Santee Pride Walk and Festival

The Santee Pride Walk and Festival is an East County San Diego Pride event hosted by Santee United Methodist Church. It includes a community walk and a festival and is typically the first Pride celebration of the season in San Diego County.

The Santee Pride Walk and Festival is hosted by Santee United Methodist Church, which founded the event and funds it through monetary and in-kind donations so it can stay free. The church has served Santee for more than 100 years, holding its first Methodist service in the local schoolhouse in 1911.

The walk takes place in the morning before the festival. In 2026, for the seventh annual walk, hundreds of people followed a roughly two-mile flat, paved loop along Mission Gorge that began and ended at the festival. The festival itself was held in the church parking lot, with live entertainment, kids activities, and booths from vendors and local community organizations.

Dozens of volunteers make the day possible, and applications to help with the walk or festival open early in the year. The church's other outreach includes a free community pancake breakfast, a Blessings Box of nonperishable food, and Naomi's Closet, which provides clothing and hygiene items to women in the community.

Pride events celebrate LGBTQ+ people and mark the Stonewall uprising of June 1969. Most combine a parade or march with a festival of performers, community groups, vendors and food.

Santee Pride Walk and Festival has included pride walk and festival.

The organizer has not announced dates for 2027 yet. In 2026 it was held May 30, 2026. It usually falls last Saturday of May.