A History of THL Pride

By TwoStarMako

​THL Pride started in June of 2021. It was born from an amalgamation of things that were happening in my life at the time, coupled with THL really starting to settle from an administrative standpoint. That’s all of the origin that I am going to talk about because that’s not what is important here. Neither are the controversial events involving certain former players. What is actually important is the people who put time and effort into this event for nothing in return, the money we raise for charity, and the sense of pride in our community that emanates throughout each June. That is why it is my belief that THL Pride is the greatest community event in all of amateur esports. 

When THL Pride was first announced back in May of 2021, the support for the idea was immense. We have always wanted to build the community into one that was more inclusive and accepting. The THL community of today took a lot of work to get to where it is. As someone who has been a part of and worked on the board of many amateur esports communities, mainly League of Legends, I cannot fathom being able to get THL Pride off the ground in any of them. I can say that with certainty because after the success of our first year, I tried. I was hit with either “there’s no way our community would go for that” or “that sounds like a lot of work for little reward.” That’s not a knock on the LoL community as a whole, though. Most of us are really nice.

THL Pride 2021 introduced a few key components that have become staples each year. The first of which was the logo, which has all but replaced the traditional red, white, and blue one of yore. Next was the involvement of The Trevor Project, an organization that you can read more about at the end of this piece. Lastly was the introduction of a community Pride event and merch. In the first two years of THL Pride, we had not found our footing with what we wanted this to truly become. It started off as a celebration of our community, especially the LGBTQIA+ members, with the charity piece being a side part. For our first year, we held a standard tournament and a Battlegrounds tournament, with donations being raised during both events. They were moderately successful but nowhere near what we were able to achieve later on. 

THL Pride 2022 was a small year. I was in the middle of moving and changing jobs at the time and was not able to provide the time for a community event. Thus, we put out merch and raised some donations, but it was a low-key event that year. THL Pride 2023 was where we found our real footing and showed what we could truly do as a community. For THL Pride 2023, I thought, “What if we did a 24-hour charity stream?” Which, if I’m being honest, sounds insane for a small community like ours. We split up the stream into 8 3-hour blocks where one streamer would stream for 3 hours and then host the next streamer, thus passing off their viewers from one person to the next. It truly felt like a community coming together and supporting one another. At the end of that stream, we had raised roughly $1,500. This was TRIPLE what we had raised in year 1. I was blown away. It was a testament not only to the THL and Hearthstone community but also to the streamers who gave their time (shoutout Dragonrider, always ready to go in the A.M.). I want to really shout out those streamers who helped out in that first 24-hour stream: Azalea Akari, Corbett, McBanterface, Chewie, Dragonrider, Edelweiss, Rami, and RonMexico. 

For THL Pride 2024, we decided to run it back and see if we could top the previous year. We went with a smaller group of 6 streamers, but that didn’t stop us from beating the previous year’s total by $100! We also added a very big name to the group with the inclusion of former world champion Pocket Train. Special shout out to last year’s streamers for helping us raise more money than ever before: HapaBear, Schmoopydady, McBanterface, Dragonrider, RonMexico, and PocketTrain. 

All in all, THL Pride has raised $3,839.91 for The Trevor Project since we started back in 2021. Not only have we raised all of that money for charity, but we have also cultivated a community of love and support that is unlike any other community in amateur esports. This year will be our 5th year of THL Pride. When we first started, I thought there was a sliver of a chance we could raise $1000 that year for charity. Now, it’s our 5th year, and I have full confidence that we can raise $2000 this time around. 
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Excerpts from Past Pride Streamers

Schmoopydady
I set a goal of something like 100 or 200 bucks. I decided I'd lean into the "w*ld player" and use my beard as a loading bar. 

At 50% to my goal, just stream with half a beard, like a lunatic. 

Except I was blown away with how quickly I reached my goal, and not only that, exceeded it. They doubled it. Chat bayed for my eyebrows as tribute. 

I had no choice...I shaved my head on stream. Now, the room I stream in is a playroom for my children in all but name. I stream with the lights out and star machine on because it hides the mess and is less distracting. 

So I'm in the dark, playing Hearthstone, holding a bucket, shaving my head, narrating my plays. I did an O K job. And I got to keep my eyebrows. 

I'd say a majority of my audience in chat is queer. Doing an event like THL pride isn't just a fun event to get hyped about, but also a chance for me to give back a little to a community that has supported me so much. I'd love to continue THL pride in the future, even if I'm not on an active THL roster.

Dragonrider
These are always a lot of fun and I enjoy working towards charity fundraising for a cause I believe in. Because I've had flexibility in my schedules I usually end up with odd overnight or super early hours for my segment of the stream, but I've gladly filled that role to get the 24 hour stream trains going and be able to raid into the next streamer! 

Although I'm a smaller streamer, it's always been an honor to participate in the THL Pride streams and share the world of Hearthstone and charity with the Trevor Project.

RonMexico
The entire concept of a chain of raids to keep a 24 hour charity stream going is such a cool idea, and for it to be supporting such a good cause had me immediately signing on board. I was delighted to take part in THL Pride and the community response has been so encouraging and heart-warming.

The individual streams themselves are a lot of fun and it’s a special kind of feeling to get to play hearthstone while engaging with members of the THL community and witness fundraising benchmarks continue to be set. I remember THL going through some growing pains when I first joined, and this event is a great symbol to me of how far we’ve come in creating an inclusive and welcoming place for everyone.
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The Trevor Project

The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ+ young people under 25. Founded in 1998, it offers life-saving support through free, confidential services like a 24/7 crisis hotline, text and chat platforms, and specialized resources for mental health and identity affirmation. In addition to direct support, The Trevor Project advocates for inclusive policies and conducts research to better understand and serve the needs of LGBTQ+ youth, working to create a safer, more accepting world for all.

Learn more at: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/
Donate directly HERE