Naperville's annual Pride Fest is gone, though organizers say it could return someday, and the organization behind it says that's the point.

Naper Pride founder Margie Wolf told NCTV17 the nonprofit retired its signature September festival to pour energy into performing arts, senior services and recreation programs that run year-round. The decision was made in October 2025, and organizers say they never planned a 2026 event.

Pride Fest debuted in 2021 at Naper Settlement, returned in 2022, took a hiatus in 2023, then ran again in 2024 and 2025. Wolf called the 2025 edition the group's best. The Chicago Tribune first reported in September that the festival would not take place in 2026.

Some confusion arose when a third-party events website republished last year's listing with 2026 dates.

Naper Pride said no festival had been planned.

The nonprofit was founded in 2019 to serve the LGBTQIA+ community and allies in Naperville and the western suburbs. It withdrew its 2026 Special Events and Community Arts funding application before the city made allocations. Wolf cited a budget review and uncertainty around future SECA funding. In 2025, Naperville City Councilman Josh McBroom had questioned whether Naper Pride should receive SECA dollars after the group reposted a comment following the murder of Charlie Kirk. The exact relationship between that dispute and the withdrawal has not been stated publicly.

Wolf described the festival as "retired for now."

What Naper Pride is building instead

The biggest new effort is a community chorus. When organizers floated the idea, 132 people signed up. After hiring a director, about 95 active members remain. The chorus is fully sponsor-funded and free to participants. A concert band is in the works, with plans for a dance group and community theater to follow.

On the senior services side, Naper Pride's Naper Cares program delivered free Thanksgiving meals to 250 seniors, many of them homebound. The organization is seeking a restaurant partner to continue the program in 2026. A fall yard clean-up for seniors and help navigating health care phone trees are also planned.

Andi Dempsey, Naper Pride's vice president and director of health and wellness, leads the group's Health & Resource Fair and connects members with wellness services. Program details are available at naperpride.org.

Recreation is expanding too. A senior swimming group at Centennial Beach grew from three participants to 25 over one season. A noncompetitive basketball group meets regularly, and flag football is planned for 2027.

In a Sept. 11 Facebook post, Naper Pride acknowledged some sadness in the decision but said what the organization is building will have a positive impact for generations.