Sumner-Bonney Lake meeting filled with opposing public comments after Pride event at elementary school

Dozens of community members addressed the Sumner Bonney Lake School District board on Aug. 20 over a July 26 Pride event held on district property at Donald Iseman Elementary.

The meeting’s public-comment period featured parents who said performers at the event — which was hosted during summer break by Hope Development Practice and included drag performances and family activities — were sexualizing children and that the district should limit use of school property for such events. Others, including the event’s executive director and several parents, defended the rental as lawful community use and warned that misrepresentations about the event have led to online attacks and threats.

Why it matters: The comments forced the board into an extended public airing of sharply divided views about facility rentals, community safety and district responsibilities. Several speakers asked the board to review the district’s facility-use approvals and to adopt clearer opt-in or notification policies for lessons and events related to gender and sexuality. Other speakers urged the district to treat all community renters equally and to publicly correct what they said were misleading social-media posts that resulted in death threats to performers.

Who spoke and what they said - “Daniel,” who identified himself as a parent of a student at Donald Iseman Elementary, said he discovered a flyer for the July 26 event and raised concerns about event programming that he described as including a 90-minute drag show and a “toggling tots parade.” He said he emailed the school and was told the event had been approved through a facility rental agreement. - Abby White, executive director of Hope Development Practice, told the board the agency is a behavioral-health nonprofit that supports LGBTQ people and that drag has historical and cultural importance to the LGBTQ community. White said the organization’s legal team reviewed photos from the event and concluded some widely shared close-up images were taken without consent and were being used to inflame opposition. She said event staff and performers have received threats and that the agency and local law enforcement are working to protect those individuals. - Bill Davis, a community member, urged the board to stand by the district’s facility-use policy and said the district acts as a landlord when it rents facilities to community groups. Davis said the district did not sponsor the event, did not create its content and that equal treatment of renters is required by law. - Several parents and grandparents, including Shannon Lindsgrab and Donna O’Ravez, described the event as inappropriate for elementary-age children and urged the board to adopt policies that give parents greater control or notification over school-adjacent activities. - Patricia Thomas and other speakers described the event as important to LGBTQ families and said community support and safe spaces matter to youth mental-health outcomes.

Board response and next steps Board president (remarks at start of public comments) reminded speakers of the district’s public-comment rules and said comments would be taken under advisement. No board action was taken at the meeting; the board recessed for a short break after public comments. Board members did not adopt any new policy at the meeting but multiple speakers asked the board to review facility-use approvals and to consider clearer notification or opt-in procedures for classroom content and events.

Authorities and policy references cited during public comments included the district’s facility-use agreement and several state statutes cited by speakers (examples referenced aloud at the meeting included RCW 28A.605.005 and RCW 28A.320.230), as well as audience references to a recent court decision (named in comments as Mahmood v. Taylor). The board did not cite or adopt new language from those statutes during the meeting.

Remaining questions and context The district confirmed to speakers during the meeting that facility rentals are governed by an existing facility-use agreement and that the district rents facilities to a range of community organizations year-round. Several speakers asked the district to provide clearer public guidance on which events will be held on school property and what review the district conducts when approving rentals. The board took no formal vote on changes to the facility-use process at the Aug. 20 meeting.