The weather has been hot lately and it could get hotter this weekend in Joplin as JOMO Pride 2021 kicks off on Saturday in Joplin. KRPS’s Fred Fletcher-Fierro has more.

Like many in-person last year, JOMO Pride 2020 was canceled due to the pandemic. The two-day event is returning this year with COVID-19 precautions in place including spaced-out outdoor vendors, a request that vendors wear masks, numerous sanitizing stations, free masks for visitors, and the main festival is outdoors.

The opening ceremony takes place this Saturday at 11 AM on Joplin Avenue in downtown Joplin between 4th and 6th street. It’s the first of the day’s 16 events capped off by the Titleholders Drag Show Saturday from 9 to 11 PM. Sunday’s festivities start at 11 AM and include a Drag Bunch, followed by Pride in the Park, at Landreth Park from 12 to 6 PM. The final celebration of the two events is the Finale Pride Drag Show starting Sunday at 7:30 at Blackthron in downtown Joplin. For 89 9 KRPS, I’m Fred Fletcher-Fierro