Events in the Pines
Looking for community events in the Pines?
Whether you are a resident, friend, or visitor, you'll be sure to find something that will make you fall in love with the Pines.
Community Bulletin Board
The Digital Community Bulletin Board is a free service FIPPOA provides to our Members and subscribers. We only highlight local events that fund non-profits.
There are many more events in The Pines and Cherry Grove that are highlighted on fliers or email lists for those specific businesses.
You can “go analog” and check out the physical community bulletin board in the harbor, in the East pavilion in the Harbor. You’ll find many local businesses highlighting their services.
To have your charitable event included in our community bulletin board, please note the following:
Graphics must be less than 5 MB.
The submission deadline is Tuesday at noon for the Community Bulletin Board distribution on Thursday.
Event must fund a non-profit
Juneteenth
An annual holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S., Juneteenth has been celebrated by African Americans for over two centuries.
In 2021, the Pines proudly celebrated this event produced by The Black and Brown Equity Coalition (BaBEC) in the Grove with full weekend of activities. FIPPOA’s Committee on Black Equality (CoBE) is honored and proud to be a coalition partner.
The Invasion
Every year on July 4th, while many people are lighting up their backyard grills, the Pines heats up with The Invasion.
Now an annual event, it commemorates a significant day in the history of Fire Island Pines and Cherry Grove. The story goes like this: one day in the summer of 1976, a restaurant in the Pines refused to serve Terry Warren, a drag queen who was visiting from the neighboring community of Cherry Grove. While both the Pines and Cherry Grove were predominantly gay communities at the time (and still are), the residents of the Pines were more affluent, more socially conservative, and more closeted than the residents of Cherry Grove. When Warren’s friends in Cherry Grove heard the story, they gathered together in a group and came back en masse to the Pines in support of their friend.
On July 4, 1976, with Cherry Grove’s 1976 Homecoming Queen Thom Hansen (aka Panzi) in the lead, they sailed to the Pines by water taxi. The boatload of drag queens that stormed into the Pines that day—to a surprised but exuberant welcome—was the first “invasion.”
Decades later, FIPPOA hosts the annual Fourth of July Invasion of the Pines, which attracts hundreds of drag queens and thousands of spectators every Independence Day. Drag queens from Cherry Grove and the Pines gather at the Ice Palace Bar in Cherry Grove; after parading through the town, they board a chartered ferry and sail to the Pines Harbor, where they are greeted by cheers. Panzi stills hold court as mistress of ceremonies and announce each drag queen as she disembarks from the ferry and marches onto the dock in the Pines.
To join as an Invading Queen:
Get your outfits, makeup, and housemates ready!
Meetup is at the Ice Palace in Cherry Grove on July 4th between 12p-1p. Don’t be late!
Shortly following is a brief parade to the Cherry Grove ferry dock for the ride over to the Pines!
Be sure to have your looks ready! You might even be a WINNER BABY!
Join our newsletter to stay up-to-date on The Invasion
Pines Party
The Pines Party, The Pines Foundation’s major annual fundraising event in late July, is a three-day celebration of community, music, and dance and the premier event on the Fire Island Pines summer calendar.
With over 3000 participants drawn from across the globe, Pines Party weekend includes a full calendar of events culminating with the legendary themed all-night party on the beach.
Since its inception in 1999, Pines Party has raised over $3.7 million for The Pines Foundation, of which more than $1.3 million has been donated to Stonewall Community Foundation to support its critical grant-making program with NYC area LGBTQ+ non-profits.
Other Charitable Events
In addition to events hosted by FIPPOA, these local, regional, and national organizations host annual events in the Pines.
Anti-Violence Project hosts an annual performance and pool party fundraiser to support its work empowering lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and HIV-affected communities and allies to end all forms of violence through organizing and education, and supports survivors through counseling and advocacy.
BOFFO is a nonprofit organization that presents innovative and experimental art & design. BOFFO’s artist programming provides cultural enrichment and constant activity that engages the diverse residents and visitors of the Fire Island Pines. All programs are free and open to the public.
Fire Island Pines Arts Project (FIPAP) hosts a wide variety of performances from June to September, featuring top talents, such as Broadway stars and musical guests. Its Labor Day weekend show is a legendary community fixture. Inaddition, the Biennial Art Show, sponsored by FIPAP, is an opportunity to browse and buy fine art pieces from Pines residents.
Fire Island Pines Fire Department hosts a community barbecue and open house one Saturday afternoon each season.
Fire Island Dance Festival The annual Fire Island Dance Festival has become one of the most anticipated events in Fire Island Pines. The weekend-long festival presents a series of spectacular performances by world-renowned and emerging dancers, dance companies and choreographers outdoors against the dazzling backdrop of the Great South Bay.
Human Rights Campaign (HRC) hosts a pool party in the Pines as a fundraiser. Please refer to their event details for more information.
Lambda Legal in the Pines is an annual brunch and pool party that raises funds to support its work in protecting the civil rights of LGBTQ people and everyone living with HIV.
Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE) holds an annual fundraiser each year to improve the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender older adults; advocate for public policy changes, and foster a greater understanding of the effects of aging.
Women’s Pride in the Pines, sponsored by the LGBTQ Focus Foundation, provides funds and awareness to support LGBTQ community organizations and programs that promote equality.
Many other non-profits are active in the Pines and have benefited from the Community Bulletin Board. These include Callen Lorde, FIPHPS, Gay & Lesbian Task Force, Hetrick-Martin Institute, Immigration Equality, Shabbat in the Pines, Homeward NYC, Arts Project of Cherry Grove, and a few more we may have missed!
Sign up for our newsletter to receive our digital Community Bulletin Board, sent out periodically during peak season.
Past Events
Pines 70th Celebration (2023)
The Pines was established in 1953 and has been uniquely self-governing from the beginning.
To commemorate the platinum anniversary of our community’s founding, FIPPOA partnered with a number of Pines organizations to bring a full calendar of events throughout the 2023 season.
The capstone beach party, presented by FIPPOA, on Saturday, August 19th 2023, incorporated inspiration from legendary beach events over the decades.
Clam Bake (2015)
In 2015, FIPPOA hosted a community clam bake on the beach of Fire Island Pines.
France Joli returned to the beach in The Pines on Fire Island where 36 years ago she made her debut at the Beach '79 party and wowed the crowd with "Come to Me." She was 16 years old and her career took off. Her voice still sounds as good now as it did then.