ARTICLE
The celebration of LGBTQ+ arts and history expands its offerings and entertainment in 2026. The Rainbow Roots Festival is coming back to Lakeland on Sunday, October 4, 2026. The Rose Dynasty Foundation, in partnership with Pineapple Healthcare, is once again hosting the second annual LGBTQ+ history and arts festival at the Lake Mirror Auditorium, open to all ages from 12 p.m.-5 p.m., with free entry. The vibrant, family-friendly event welcomed over 900 attendees to the space in its first year, filled with 38 vendors—prioritizing queer-owned and operated artists, food vendors, small businesses and community organizations—and 25 performers who took the stage for a day full of entertainment. The second annual event will welcome back many of the same vendors and an even bigger lineup of entertainment, including singers, dancers and local stories of LGTBQ+ history. One remarkable piece of LGBTQ+ history will be available for viewing up close and personal at this year’s festival. Panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display, marking the first time in roughly 20 years pieces of what is known as the “world’s largest community arts project” have been in Polk County (the first being in 1989 at the then-named Polk Museum of Art). Started in 1985, panels of the quilt are 3x6 feet—roughly the size of a burial site—featuring names of the lives of loved ones lost to HIV and AIDS as a way of remembering their stories. Attendees will have a chance to see some of the names of the 700,000 lives lost and foster education and a greater understanding about the impact of HIV and AIDS on the population today. Also new this year, attendees will have access to a pop-up of the Little Free Pantry, whose permanent location is just outside of the Rose Dynasty Center on Crestview Avenue. Spearheaded by the Center’s resident therapist Heather Stambaugh, LMHC, LPC, NCC, CFMHE of Therapy for Misfits, the Little Free Pantry provides food, period, and hygiene products to the local community on a grab-what-you-need basis. This pop-up will give attendees access to free, non-perishable food and hygiene supplies right in the Rainbow Roots Festival, and attendees who bring donations will be entered to win $50 toward a commission art piece by Katrina Evans Art, who will also be a vendor at the festival. “The success of the Rainbow Roots Festival is a testament to the LGBTQ+ community and allies in Polk County, who continuously show up to celebrate and honor the rich history in our area and beyond,” shares Jason DeShazo, founder of the Rose Dynasty Foundation and famed-Polk County drag performer Momma Ashley Rose. “We have been working hard to make this year even bigger, cementing this as a family-friendly, ‘can’t-miss’ event for many years to come.” Admission to this year’s Rainbow Roots Festival will once again be free, and food vendors will be inside with concessions for purchase. A limited number of vendor and sponsorship spots are still available for the festival, and those interested can visit rainbowrootsfesitval.com for more information. ### About the Rose Dynasty Foundation Rose Dynasty Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3), whose mission is to provide a safe and family friendly atmosphere for all people no matter their gender, race, sexual orientation, and/or religion, through mentoring, fundraising, fostering community, and promoting awareness of resources. Founded in 2017, Rose Dynasty embodies the message that you are “Loved, Accepted, and Wanted.” The Rose Dynasty Center opened in Lakeland in 2024 and serves as Polk County’s first and only LGBTQ+ center.
The celebration of LGBTQ+ arts and history expands its offerings and entertainment in 2026.
The Rainbow Roots Festival is coming back to Lakeland on Sunday, October 4, 2026. The Rose Dynasty Foundation, in partnership with Pineapple Healthcare, is once again hosting the second annual LGBTQ+ history and arts festival at the Lake Mirror Auditorium, open to all ages from 12 p.m.-5 p.m., with free entry.
The vibrant, family-friendly event welcomed over 900 attendees to the space in its first year, filled with 38 vendors—prioritizing queer-owned and operated artists, food vendors, small businesses and community organizations—and 25 performers who took the stage for a day full of entertainment. The second annual event will welcome back many of the same vendors and an even bigger lineup of entertainment, including singers, dancers and local stories of LGTBQ+ history.
One remarkable piece of LGBTQ+ history will be available for viewing up close and personal at this year’s festival. Panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display, marking the first time in roughly 20 years pieces of what is known as the “world’s largest community arts project” have been in Polk County (the first being in 1989 at the then-named Polk Museum of Art). Started in 1985, panels of the quilt are 3x6 feet—roughly the size of a burial site—featuring names of the lives of loved ones lost to HIV and AIDS as a way of remembering their stories. Attendees will have a chance to see some of the names of the 700,000 lives lost and foster education and a greater understanding about the impact of HIV and AIDS on the population today.
Also new this year, attendees will have access to a pop-up of the Little Free Pantry, whose permanent location is just outside of the Rose Dynasty Center on Crestview Avenue. Spearheaded by the Center’s resident therapist Heather Stambaugh, LMHC, LPC, NCC, CFMHE of Therapy for Misfits, the Little Free Pantry provides food, period, and hygiene products to the local community on a grab-what-you-need basis. This pop-up will give attendees access to free, non-perishable food and hygiene supplies right in the Rainbow Roots Festival, and attendees who bring donations will be entered to win $50 toward a commission art piece by Katrina Evans Art, who will also be a vendor at the festival.
“The success of the Rainbow Roots Festival is a testament to the LGBTQ+ community and allies in Polk County, who continuously show up to celebrate and honor the rich history in our area and beyond,” shares Jason DeShazo, founder of the Rose Dynasty Foundation and famed-Polk County drag performer Momma Ashley Rose. “We have been working hard to make this year even bigger, cementing this as a family-friendly, ‘can’t-miss’ event for many years to come.”
Admission to this year’s Rainbow Roots Festival will once again be free, and food vendors will be inside with concessions for purchase. A limited number of vendor and sponsorship spots are still available for the festival, and those interested can visit rainbowrootsfesitval.com for more information.
###
About the Rose Dynasty Foundation
Rose Dynasty Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3), whose mission is to provide a safe and family friendly atmosphere for all people no matter their gender, race, sexual orientation, and/or religion, through mentoring, fundraising, fostering community, and promoting awareness of resources. Founded in 2017, Rose Dynasty embodies the message that you are “Loved, Accepted, and Wanted.” The Rose Dynasty Center opened in Lakeland in 2024 and serves as Polk County’s first and only LGBTQ+ center.