New West Pride - Royal City Pride Society New Westminster, BC, Canada

Vance McFadyen – Founder of Royal City Pride Society –
New Westminster

In January 2010, Vance appeared before Mayor Wayne Wright and New Westminster City Council to request New Westminster proclaim a first ever Pride Day set for August 7th 2010.

Upon receiving unanimous approval at the same council meeting. Vance, along with a host of other supporters and volunteers organized the very first Pride event held at Tipperary Park. After a successful launch of Pride 2010 in New West, Vance followed up with a second request to City Council in 2011 and received full support.

Vance is active in many communities holding volunteer positions, including Century House and is currently in training to be a Peer Counsellor at there. He helped raise $25,000 for equipment for the new Youth Centre in Moody Park in 2010. He was nominated for Citizen of the year for 2010.

In Vance’s words “New Westminster is one of the best cities in BC in which to live and share life with your family no matter what or who that family consists of and I am a very strong believer that the gay and straight communities can co-exist in a meaningful and beneficial manner. Inclusiveness is key to happiness.”

Born in Vancouver in 1942, Vance moved out to New Westminster in 1961. He met his partner Curt and they married in 2003. They’ve been together for 35 years.