An Interview with Pam

Prior to our AGM in June, we sat down with Pam Krause, Executive Director of Calgary Sexual Health Centre to reflect on 2012 and the year ahead. 

 

2012 was an exciting year, especially because CSHC celebrated its 40^th anniversary. What were the highlights for you?


We did an event every month in 2012, so we made sure there were lots of community connections to help celebrate our 40^th year. Our anniversary gala was a huge part of the year for me because we had alumni from the earliest days of the organization there. It brought home to me why we began, and it also helped me recognize what a substantial part of the community this organization has been for 40 years.



Pam was recognized by Global Calgary in 2012
as a "Woman of Vision".

What really struck me that evening was how many things have changed and at the same time how little things have changed. Looking back, we had this immense core of support that led us to do courageous stuff that nobody else would do, and I look to today, and that is exactly the role that we still play. We have a core group of people who support us and have allowed us to be really courageous with our actions, and now it manifests in programs like FAIR and the Training Centre and WiseGuyz.

 

What was new for CSHC in 2012?

One of the most exciting things for me was seeing FAIR (Families Achieving Inclusive Relationships) get off the ground. It was the culmination of a lot of work engaging immigrant and newcomer communities and building relationships with youth, parents, and organizations.

We also started to see a greater focus on prevention. That includes the great success of our Training Centre, the move to serve more youth in junior high schools – and potentially elementary schools – and finding new ways to engage parents through that work. I think those are all massively important in our organization’s overall goal of normalizing sexuality.

 

What were the biggest challenges for the organization in 2012?

We continue to struggle with funding because we’re very committed to the populations we serve and we’re often ahead of the curve in our work. Sometimes that means that funding structures aren’t necessarily caught up with us.

FAIR is a really good example of this. Because it’s true community development, we couldn’t wait for the funding piece to come forward. We needed it to be really organic and to actually see where it went first. The challenge was staying true to our client base and staying true to our innovative programming and then also having enough resources to do all the work we wanted to do. We really depend on individual donors to help us continue to do that cutting-edge work.

 

What are you most looking forward to in 2013?

I’m looking forward to being an organization that is even more heavily focused on community impact.We’re looking at our work with a critical lens to ensure it’s accomplishing the goals we want to achieve. Also the work we’re doing with WiseGuyz, tying research to curriculum and building it in to a best practice, is a very exciting model that we’ll roll out in 2013, and we’ll then start to look at replicating it.

Moving in to the new world of developmental evaluation and validated outcomes doesn’t sound exciting but it is. It helps us tell the story of the impact we have and see the bigger picture. It’s a transformation from being really grassroots to being more disciplined and intentional about the impact we want to have, and knowing if we get there.

 

What are the opportunities for Calgary Sexual Health Centre going forward?

There are way more opportunities for us to work in other parts of the province, to focus not just on the city but on the rural areas where the need is great. There are also huge opportunities in continuing to have really comprehensive programming. We now have a well-established Training Centre, so we have an opportunity to reach clients, and then reach the professionals to sustain our work and build organizational capacity.

The words that we used 40 years ago are very similar to the words we use today – it was all about constantly pushing the boundaries. We’ve always done the critical work no one else wants to take on. That’s the essence of who we are, that deep connection to the community and the people we serve which leads us to do exceptionally innovative programming.

 

 

Infographic: How to turn boys into WiseGuyz

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WiseGuyz is a ground-breaking 14 week program that provides targets education, skills development and support to young men to help them achieve sexual well-being and healthy relationships.

The program employs a comprehensive approach to sexual health that recognizes that sexuality and male gender norms influence young men's attitudes, actions, relationships and their sexual experiences.

The program is currently running in three public Junior High Schools. It has been featured on CTV News and as a cover story in the Globe and Mail.

Our doors are open! And our hearts are full!

Its been a long few months of repairs at our office, but we're finally getting close to the end! We are thrilled to share that our office is now open!

On May 12, some pipes in our building burst and caused major flood damage throughout our office spaces. As you can see, we're still working on the finishing touches - but our doors are open and we welcome you to drop by!











Despite the mess and inconvenience, our staff have powered through the ordeal. Our many programs and services continued to serve the community, and we managed to achieve some great successes:



Our AGM
We hosted our AGM on June 19 with special guest speaker, Dr. Shirley Steinberg. It was a very special evening for us as we reconnected with a full room of friends and supporters, and thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Steinberg's funny and poignant address.



Camp fYrefly 
From July 11 - 14, we held the inaugural Camp fYrefly for LGBTQ youth in the Calgary area. We are still overwhelmed by the incredible energy at the camp and the strong support from the community. We truly believe it was a life-changing event for many of the amazing youth we welcomed to the camp. Thank you to the many volunteers, supporters, donors and sponsors that made this possible. 


And of course during these milestone events for our organization, we along with our fellow Calgarians witnessed the incredible events of the Alberta Floods. The response to the floods has been deeply inspiring, and it was remarkable that only a few weeks later the city hosted the resilient Calgary Stampede 101. And we were there with our CCHA partners to "YAHOO!" along with the city, marking another year of the "Put a Condom on Your Cowboy" campaign.

 

 

Looking back at the past month, we are so filled with gratitude and inspiration. We love the spirit of Calgary!! You make us proud to be part of this great city.

 

 

Midsummer's Dying Light

The petals are falling off the Blackberry blossoms as the fruits begin to form.

Just as Yule marks the return of the light, Midsummer marks the return of the darkness, which will come first in the sweet flesh of summer fruit and then in the dryness of seed.

Its in this liminal time that I seek intimacy with dying things.

My friend Kathleen Maier speaks about how our culture doesn't teach us how to give death to things.  So we carry our grief with us and it gets heavy and weighs us down.  Something I know all too well as a watery person who has spent most of my life burying emotion deep and holding it tightly -- even when the phlegm of grief clogged my lungs, and my liver grew hot and congested from the anger I refused to feel, and the tension of trying to hold it all in made my blood pressure rise.

Kathleen says that she makes time to grieve each year at the Autumn Equinox, releasing sadness and pain, giving death to that which has been lost, so that she will not need to carry it into winter's darkness.

In the space that is opened, new seeds can be planted, waiting to be wakened by sun and rain in springtime.  (Which, here on Vancouver Island, begins at Imbolc.)

For me, though, this year, Midsummer is the time to begin letting go of what I no longer want or need to give my life-force to, so I can reclaim it for the work I choose and the pleasure I desire in this world.

There is still enough light that I will not be overwhelmed by darkness -- remembering how pneumonia struck me last year at Samhain and at Yule when I waited until the nights were long and dark to begin turning inward.   But the dying of the year has already begun, so I will not be swimming against the tide.

In the cool, dark of the woods, Ghost Pipe is beginning to emerge, opening the way to the world beneath the forest floor.

But at the edge of the field, the last wild Roses still bloom, calling me back home with their sweetness when I begin to dive too deep.

The same gate opens in both directions.

What will you give death to here in Midsummer's dying light, that it might return to the earth before its time for seeds to fall to the ground?

The Stampede will go on! And so will "Condom on Your Cowboy" campaign!

The Stampede will go on! And so will the annual "Put a Condom on Your Cowboy" campaign!

We are proud to be working with our partners at the Calgary Coalition on HIV/AIDS (CCHA) again this year to help cowboys and cowgirls in our city to Stampede safe!

 Watch for these posters going up around the city again as we gear up for Stampede. Let us know if you'd like some, or if you want to help with poster distribution.

Along with our partners at CCHA, we'll also be handing out "Love Kit" condom packs during Stampede weekends. (July 5/6 and July 12/13)

We're looking for volunteers to join us for distributing these condom packs at various locations around the city. If you're interested in throwing on a cowboy hat and promoting condom use to stampede go-ers, please e-mail Emily at  eophus@calgarysexualhealth.ca for more info.


Happy Stampede everyone! We hope you can all get out there and enjoy this AMAZING city!


 
 
 

Calgary GSA Network: Summer Break from Roundtable Meetings

With the end of the school year, the Calgary Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) Network will be taking a break from Roundtable Meetings over the summer.

Finding Support Over the Summer
Our last meeting before the summer break had been scheduled for June 20th, but given the extreme flooding emergencies in Calgary and area we decided to cancel the meeting. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience!

This meeting was going to be our "Summer Send-Off" meeting, with information and resources for finding community and things to do during the summer months outside of your schools. We encourage you to please continue to connect with us with any questions and we can point you to resources in the city.

Contact our team member Nick Moore at:  nmoore@calgarysexualhealth.ca


Other resources to check out:

• Calgary GSA Network: https://www.facebook.com/groups/289834511050042/
• Calgary Outlink:  http://calgaryoutlink.ca/

We will be in touch regarding the next meeting later this summer in preparation for Pride and getting ramped up for the next school year.

 

Looking Back at a Great Year

In the meantime, we want to thank everyone for a great school year with the Calgary GSA Network!

 

We marked our one year anniversary and in that time our network has really grown! Check this previous post for our look back at the first year of the GSA network.

 

And here's some things from the year that a few of our GSA members wanted to share:

 

The Bowness GSA held a Popcorn Sale on Apr 17th, and it was a huge success! "It was both beneficial for the group members to show their GSA pride, and for Camp fYerfly to put that money to a great cause," said a student with the Bowness GSA. 

 

On April 18 and 19, West Island College held a two day event called "Be The Change". The first day consisted of promoting awareness and rights through silence, with 120 individuals taking part in being silent for a cause that they felt passionate for. Most participants were silent for LBGT rights and equality in general.

On the 19th we ended the silence as a school - we choose to celebrate and honour our differences, rather than letting them divide us.

Overall it was a highly successful event, which addressed issues and causes that many were not familiar with. Teachers had a very positive outlook on the event, which resulted in many students participating.

Although Common ground is a small group, we were able to put together a school wide event that celebrated and raised awareness for many minorities, in particular the LBGT community.

 

 

Sir Winston Churchill's GSA held thrift sales, bake sales and other activities - and donated $160 to CSHC! Thank you!!

 

 

Congratulations to all our GSA Network friends on a great year! Have a wonderful summer!

 

An Evening with Internationally Renowed Speaker: Dr. Shirley Steinberg

 

Please join us for an evening with internationally renowned speaker and teacher, Dr. Shirley Steinberg.

Dr. Steinberg is the Director and Chair of The Werklund Foundation Centre for Youth Leadership in Education, and a Professor of Youth Studies at the University of Calgary. She is the author and editor of many books in critical pedagogy, urban and youth culture, and cultural studies.

Dr. Steinberg’s work focuses on the cultural/social/educational development of youth. She is concerned with how society views young people, and her work creates an environment in which youth are viewed as positive democratic agents within society. The co-founder of the Paulo and Nita Freire International Project for Critical Pedagogy, she is the organizer of The Critical Pedagogical Congress.

She is committed to a global community of transformative educators and community workers engaged in radical love, social justice, and the situating of power within social and cultural contexts.

Dr. Steinberg's keynote address will follow our brief Annual General Meeting. Come celebrate a year of great successes, new initiatives, and community impact.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Venue 1008 (located at 1008 – 14 Street SE)


6:00 pm Reception

6:30 pm Annual General Meeting

7:00 pm Guest Speaker - Dr. Shirley Steinberg


Guests will enjoy substantial appetizers and refreshments. This is a free event - please RSVP as below.

Please RSVP by Wednesday, June 12
at http://cshc-agm2013.eventbrite.ca or call 403-283-5580 ext: 316