St John WA’s Pride Ambulance joins the goldrush to celebrate diversity

St John WA’s Pride Ambulance has hit the road again for another regional Pride event.

This time it was Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s turn to be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow with the KN Pride Festival taking place on September 28.

Pride in the Park was billed as a celebration of unity, with members of the LGBTQI+ community gathering with local allies, visiting families, and representatives from allied organisations participating in the fun event.

St John WA’s Kalgoorlie Sub Centre arranged a colourful stall with the Pride Ambulance pumping out the tunes while children could take a tour of a real working ambulance.

Local volunteers were joined by Station Manager Rachel Lamb, Community Paramedic Shane Austin, and Transport Officer Ben Reich, who treated the crowd to an impromptu rendition of the Nutbush and handed out information about volunteering and first aid.

It was the first time St John WA had been involved in the local event, and Rachel said she was proud to support KB Pride.

“We’ve had a lot of kids through the ambulance and a lot of conversations with everybody,” she said.

“It’s been really good.”

“We need to credit Ben for getting the Pride Ambulance here.”

Ben, who has been based in Kalgoorlie since April, said he was inspired to get the Pride Ambulance to the event after seeing it at Albany, Broome, and Carnarvon Pride events.

“I was aware the ambulance was in Carnarvon because I saw it on socials and I wanted to see if we could get it here,” Ben said.

“I was in the Pride Parade last year in the city and I enjoyed it. It was my first one and I had a really good time.

“So I wanted to bring that atmosphere to the Goldfields.”

St John WA has marched in the Perth Pride Parade for the past seven years, and has taken the Pride Ambulance on the road to celebrate in the regions.

The next chance to see the Pride Ambulance will be at Pride WA’s Fairday on November 17 in Supreme Court Gardens.