Floats, feathers, brides and boas, Feros Care showed its true colours by marching for What Matters on Thursday.

Almost 42 years since a small group of protestors sparked the beginnings of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras on the streets of Darlinghurst in Sydney, the shopfronts and walkways of the Strand Shopping Centre in Coolangatta came alive in sea of pride, as Feros Care and its employees came together for equality and acceptance.

Adorned in colours of the rainbow, around 60 committed staff members including Feros Care’s Troy Lawlor and his team of trainers created a buzz as they were cheered on during their march through the Strand, slaying stereotypes and showing solidarity in front of a packed centre.

“It was so good to see everyone take part, and everyone had a different spin on it, and everyone was creative in their own way,” Troy said.

“It doesn’t matter if you do a massive thing with your department or you do something little to dress up and participate on the day, it’s just about being inclusive and showing we’re an inclusive practice.”

Feros Care celebrates inclusivity in style

Highlighted by rainbow umbrellas capturing the light and brides and grooms showing the love, the march culminated with a coming together at the top of the Strand to a chorus of cheers.

A crucial date on the annual Feros Care calendar, Troy said the pride-filled parade was “elevated” this year, with the impact, buy-in and culturally appropriate approach reinforcing the company’s ethos of walking the talk.

“Comparing it to last year’s parade, we’ve elevated it through training and awareness which has increased everyone’s knowledge and skills, making more of an inclusive impact,” he said.

“We want to show everyone out there that we’re inclusive, and we’re doing it and not just saying it. That comes back as well from the opposite side and customers come in knowing that when we say we’re inclusive, we mean it.”

At Feros Care, everyone matters

While the march was celebrating equality in honour of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras which culminates with its world-famous parade on Saturday, Troy said Feros Care wanted to show its support beyond the LGTBIQA+ community.

Throwing up questions such as “what are you willing to fight for”, and “who will you fight for”, Troy, who wore a green love heart emblazoned with “equality and acceptance”, said the aim was to provide support for everybody.

“We want to make an inclusive impact and want to show our support for all communities and cohorts and not just the LGTBIQA+ community,” he said.

“People are people regardless of their sexual orientation, whether they’re short, tall, or have dark hair or light hair, it doesn’t matter to our organisation, and we’re very much about treating everyone as a human.”

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