YooHoo Social: A Full-Stack Event Platform for Queer Communities

A fully featured event and organising platform built for Radical Faeries; with registration, waitlisting, admin tools, wiki publishing, and AI integration via MCP.

Community Organising, Reimagined

YooHoo Social is more than an events platform. It's a custom application designed specifically for the unique needs of queer community organising, specifically for Radical Faerie gatherings and retreats around the world. From event discovery to post-retreat surveys, the platform covers the entire lifecycle of community gathering.

Drake Design Studio designed and developed the entire application from the ground up; public-facing site, registration system, administration tools, and a remote MCP server for AI-assisted gathering management. The result is a vibrant, heart-centred platform that makes organising retreats and events dramatically less work.

Services Delivered

Product Design

UX Research & Design
Visual Identity & Branding
Responsive Interface Design
Playful, Inclusive Aesthetic
Animated Interactions

Public Platform

Event Discovery & Search
Registration with Waitlisting
Self-Service Registration Mgmt
Carpool Coordination
Newsletter System

Admin & Organiser Tools

Task Lists & Assignments
Kanban Boards
Venue Management
Post-Retreat Surveys
Wiki Publishing Tools

AI Integration

Remote MCP Server
Claude & AI Tool Support
Gathering Management via AI
Automated Notifications
Data-Driven Insights

The Challenge

Organising Radical Faerie gatherings is a labour of love, but it involves an enormous amount of coordination. Registration, waitlisting, venue logistics, task delegation, carpooling, communication; all of this was being managed through a patchwork of spreadsheets, email threads, and messaging apps.

There was no single platform that understood the specific needs of this community. Generic event tools didn't accommodate the nuances of retreat organising, like self-managed registrations, community-driven content, or the need for a warm and inclusive user experience rather than a corporate one.

Our Approach

We designed YooHoo Social as a complete platform, not just a website with a registration form. The public-facing side lets community members discover events, register with automatic waitlisting, manage their own registrations, and coordinate carpools. The visual identity; hot pink, turquoise, lavender, and peach with Fredoka One headers; is intentionally playful and non-corporate.

The administration side gives organisers real tools: task lists with notifications and assignments, kanban boards for planning, venue management, post-retreat surveys, and built-in wiki publishing. We also built a remote MCP server that connects with Claude and other AI tools, allowing organisers to manage gathering logistics through natural language. The result is a platform that reduces organiser burnout while keeping the community spirit front and centre.

The Outcome

One Platform, Entire Gathering Lifecycle

From the first announcement to the post-retreat survey, everything lives in one place. No more scattered spreadsheets, lost email threads, or forgotten sign-up forms.

Reduced Organiser Burden

Automated waitlisting, self-service registration management, and structured task boards mean organisers spend less time on admin and more time on what matters; building community.

AI-Powered Gathering Management

The built-in MCP server allows organisers to manage gatherings through AI tools like Claude; checking registrations, updating tasks, and getting insights through natural conversation.

A Platform That Feels Like Community

The vibrant, playful design with floating butterflies, stars, and hearts reflects the joy and inclusivity of Faerie spaces. It's a tool that feels like it was made by the community, for the community; because it was.