Creating safety and support for LGBTQQ youth since 1998.

There’s still time to register! Stonewall Activism Summer School August 25th-28th.

Look what our queertastic neighbors to the north in Olympia, WA are putting on again! It’s SASS! (click this link for more info on this super rad program!) Bring what you learn back to Portland and take this town by storm!

What is Stonewall Activism Summer School (SASS)?
A FREE four day long training for young community organizers and activists ages 13-21 to discuss and take action about the issues that are affecting our lives.

How do I apply?
Please fill out our SASS Participant Application and return it to us via our email speakersbureau@stonewallyouth.org or mail it to us at Stonewall Youth PO BOX 7383 Olympia, Washington 98507. All applications are due by August 13th. You will receive a confirmation by email that your application was received as well as a follow up phone call.

What Happens at SASS?
Participants at SASS follow a week-long schedule which includes “training for trainers” workshops in the morning which work to create skills and tools for organizing and facilitation. In the afternoon, guest facilitators come and do workshops on a number of topics including (but not limited to) racial justice, body image, trans empowerment, art and activistm, etc. In the evenings there are different activities planned; nature walks, a talent show, and a dance party!

Who is Stonewall Activism Summer School for?
SASS is for all young people ages 13-21 who are looking to gain tools and skills to organize in their communities, schools, and workplaces. SASS is sponsored by Stonewall Youth which supports Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Question, Queer and Intersex young people but this training also welcomes allies who identify as straight.

When and Where is it?
The dates for this year’s SASS are Wednesday August 25th through Saturday August 28th. SASS will be held in downtown Olympia, and the exact location will be sent to you after you submit your application. In the last two years young people have come from all over Washington (and a few out-of-staters too) to participate and learn how to create change in their communities! Participants need to find their own ride into town, but we can also help you brainstorm carpool and bus options.

Housing:
Community housing is provided free of charge for all out of town participants of SASS. You are also welcome to stay in your own accommodations if but if you are under 18 they will need to be ok’d with a parent/guardian.

Food:
Food is made and donated by local community members and businesses. Breakfast, lunch and snacks are provided and participants are expected to provide their own dinner.

If you have any questions, please email Stonewall Speakers’ Bureau at speakersbureau@stonewallyouth.org or call our office at 360-705-2738.

This weekend at SMYRC! Bowling, Carnival and BBQ!

We’re kicking off August with a BBQ and carnival here at SMYRC, put on by Molly’s fabulous PSU class!

TOMORROW NIGHT Friday, August 6th from 5-8pm

Games include bowling, henna & face paint, cake walk, a build-yr-own-barbie deconstruction craft table, bean bag toss, fishing for prizes, & weather pending, a water balloon toss!

We’ll have veggie and meat BBQ options so come out for dinner and some fun tomorrow.

Then get ready for karaoke night at SMYRC next weekend, Satuday, August 14th from 6-8pm. A free raffle, vegan and non-vegan pizza and ice cream and a chance to sing your favorite songs! Send any song requests to us this weekend.

See you tomorrow!

Hiring Committee and Community Outreach!

Hello folks,

I hope everyone is keeping hydrated, cool and slathered in sunscreen now that the temperature is rising. We’re in our first full summer at our space on MLK and we’ve never been so happy to have air conditioning at SMYRC! Drop in is busy and I, for one, am ready for a picnic in our beautiful back garden space. (With tasty veggies from our garden!)

We’ve got a few things coming up at SMYRC and WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Community Outreach Walk
July 9th 2010

The first official community outreach walk with SMYRC volunteer Lyndsey and Jess will be this Friday, July 9th, leaving SMYRC at 3pm. During the walk we will explore the Boise-Eliot neighborhood by taking photos, video, notes, drawing pictures, and interviewing people we meet. Ultimately this is an opportunity for people in the neighborhood to learn a bit more about SMYRC and for us to learn a bit more about the neighborhood. We’ll finish our walk with popsicles and zine making!

Also, Monday, July 12th we’ll be doing interviews to hire some new on-call drop in staff at SMYRC now that Sunshine and Kerst’s Americorps terms are up. If you want to be on the hiring committee, send me an email at jess.herbach@smyrc.org or call 503.969.2266.

And, as I mentioned above, last Wednesday was Kerst and Sunshine’s last day as rad SMYRC Americorps members. We had a lovely goodbye for them in drop in, complete with delicious cake and beautifully made cards by SMYRC youth and a bit of SMYRC-style teasing involving Kerst wearing their fancy gardening hat around drop in and everyone reminiscing their favorite funny Sunshine free-pile moments. SMYRC is so lucky to have had them all around for as long as we did! THANK YOU Kerst and Sunshine for all the time and passion you put into SMYRC!!

Enjoy the sun, take care of each other and we’ll see you this weekend!

And now, your SMYRC weekend forecast: Sunny!

Greetings from sunny(!!!) northeast Portland!

I'm sure you thought that with Pride weekend over, SMYRC would be stretched out, relaxing in the sun and takin' a break... but we've got a weekend line up that will convince you to come in from all the adventures that Portland summer has to offer and head on over to SMYRC.

Friday, June 25th

5pm Mr. Oregon Leather 2009 and friends will be facilitating a safer sex conversation in drop in. Bring questions or conversation topics about safer sex, BDSM, and the complexity of queer relationships or just come to listen. And as always, we've got free condoms and lube so that the education doesn't have to stop at SMYRC!

6pm Alex, the founder of Q Poetry will be leading our new monthly writing workshop. Bring stuff to get feedback on, your writing brains, your favorite pen and notepad, your laptop or just yourself and we'll take care of the rest!

8pm Open Mic #103! Ready to perform that drag number you've been working on? Want to share what you wrote in writing group? Want to dance, sing, do a monologue, a puppet show or some other rad performance that you've been waiting to do at SMYRC? Sign up starts at 7pm and the show starts at 8pm!

Saturday, June 26th

5-8pm Come to SEX CHAT with Nili from Outside In's Guerilla Theatre program! SEX CHAT is a three session workshop on sexual health. Nili will be facilitating two of these workshops here at SMYRC. Attend these two back to back workshops and become eligible as a PAID media intern in July in a collaborative project with Portland Community Media (SMYRC's neighbors just down the street!). Pizza and snacks will be provided. See attachments for more details on the internship and on the SEX CHAT workshops.

6pm For folks interested in community outreach in SMYRC's neighborhood, volunteer Lyndsey will be facilitating a conversation about working with cameras, tips for interviewing and interviewing folks around drop in for a "Welcome to SMYRC Drop In" zine that the community outreach group is working on.

There you have it, folks! See you at drop in this weekend. And thanks again to all the amazing SMYRCer's who came out to march in the parade, helped out at the Teen Oasis and SMYRC booths and performed at Pride!

Media Internship.doc

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