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Courtesy of Cupcake Royale

For the past five years, Cupcake Royale's stores in Ballard, Queen Anne, Madrona, Capitol Hill, and West Seattle roll out a parade of rainbow-adorned cupcakes just in time for Pride month in June. The special treats, which are called the Gay Cupcakes, aren't just seasonally appropriate—they rack up donations for LGBTQ+ nonprofits.

This year, the bakery raised about $8,000 for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, a national legal organization that advocates for civil and human rights for LGBTQ+ youth, seniors, immigrants, and families. In June, $1 from each $5 Gay Cupcake sale and $2 from the company's "Make America GAY Again!" t-shirts and trucker hats benefitted NCLR.

"Through a lot of research, we chose to partner with NCLR because of their important work with legislation, public policy, and public education—equality for families, transgender youth projects, and even going to very rural areas to provide education and support," says Nicki Kerbs, Cupcake Royale's director of operations.

In the past, the bakery raised about $10,000 for Dan Savage's It Gets Better Project and about $4,000 to the Referendum 74 campaign, which supported equality for same-sex families, in 2012.

In the future, Kerbs says Cupcake Royale hopes to develop a year-long giving project.

"We rally behind this community and so many others. It's just the right thing to do. Our whole mission is bringing joy," she says.

You can celebrate with Cupcake Royale and the National Center for Lesbian Rights—and enjoy a free Babygay mini-cupcake!—on Thursday, September 8 at their shop in Capitol Hill. Details here.