Thalia Cervantes Landeiro knew as a 7-year-old she liked the way chess pieces felt in her hands.

It was an uphill climb to get Wildwood city officials to approve the new recreational zip lines for Hidden Valley, but now the $2.5 million ZipTour project is complete. Outdoor adventurers will be riding high this summer at a site best known for winter ski fun.

Helping young people break down implicit biases by bringing together those in diverse communities from across the country is the dream of Joshua Krakos, 20, of Webster Groves. He is president and founder of Bridge Builders STL, a non-profit student exchange organization.

An estimated 300,000 attendees are expected to descend on downtown St. Louis this weekend, making St. Louis PrideFest the largest free LGBT pride celebration in the Midwest outside of Chicago.