become a stay-at-home father while continuing to contribute to his family’s income.

“My hobby turned into a small business,” he said. “I really wanted to be a very active parent for my son.”

Following Pride Market’s close at 5 p.m., official after-parties will continue at Revival Wine Bar, Awkward Brewing, Gremlin Growlers, The Hummingbird Wine Bar, Camp Brewing Company and Line Creek Brewing at the Bus Barn.

For Tarro, however, the day’s greatest success won’t be measured by attendance or entertainment. It will be whether families leave feeling a little more connected to the community they call home.

“I hope it will be more of just a community event,” he said. “People like us that have a son are just trying to feel like we fit in.”