Lisa Oulton

She/Her

​

Dover Pride Co-Founder and Director of @future_foundry! “I started Future Foundry to help young people learn freelancing and self-employment skills and realise that you don’t have to have a job to start your career - but can just do it yourself! DIY is a strong theme within the company - if you want to start a business, put on a market, have a festival you just find someone who can give you some tips, persuade all your friends to get involved - and then just do it! We’ve worked with over 1000 young people in projects across Kent.

We’ve run Student Makers Markets in Dover alongside training in creative skills, business, zero waste and upcycling. Biggin Hall is our base, with an event space and art studio’s. My first experience of Pride was in Canterbury and I was blown away by how different it felt from any other event I’d been to. I’d read about a ‘safe space’, but to experience it was something quite unique and magical, to be present in a place where people felt completely comfortable to be themselves. Frazer, Sarah and Emma have been involved with Future Foundry since we came to Dover and we’d talked for years about a Dover Pride, so when Drag SOS decided to choose Dover as one of 3 towns in the UK with the least visible LGBTQ+ community and no Pride we decided it had to be done!”

Rainna

 

"I'm super excited to be part of this year's Dover Pride event. I am Head Coordinator Marshal for the parade and I am taking part of the Pride of Artists project that will be showcasing art works around Dover's high street... painting the town rainbow. 🌈 The purpose of the this event is so crucial for the impact it has for Dover and the LGBTQ+ community- creating inclusivity to all forms of love and identity. To be part of creating this is so special. Love is love 🤍."

Bob Chicalors  

He/him  

​

Bob is a rollerskating, drag queen Stage Manager for Dover Pride. “Pride is always a political act of taking up and reclaiming space, to walk down a street in a town where you live free of shame, to wave at your neighbors and fellow townspeople. We’ve collectively spent a lot of time indoors recently. I hope that a physical march through Dover, an IRL gathering together in a safe way outdoors, will make someone somewhere feel a little less isolated. I’ve only lived in Dover for a month or two and thanks to the incredible love and passion of the Pride team I could not have felt more welcome. I want to share that feeling with my new hometown.”

Megan

She/They

​

Megan has been part of the team since Dover Pride's second year and is responsible for Social Media & PR, and is Volunteer Coordinator. “For me, pride is about community, about finding a space in which you are given love, support and acceptance. It’s about having the opportunity to make others in the LGBTQ community feel the same way, coming together to celebrate everyone’s identities. I’m so proud and grateful to be a part of Dover Pride.”

Oliver
He/Him

Hi there! I’m Oliver, originally from a small town called Lublin in Poland. I’m the Volunteer Coordinator here at Dover Pride. My journey in Dover began in the midst of the pandemic, and I’ve been on the lookout for queer communities ever since I arrived. In 2023, I stumbled upon “The Anxious Pickle Club,” and that was the start of something amazing. It felt like a domino effect – from meeting incredible people to joining the Dover Pride team.
For me, Pride is a celebration of who we are, unapologetically. It's about connection, authenticity, and embracing each other’s differences. Having lived through the more challenging realities of pride in Poland, where it’s still an act of defiance in many places, being a part of Dover Pride has been a completely different experience. The freedom, the acceptance, and the community here are beyond words. I’m so grateful to be part of this incredible team and to help make our community shine even brighter!

Alex Newcombe
She/he/they

I originally started in the anxious pickle club in 2022 and first volunteered for Dover pride 2021, it was the first ever pride after coming out and it has such a special place in my heart to be apart of.

Dover pride has helped not just me but the community in Dover with small businesses and helped the tolerance shift with the LGBTQIA+ community in Dover , I assist with creative aspects and odd jobs. The Dover pride team and the anxious pickle club are my chosen family.