St. Louis’ first official Gay and Lesbian Pride parade, technically called “Lesbians, Gays, and Friends Walk For Charity,” occurred on April 20, 1980. Marchers assembled at Maryland Plaza in the Central West End, and the parade went up Lindell Boulevard to the campus of Washington University. Organized by the Magnolia Committee, the parade was the culminating event in a week-long St. Louis Celebration of Lesbian and Gay Pride.

The Magnolia Committee was founded in Glenda Dilley’s apartment on Magnolia Street with representatives from local gay, lesbian, and other minority organizations. Dilley, who adopted the name of Adrienne Rae for her activist activities in order to protect her teaching job, was a seasoned activist who had fought for gay and lesbian rights while a student at the University of Missouri-Columbia. One of the Magnolia Committee’s primary goals was to organize a pride march, and it was decided to call this march a “Walk for Charity” in order to appear less threatening to the wider community. At the same time, other local groups were independently organizing their own Pride events. These disparate events merged to become a full week of Pride activities called the St. Louis Celebration of Lesbian and Gay Pride, capped by the Magnolia Committee's Walk for Charity. After the 1980 celebration, the Magnolia Committee reorganized and became part of the St. Louis Gay and Lesbian Pride Committee.