spectrumadmin, Author at SPECTRUM

Home
Author: spectrumadmin

SPECTRUM News

Relaunch of SPECTRUM’s Rainbow Diversity Training program and new eLearning modules

In January, SPECTRUM embarked on a year-long capacity-building project – Project Excelsior – which was made possible by a generous grant from the LGBTQ2+ Community Capacity Fund.

At the beginning of the year, we conducted a series of community surveys to identify unmet needs in our community. Those surveys revealed a lack of community support for 2SLGBTQ+ people, and an overall lack of awareness or knowledge of 2SLGBTQ+ people and their experiences. As such, an overhaul and expansion of our Rainbow Diversity Training programs was identified as a key goal necessary to the success of the project.

Throughout the year, the Project Excelsior team has worked hard to expand our previous training into a new series of 2SLGBTQ+ cultural competency training offerings. As the year draws to a close, we’re pleased to be able to announce the relaunch of our Rainbow Diversity Training with two key offerings: workshops for organizations and online eLearning modules for individuals.

Workshops for Organizations

SPECTRUM’s Rainbow Diversity Training workshops help organizations along the path towards becoming more open and welcoming, as well as equitable and accessible to persons of all sexual and gender diversities, both to clients and employees of the organization.

Our series of RDT workshops can help organizations at all stages of their learning process:

● Rainbow Diversity Training 101

● Rainbow Diversity Training 102

● Rainbow Diversity Training 201

● Rainbow Diversity Training 301

● Rainbow Diversity Training for Leaders

● Aging with Pride (for senior-serving organizations)

We also have a one-hour lunch and learn that provides a condensed version of the 101 workshop.

Interested? You can find more information about topics covered in the workshops and pricing here.

Online eLearning modules for individuals

In addition to our training workshops for organization, SPECTRUM is very excited to announce the launch of two new eLearning courses.

Why offer online courses?

The continuing evolution of our cultural understanding of gender and sexuality can sometimes make it difficult for non-2SLGBTQ+ people who want to be respectful to avoid using terms that are outdated and possibly offensive. So SPECTRUM is here to help! SPECTRUM’s Rainbow Diversity Training eLearning courses are meant to help allies and people looking to become allies form basic understandings of 2SLGBTQ+ terms, concepts, and experiences.

SPECTRUM offers two options for eLearning about 2SLGBTQ+ basics:

Rainbow Diversity Training 101: a course covering basic terms and concepts
Rainbow Diversity Training 102: a supplementary course that covers privilege, intersectionality, and puts the basic terms into context

Users can choose either to purchase access to just the 101 course, or a discounted bundle including both the 101 and 102.

Want to learn more? More information about the courses and purchase options here.

SPECTRUM News

We’re looking for local 2SLGBTQ+ people to write guest blogs for SPECTRUM!

SPECTRUM is looking for local 2SLGBTQ+ people to write guest blog posts, to be published on our website in 2022, as part of our continuing efforts to raise awareness of 2SLGBTQ+ people and experiences in Waterloo Region.

Guest bloggers will be paid an honorarium of .30 cents per word for posts of up to 500 words. Guest bloggers will retain ownership of their work; the honorarium is to purchase indefinite rights for SPECTRUM to use the work.

What we’re looking for:

Length: 300-500 words
Topic: either a personal story or experience or a specific 2SLGBTQ+ issue in our community
Completion date: blog posts to be completed no later than December 18^th.

SPECTRUM would especially like to hear from Black, Indigenous, and other QTPOC members of our community.

Interested? Submit a pitch for a column topic here! Pitches must be received no later than November 14^th to be considered.

SPECTRUM News

Welcome to SPECTRUM’s new Board members!

At our Annual General Meeting on October 5, 2021 we welcomed aboard four new board members and we would like to introduce them to you.

Nic Brewer (she/her) – Secretary:

Nic Brewer is a queer writer, editor, arts administrator, and serial hobbyist. By day, she works at the League of Canadian Poets, and by all other hours she enjoys crafting and tiny adventures with her wife and their dog. Her passion for community has so far manifested in literary endeavours: she is the co-founder of Frond, an online literary journal for prose by LGBTQI2SA writers, and formerly co-managed the micropress words(on)pages. She is also a novelist, and her debut novel Suture was published Book*Hug in Fall 2021. She loves tea, boxing, and the ocean, and she really wants to hear about what you love most in the world.

Hollee George (she/her):

Boozhoo! Musko Giizhigo Ikwe N’dizhnikaaz. Hello! My name is Red Sky Woman. My name comes from the eastern direction and it means “New Days” or “New Beginnings”.

When I was named, the Elders taught me that when the sun rises in the east the sky is red and so, the red sky tells us that a new day or new beginning has come. I take pride in being and bringing new days or new beginnings to my family and community. With that, I also belong to the Sturgeon Clan, which is an old teaching clan – otherwise known as the fish clan.

My English name is Hollee George. I am a registered section 6(1) status Indian and band member of the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation, located in Southwestern Ontario. I identify as a Two Spirit Anishinaabe Ikwe (lesbian) and have both Ojibway and Potawatomi blood. I am a mother, a daughter, a sister, an auntie and a wife.

In the community, I’ve recently been selected to be the Two Spirit Council Ambassador for Fierte Canada Pride. I am a knowledge keeper, carrier of ceremony, a Jingle dress dancer, political and social activist.

Mark Hartburg (he/him):

Mark Hartburg, 65, has lived in the Region since 2005. A former Lutheran minister he came out in 2014. Since then he has been a volunteer with SPECTRUM and is an activist working to end Conversion Practices/”Therapy” locally and federally. He officiates weddings and other life celebrations. Mark is married to Bruce, has two daughters and a grandson. Together they have a dog and two cats and love to camp in their teardrop camper.

Cris Sheridan (she/her):

Cris Sheridan is a registered dietitian and holds a master’s degree in human nutrition, with a focus in food security and adult education. She works as a regional manager with a medical technology company in the area of type one diabetes. Currently, she is the founding chair of her organization’s Pride Network. Prior to this, Cris worked as a full-time instructor in the Food & Nutrition program as well as the Nursing programs at Ryerson University. She enjoys a good ‘crafter-noon’ or kitchen dance party with her six-year old little human and her dog. Kale, sarcasm, and traveling are things Cris enjoys. When she isn’t being a dedicated co-parent, or working at her demanding job she is usually dreaming of changing the world or eradicating world hunger and heteronormative assumptions or being on a beach in the sunshine.

You can find information about our Board of Directors here.

SPECTRUM News

SPECTRUM Trans and Gender Diverse Mental Health, Wellness and Suicide Prevention Toolkit

Thanks to a generous grant from the Canadian Women’s Foundation, SPECTRUM was able to partner with Wisdom2Action to develop a Trans and Gender Diverse Mental Health, Wellness and Suicide Prevention Toolkit.

In our grant application we noted that, based on the Trans PULSE Study and the local OutLook Study, as well as anecdotal information from our drop-in groups, there was evidence that pre-COVID a large portion of transgender identifying folks in Waterloo Region had not come out of the closet or found that many people in their life were un-supportive or worse, abusive. This in turn subjected these folks to high levels of mental health stress. We recognized that this situation was being aggravated by the isolation due to the COVID-19 public health emergency and the resulting close contact of individuals in un-supportive or abusive environments where they had become a captive audience.

This was the genesis for our project application for which we had two primary objectives:

First, we wanted to develop, publish, and analyse an anonymous community survey asking, among many other things, how COVID-19 isolation was affecting local transgender and non-binary people’s mental and physical health. From this group of respondents, we also wanted to interview a select few to do a deeper dive on mental health challenges. In addition, the Wisdom2Action team conducted an in-depth literature review. The information collected was used to shape the toolkit.

The second part of this project was to develop a toolkit focused on mental health promotion and suicide prevention to be used by transgender identifying folks (people in crisis), and mental health and medical health professionals and transgender allies (people who support those in crisis). We felt such information organized into a toolkit would be very useful to the community during and after the public health emergency.

On September 28, 2021, we held a community forum to share details about the information we gathered and the process of designing the toolkit. You can watch a recording of this session here.

The toolkit is now being printed and we will send physical copies to all local schools, hospitals, community counselling agencies, family health teams, and many social service agencies. A digital version of the toolkit is available to everyone for download here.

SPECTRUM would like to thank the Wisdom2Action team for their hard work in bringing this valuable toolkit to life in a very short space of time. We are also extremely grateful to the Canadian Women’s Foundation for recognizing the importance of this work and making it possible.

SPECTRUM News

Introducing the New Rainbow Pages!

SPECTRUM frequently receives requests for information about 2SLGBTQ+-friendly or owned businesses. It’s been some years now since we last published an edition of the Rainbow Pages directory but we are pleased to announce a new edition is available for Fall 2021!

This project was managed by our former Acting Executive Director, Kristy Skelton, and a student intern, Mimika Ahmed Hazra. We are deeply grateful to:

United Way Waterloo Region Communities for connecting us with Mimika, without whom this project would not have been possible.
All those organizations and individuals who purchased advertising space in the directory.
Finally, a special thanks to our interview subjects for sharing their time and expertise with us: Fran Pappert, Kelsi Seifert, Tony Van Giessen, and Washington Silk.

A digital version of the new directory is available for download here. Additionally, a limited number of printed copies are being distributed to various locations throughout the community.

The Rainbow Pages is just one of three resource directories that SPECTRUM has developed. SPECTRUM’s other online resource directories include:

TransNAV GPS: an online directory of service providers who are trans-friendly and who are experienced in providing services to local transgender folks.
SPECTRUM’s map of gender neutral washrooms across our community. We always welcome feedback and suggestions for new entries. You can send us a message using the form at the bottom of our Contact page.

You can find them all on our Resource Directory page.

Awareness

World Suicide Prevention Day: Suicide Facts and Prevention Resources

Warning: This post is about suicide which can be a difficult topic.

September 10th is World Suicide Prevention Day – an internationally-observced day to raise awareness of suicide and suicide prevention around the world. According to the International Association for Suicide Prevention, “one in every 100 deaths worldwide is the result of suicide.”

Because of stigma, discrimination, and lack of family and community support, LGBTQ Canadians have a much higher risk for suicide:

The Canadian Mental Health Association reports that LGBTQ people face “Higher rates of depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive and phobic disorders, suicidality, self-harm, and substance use among LGBT people.”
Additionally, Egale reports that “LGBTQ youth are 4 times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers.”
Huffington Post reports that “… more than 75 per cent of completed suicides in Canada are made by men, and men still tend to use mental health services at a significantly lower rate than women. Evidence suggests that certain male demographics have particularly high rates of mental health issues. One of these is gay men.”
A BMC Public Health article reports that around 50 per cent of gay men had experienced suicidal ideation. This is more than six times higher than the reported rates for heterosexual men.

If you are struggling with your mental health or having thoughts of suicide, you CAN get help.

Waterloo Region Suicide Prevention Resources:

For 2SLGBTQ+ people in crisis:

If you are in crisis you can connect with Here 24/7 at 1.844.437.3247.

For ongoing counselling, here in Waterloo Region, the OK2BME program at KW Counselling Services provides specialized counselling services to 2SLGBTQ+ youth at no cost. SPECTRUM has established the Chrysalis Mental Health Fund which helps to subsidize the cost of OK2BME counselling for 2SLGBTQ+ adults in our community. To get started with OK2BME counselling you can complete their online intake form or call 519.884.0000.
For those who are able to pay for counselling service, there are many local private practitioners. You can find contact information at Psychology Today. Those who are specialists in 2SLGBTQ+ issues will list it in their profiles.

Within our limited capacity, SPECTRUM works to help local 2SLGBTQ+ people find community and an increased sense of belonging. Be sure to check out our events calendar to find peer support groups, drop-ins, and various social groups you can join.

Additional Educational Resources and Ways to Support 2SLGBTQ+ mental health

Waterloo Region Suicide Prevention Council has put together a page on the risk factors and warning signs of suicidality, here. Their website also has many other resources to help promote well-being and self-care and handle stress.

Waterloo Region Suicide Prevention Council will be livestreaming a World Suicide Prevention Day ceremony on September 10th at 6pm on their Facebook page.
If you would like to donate to SPECTRUM’s Chrysalis Mental Health Fund to help someone access counselling services you can do so here.

SPECTRUM News

Job Posting:
Co-Facilitator, 2SLGBTQ+ Youth (age 18-25)

Job Posting
Co-Facilitator, 2SLGBTQ+ Youth (age 18-25) Peer Support Group x2
Part-time, Contract

Thanks to a grant from the Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund, SPECTRUM is able to fund two
co-facilitators to run a new peer support group for 2SLGBTQ+ youth aged 18-25. This will be a
pilot project for one year with the goal of developing this into an ongoing service.

$25/hour, three hours weekly, 50 weeks
Pay will be by cheque, once per month

Reporting to our Acting Executive Director, the two co-facilitators will work together to facilitate

a two-hour group every week. They will work an additional hour per week to plan and evaluate
the group. Initially, this will take place virtually using Zoom. When it is safe to do so, we will
move to our physical space in downtown Kitchener. This group will be a resource for young
2SLGBTQ+ people aged 18-25 network, increasing their sense of community and belonging.

Qualifications:
● Must be 25 years of age or older
● Must be able to commit to working the same evening or weekend day every week (TBD
based on hiree’s schedules)
● Must have access to reliable high-speed internet and a private place to work from
● Must have access to reliable transportation to our space in downtown Kitchener

● Must identify as a member of a 2SLGBTQ+ community
● Professional social work or mental health work experience is an asset
● Excellent communication skills
● Experience facilitating groups

Events, SPECTRUM News

Join Us At SPECTRUM’s 2021 Annual General Meeting

Our Annual General Meeting is coming on October 5, 2021.

You are a voting member of SPECTRUM if you have made a financial contribution or volunteered 30 hours in the last 12 months. Click here to make a donation today and renew your membership!

Our AGM is an essential part of SPECTRUM’s operations, and our ByLaws require that a certain portion of our membership attend. During the meeting, you will hear a summary of SPECTRUM’s past year, and will vote on our Board of Directors for 2021-2022.

Please demonstrate your support for the work SPECTRUM does, and join us! Click here to register to attend.

This is a public call for nominations for the Board of Directors. If you are interested in becoming a board member, complete our Board Application Form and send it with your resume to info@ourspectrum.com. We will then follow up with you to schedule a meeting with the nomination committee.

If you have any questions about the duties of a board member position, please visit our Board of Directors page.

Note: all nominations must be received by Sunday September 12th at 5pm. All nominations must be a member in good standing, or willing to become a member prior to the AGM. No nominations from the floor will be accepted during the AGM.

Find the AGM agenda and other materials here.

- Annual Report
- Agenda
- Minutes (Coming Soon)
- Financial Statement

SPECTRUM News

The Grand River Rainbow Historical Project is collecting local coming out stories

Banner for the Grand River Rainbow Historical Project’s Coming Out Stories

As part of SPECTRUM’s Grand River Rainbow Historical Project, we are collecting local coming out stories! We believe oral history is extremely important so we are calling for anyone whose coming out story took place in Waterloo Region to create a short video that will live on the Grand River Rainbow Historical Project website.

Our goal is to collect at least one coming out story for every year, going back as far as we can. These stories will catalogue the wide variety of experiences that 2SLGBTQ+ people have had over the decades. Some of them will inspire, others will be cautionary tales, but they all help to make up the fabric of our community and they are all a valuable part of our history.

We plan to launch our Coming Out Stories page on October 11, 2021 — Coming Out Day. First celebrated in 1988, October 11th is National Coming Out Day, a day to celebrate our coming out stories, and also a day to advocate for a world where everyone feels safe and free to live their authentic lives.

If you would like to be part of this project here are the details:

Record a short video (1-5 minutes) wherein you share:

Your name (not necessarily your full name)
Your identity (for example, I am a trans, non-binary person)
The year you came out
And any details you’d like to share about your story

Send an email to scott@ourspectrum.com that includes your video as an attachment, or that includes a link to download your video from a Dropbox, Google Drive, or similar.
Your email must also include an attached video waiver form completed and signed by you.

Before you agree to participate here are some things to consider:

Coming out is always an extremely personal and individual process. 2SLGBTQ+ people frequently come out many times over the course of their lives, sometimes even daily.

You are the only person who really knows if and when it’s the right time to come out, how, and to whom. By sharing your coming out story on video and allowing it to be part of this project you will be forever out to the world. Anyone might potentially see or share your story.

Be sure to consider your personal safety and well-being before agreeing to be part of this project. If you are dependant on someone for housing or financial support, how will that person react to your coming out story? How would your employer react?

SPECTRUM encourages anyone who wants to come out to do so, but to do so in their own time and way. This project may not be for everyone.

If thinking about your coming out story or the process of making a video about it is difficult, you should consider talking about it with a safe person you know or perhaps a counsellor. You could connect with the OK2BME program at KW Counselling Services to find a counsellor.

Tips for Making Your Video

If you are ready to be part of the project, great! Here are some tips to consider when making your video.

Do so in a quiet place, preferably indoors. The sounds of people talking in the background or outdoor nature noises might distract from your story.
Do so in good quality lighting.
Consider what can be seen in your background. Is there anything that you would not like people to see or that might reveal your location?
Please record your video in a horizontal format. If you’re using a smartphone, simply flip it horizontally.

Examples of don’t (record vertically) versus do (record horizontally)

If you have any questions about the project please contact scott@ourspectrum.com.

Download the video waiver form here.

SPECTRUM News

Grant enables SPECTRUM to launch new free social groups for 2SLGBTQ+ adults!

Thanks to a grant from the Kitchener Waterloo Community Fund and the Uvaro Community Fund, SPECTRUM is proud to be able to present a series of new social groups for 2SLGBTQ+ adults at no cost to participants!

Earlier this year, we conducted a series of surveys to learn more about what people like about our programs and services, and where people felt there were gaps. The feedback we received helped us hone in on a few key areas for new programming. These new groups will be run as pilots for one year. During that time, we’ll collect feedback from the participants to help us decide whether we should continue to run them going forward.

2SLGBTQ+ Book Club:

In partnership with Waterloo Public Library, the 2SLGBTQ+ Book Club will give participants the opportunity to discuss books by 2SLGBTQ+ authors, or books that explore 2SLGBTQ+ experiences. We will usually meet on the last Monday of each month at 7pm at the Main Library (35 Albert St, Waterloo, ON N2L 5E2). We have pre-selected books for the first four months but will be accepting suggestions for future titles from participants.

The first four books:

September 27, 2021 – Love Lives Here: A Story of Thriving in a Transgender Family by Amanda Jette Knox
October 25, 2021 – This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
November 29, 2021 – I’m Afraid of Men by Vivek Shraya
December 20, 2021 – Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

In order to ensure compliance with COVID protocols participants will need to register in advance to attend. You will be able to do this soon at the WPL website. Watch our social media for updates.

For those who prefer virtual discussions you can join our group on Goodreads.

2SLGBTQ+ Yoga:

2SLGBT+ Yoga banner with SPECTRUM and Branches Yoga logo

In partnership with The Branches Yoga, the free 2SLGBTQ+ Yoga Group will meet once per month (on the second or third Sunday depending upon holidays) at The Branches studio. For the first session on September 12th at 7:30pm, participants will gather on the peaceful outdoor deck for a beginner’s level yoga experience with instructor Angela. No previous yoga experience is required and this is a space for EVERY body. This is an exclusive space for 2SLGBTQ+-identified people and trans and non-binary folks are especially encouraged to join us.

The Branches Yoga is located close to downtown Kitchener at 9 Samuel St, Kitchener, ON N2H 1N9, one block from the intersection of Frederick and Lancaster.

(Please note that the space is not yet wheelchair accessible, though there are plans to install a ramp to the front door. The main floor practice space is five steps up from street level. We apologize for this lack of accessibility.)

In order to ensure compliance with COVID protocols participants will need to register in advance to attend. You will be able to do this soon at https://thebranchesyoga.com. Watch our social media for updates.

Mindful Movement Group:

This free group will meet once per month. Participants will explore self-care and connection to community through movement with facilitator, Joscelyn Guindon RDMT (qualifying) MSW RSW.

This group will explore movement and dance, and how we can connect with others and with ourselves in an open and meaningful way. Participants will use movement and dance to support being present and exploring new ways to move more freely, while also focusing on having fun and enjoying dance together. This group is for EVERY body. It is trans and non-binary affirming. There is no technique or dance experience needed.

In order to ensure compliance with COVID protocols participants will need to register in advance to attend. You will be able to do this soon on our website. Watch our social media for updates.

Queer Craft Circle:

In partnership with Button Factory Arts, we are pleased to offer Queer Craft Circle. This free group will meet monthly on Zoom to create crafts with local artists. Explore a variety of artistic mediums in this fun and casual group. We will meet on the last Friday of every month from 5:30-7:30pm. All supplies are included and will be ready for pickup at Button Factory Arts (25 Regina St S, Waterloo, ON N2J 1R8) before meetups. Registration is limited to 10 participants per group and is limited to 2SLGBTQ+-identified people in Waterloo Region. Registration will be open soon at buttonfactoryarts.ca. Our first circle will meet on Friday September 24th at 5:30pm.

2SLGBTQ+ Young Adults Networking Group:

Banner for Young Adults Networking Group with SPECTRUM logo.

This free group for 2SLGBTQ+ young professionals aged 25-40 will meet once per month at a restaurant in Waterloo Region. Participants will enjoy a free meal (not including alcoholic beverages) and the opportunity to network and socialize with other young 2SLGBTQ+ adults. The restaurant will be announced in advance and you will need to register to attend. Space will be limited! Our first meeting will take place at Waterloo Brewing on September 24th from 6-8pm. Registration will open soon.

Page 1 of 8

First

Last