The group that stages the yearly gay-pride festival at Holland Park has changed its name to Surrey Pride Society, replacing OIS Rainbow Cultural Society.

It's the same organization with a more relevant name, society president Jen Marchbank told the Now.

The organization's main purpose is to raise funds to hold the Pride festival and organize a series of related events leading up to it. This summer, the festival is on Sunday, July 8.

In the works are a Stonewall youth dance, a live cabaret night and community picnic.

Members of the society hold board meetings at Kalmar restaurant in Newton (on King George Boulevard, at 80th Avenue), also the site of new "breakfast club" meetings for those age 50-plus. The meetings will feature speakers on topics of interest to this age group and the chance to meet new people in a non-bar environment, Marchbank said.

"A lot of our members have done the nightclub thing and are now at a different stage in their lives," said Marchbank, who was elected president of the society last fall and works as a professor at SFU Surrey.

Meanwhile, the society is hosting an inaugural Surrey Pride Easter Egg Hunt on the afternoon of Sunday, April 8. To join in the family-friendly event, email jen@ surreypride.ca for the address of the private residence, in Whalley. "We hope that will be fun for families in our community, and for kids big and small," Marchbank added.

Among the society's goals is to find a true gay-friendly venue in Surrey, as a gathering spot. "It's something that just doesn't exist, but we're looking," said Marchbank.

"We're trying to put that word out there to restaurant and bar owners."

On the web, details of events and activities hosted by Surrey Pride Society can be found on the group's Facebook page, and also at surreypride.ca.

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