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Buffalo Grove Pride Drive will return for another -- and, organizers hope, final -- spin Sunday

Sunday afternoon will see the second - and what organizer Carolyn Pinta hopes is the last - Buffalo Grove Pride Drive, the socially distanced substitute for the community's Pride Parade.

"I'm going to go ahead and say that June 5, 2022, will be our next parade," Pinta said of the march, which debuted in 2019 as the brainchild of her then 13-year-old daughter, Molly.

While the parade must wait another year, Sunday will offer the chance to celebrate from noon until 3 p.m. More than 100 homes and businesses in Buffalo Grove will be decorated to celebrate Pride month, and everyone is encouraged to drive or walk by to view the displays. The event also will feature giveaways, activities, music and more.

Visitors from across the Chicago area are expected to pass through the village to check out the displays. For a list of homes and businesses, along with a map to navigate through town, visit the event website, pintaprideproject.com.

This year's Pride Drive should be bigger and more elaborate than the 2020 edition, Pinta said.

"I was thrilled with last year, but this year we have 10 more stops," she said.

The village of Buffalo Grove, the Buffalo Grove Park District and Vernon Township plan to host stops this year, and the township will hold an after-party at 3 p.m., with food trucks and a DJ.

Overall, Pinta said, there are nearly 80 sponsors helping with the event.

"A lot of homes have a business or an organization working with them at their home, helping them decorate and doing handouts," she said.

"People are looking for a way to show that they are on the right side of history. Companies and organizations, if they didn't already have an inclusive group, an LGBT group within, they are emerging."

Although Pinta said she is excited about the upcoming weekend, she also is dismayed by the vandalism committed last weekend against the display on her lawn, with Pride flags being broken and ripped.

"I'm grateful that they didn't get to anything more expensive like balloon displays. Interestingly enough, I had a few people reach out, one of them being a (village) trustee, saying how sorry he was, which was very nice," she said.

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