06/23/2026
A message from Wortley Pride.
After taking time to sit with and reflect on Seraph DaCosta's letter of resignation, it is with mixed feelings that Wortley Pride acknowledges the departure of our Vice President following the 5th Annual Festival.
After five years of extraordinary service, our Vice President, Seraph DaCosta, has stepped down from their role with Wortley Pride.
We do not use the word extraordinary lightly.
Seraph came to this organisation and gave it a face — literally. The Wortley Pride logo you know, the festival visual identity you recognise, the aesthetic language that has defined our presence in this community for five years: that was Seraph. Created from their vision, their artistry, their deep understanding of what this community needed to see reflected back at itself.
Beyond design, Seraph built our stages. They sourced and organised the talent for our drag shows year after year, with a consistent and deliberate commitment to amplifying diverse voices — ensuring that the range of identities in our community wasn’t just welcomed, but celebrated and centred. They created Glimmer, a monthly social and dance to bring the community together and advocated for a "Pay What You Can" ticket price to make it financially accessible to everyone. They brought people to our platforms who had never had one. They made sure nobody was an afterthought.
Seraph did all of this as a Black, transgender, disabled person navigating real hardship — and they showed up with grace, creativity, and conviction every single time. Their contributions were not incidental to Wortley Pride. They are woven into the foundation of what we are.
We want to be clear about something: Seraph did not quit. They put down a shield they had been carrying for a long time, and they did so on their own terms, with their full integrity intact. The work they did here mattered. It changed things. And it will continue to shape this organisation long after this moment.
To Seraph: you were seen here. You were valued here. The community you helped build will carry you with it. We love you, and we are endlessly proud of everything you created and everything you are.
— Kathy, President & Founder, Wortley Pride
