Team News

 

 

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WHAT’S HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITY
(EVENTS, NEWS, & AWARENESS)

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CQC 2024 Planning Meeting

Connecting Queer Communities has a big year ahead. What will we do? That’s up to YOU!

Want to help CQC plan what we events we get up to this year? Come on down to the planning meeting and make your voice heard. We’ll pay you for your time and your ideas. The event will take place on Monday, April 29th from 4:00PM to 6:00PM.

Please RSVP by sending an email to john@real-talk.org and he will send you the location.

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May Day Mending With Still Moon Arts & EartHand Gleaner’s

May is the perfect time for some wardrobe TLC. Mend those sweaters about to be tucked away and take a fresh look at the summer clothes you’re about to start wearing.

Bring down something holey, needing a patch or an extra stitch, or those tired but loved garments and extend their life with techniques taught by community fibre volunteers: reinforcing stitches, invisible mends, darning, and various types of patches.

Please ensure your garments are clean and freshly laundered!

Note that natural fibres are preferred ie: wools, silks, linen, cotton or blends of these.

The Experience

Enjoy herbal tea and get inspired by a range of textile mending possibilities; try your hands at a new technique that may start you off on a new mending and remaking adventure!

Think of it as wardrobe repair speed dating.

This is a collaborative ‘Mending Party’ organized by EartHand Gleaner’s Society and Still Moon Arts Society, and facilitated by artists and community members from both organizations.

Get Inspired

Speed dating activities may include: patch dye pots, stitched patchwork, felted and knitwear patching, drop spindling for sweater repair and closet-hacking tricks including simple hand-stitching for complete garment construction.

The Process

After speed dating through activities, participants select a few areas in which to spend additional time, and everyone leaves with their item in better shape than it came, along with some new skills.

Your Investment
This event is by donation, and all proceeds will be split equally between our two organizations.

Logistics:

• Date: Wednesday, May 1, 2024
• Time: 4:00 – 8:00 pm
• Location: Colour Me Local Dye Garden (https://maps.app.goo.gl/35s1NZZ2MjBT5iNW6)
• Hospitality: Herbal tea will be offered
• Minimum age for participants: 12 years old if accompanied by an adult
• Please bring a clean garment to mend, and a reusable container for tea!

Accessibility:

• Colour Me Local Dye Garden is an unpaved compacted-gravel garden located on the northwest corner of Renfrew Ravine Park. Wheelchairs may require assistance.
• There is free parking in the neighbourhood.
• Washrooms are located at Renfrew Community Centre, a 10 minute walk away.
• Benches are available for seating.

About Still Moon Arts Society

Still Moon Arts Society mobilizes community and creates positive change through eco-arts and environmental stewardship programming, and produces the annual Renfrew Ravine Moon Festival. Still Moon is a registered charity whose mission is to inspire vibrant and connected communities by creating artistic experiences and nurturing a passion for nature.

WHERE: Colour Me Local Dye Garden (3958 Renfrew Street #3998 Vancouver, BC)

WHEN: Wednesday, May 1st | 4:00PM – 8:00PM

COST: FREE, but please register! 

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Community Lunch Program at Renfrew Park Community Centre

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Walk, Talk, and Chalk – Champlain Area

*General Walk – No registration required*

Description: Accessibility, the need for parks and greenery (as Champlain has), how nature affects our mental health. I will provide chalk for people to mark what is and highlight what they like most about the neighbourhood. I love how green our neighbourhood is. I love how accessible our area is (mostly). What the city needs to do better is maintain sidewalks, rethink names of parks, have more community connections, and better overall accessibility. I run a disability organization and can bring an accessibility perspective to the walk. I can also talk about the relationship between environmental justice and disability justice. For example, Champlain has a lot of trees on every street. This passive consumption of nature leads to lower rates of medication for depression.

Walk Leader: Heather McCain – I run a disability organization and can bring an accessibility perspective to the walk. Bio: Heather McCain (they/them) is Executive Director of Live Educate Transform Society (LET’S), a non-profit they founded in 2005. Heather’s own experiences as an asexual, disabled, neurodivergent, queer, trans person led them to become a well-known and respected advocate, educator, and speaker. Heather is proudest to be called a Crip Doula. This is a community given Disability Justice term for someone who helps disabled people navigate our complex systems, providing resources, support, and building community. This title was gifted by community members who have felt the positive effects of Heather’s work.

Starting place: Champlain Library

How to recognize your walk leader(s): Heather will be wearing a bright blue ball cap

Accessibility Info: Family-friendly, Wheelchair user-friendly, Pet-friendly, We will have activities for the kids to do with chalk so they don’t get bored. We do have a section on bark mulch in the forest but we will have activities and an alternative route for anyone who is unable to do it. We will also ensure they aren’t alone and are accompanied by people. We will have activities to give to people who want to only participate in the first bit of the walk and need to walk at their own pace (for example, slow walking and standing can be very hard on people – for those who need to go faster, we can send them off with information about what to circle with the chalk)

*this is a 90 minute walk – but people can opt out whenever they like (for accessibility reasons such as limited mobility)

Travel Tips: Parking is available for free on the street and in the mall’s parking lot. There are transit stops next to the meeting location.

This event is taking place as part of the Jane’s Walk Vancouver Festival (May 2-5 2024). Jane’s Walk is an annual festival of free, citizen-led walking conversations inspired by Jane Jacobs. Check out other Jane’s Walks happening this year in Vancouver here.

We respectfully acknowledge that Jane’s Walk takes place on the unceded traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

WHEN: Saturday, May 4 | 2:30PM – 4:00PM

WHERE: Vancouver Public Library, Champlain Heights Branch (7110 Kerr Street Vancouver, BC)

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Vancouver Community Fridge Project

The Vancouver Community Fridge Project is a decentralized food distribution network and mutual aid initiative created to provide healthy, free food and essential supplies to our communities across lower mainland.

Our mission is to combat food insecurity by encouraging our communities to take part in laterally-directed mutual aid, starting with providing free, safe, non-policed, accessible and nutritious foods through community fridges and pantries.

Click Here to Find A Fridge!

All fridges and pantries that are apart of the VCFP network will be operating on a strict no policing, no-shame policy. This means, the VCFP does not condone patrolling how fridge users engage with the fridge, gatekeeping, or any exclusionary or harmful behaviours. The fridges should be accessible, welcoming places based on trust and communication of needs, established by and for the community.

Learn How to Get Involved! 

Spectrum is a member of Inclusion BC and supports their provincial advocacy on behalf of individuals and families with developmental disabilities.

Click here for their report on the provincial budget announced for 2024-2025. 

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Plan Institute Webinars

The Plan Institute has FREE upcoming regular webinars on the topics of the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) and Wills, Trusts and Estates Planning.

RDSP

The Registered Disability Savings Plan is a Canada-wide registered matched savings plan for those with disabilities to better financially plan for their futures. The Level 1 webinar is meant for those who want to learn about what the RDSP is, who qualifies, and how to apply. The Level 2 webinar is for those who already have a RDSP, or have already taken Level 1.

Next Level 1 Webinar: Wednesday May 15th, 7:00 – 8:15pm

Next Level 2 Webinar: Thursday May 23rd, 7:00 – 8:45pm

Click here to register and for more information

Wills, Trusts and Estate Planning (BC Only)

This webinar is meant for those who want to become better informed on the process of wills, trusts and estate planning to better secure the future of your relative or loved one with a disability. There is a limit of 60 participants so early registration is encouraged!

Next Webinar: Thursday May 16th, 7:00 – 8:15pm

Click here to register and for more information

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HEALTH & SAFETY

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ICord – Sleep Routines and Sleep Disturbances After SCI Survey

ICORD researcher Dr. Claydon and her research team at SFU, and community partner Spinal Cord Injury BC are interested in learning more about the sleep routines, disturbances, and barriers to sleep supports experienced by individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI), as well as the impacts of these sleep problems on daily life.

This survey study aims to characterize the milieu of routine and physiological sleep disturbances after SCI. The survey asks about sleep quality, sleep routines (i.e., turning), and sleep problems (i.e., sleep apnea, neuropathic pain, autonomic dysreflexia) as they present in the nighttime. We will also ask how your sleep

Why should you participate in this study?

Poor sleep quality is widely documented among individuals with SCI, with consequences of excessive daytime sleepiness, high levels of fatigue, and reduced participation. Unsurprisingly, 59-80% of survey respondents with SCI indicate having a sleep problem that interferes with sleep onset or sleep continuity. While the correlations between sleep problems and secondary conditions (chronic pain, bladder and bowel dysfunction, respiratory impairment) experienced in the daytime are strong, we do not know enough about how these problems present in the nighttime or how to best manage them.

As such, the principal focus of the survey is to characterize the frequency, severity, and management of 10 distinct sleep disturbances identified through literature review and community partner priorities: turning routines, sleep apnea, bowel care, bladder care, AD, thermal discomfort, neuropathic pain, nociceptive pain, spasticity, and anxiety. Given the potential for reciprocal impacts between sleep disturbances and additive effects on sleep outcomes, it is necessary to study these sleep challenges post-SCI. With the support of patient and community partners, we hope that the results of this study will shed light on the under-recognized challenges of sleep post-SCI to provide context for meaningful change and inform clinical priorities.

You may be eligible to participate in this study if you:

• Have an SCI (inclusive of all injury levels, severity, duration, and cause)
• Are living in Canada
• Are at least 19 years old
• Are able to communicate and understand instructions in English

Compensation for participation

As a thank you for your time, participants will receive $15 via e-transfer. At the conclusion of the survey, participants who wish to receive the honoraria will be linked to an external survey to enter an email to which the e-transfer will be sent. Your email will not be linked to your survey responses.

This study will take place:

• Remotely (online survey / phone / audio call)

Time commitment

This online survey is estimated to take 30 – 45 minutes to complete. Skip logic has been integrated so that you will only be shown questions for the sleep disturbances that you indicate. If not completed in one sitting, the page can be left open until you return to it. If you wish to complete the survey verbally, please contact the survey coordinator (rebekah_lee@sfu.ca) to arrange a call.

Click here to start the survey, or save https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/SleepAfterSCI to start later.

For more information or to sign up to participate, please contact the study coordinator Rebekah Lee by email at rebekah_lee@sfu.ca or call (778) 892-8560.

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Sun Life Healthy You: Be a fan of your health

We launched the Sun Life Healthy You (SLHY) hub in 2023. We want to encourage Canadians to take charge of their health. We also want them to know that Sun Life is here as a partner that can help them live healthier lives. We built the SLHY hub as part of Sun Life’s ongoing multi-year partnership with the Toronto Raptors. It provides practical advice on the topics of goal setting, routine building, physical fitness, nutrition, and mental health.

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Diabetes Coaching with Lumino Health Pharmacy

Lumino Health Pharmacy offers pharmacy services, provided by Pillway. In January 2024, they will begin offering diabetes coaching from a pharmacist to all plan members, free of charge!

Diabetes is a fast-growing chronic disease, and the cost of drugs to treat it is on the rise. Plan members with diabetes often experience other chronic diseases at the same time. Coaching with Lumino Health Pharmacy aims to help plan members follow their treatment and improve health outcomes.

About Lumino Health Pharmacy

Launched in July, Lumino Health Pharmacy is an optional service. There’s free delivery within Canada to help manage medication routines with confidence.

About the diabetes coaching program

To start a coaching session, plan members sign in to the Lumino Health Pharmacy mobile app or website.

• Coaching will focus on lifestyle, diet, nutrition, mental health, health literacy and medication management.
• On-going coaching is also available if needed.
• The pharmacist can also coordinate with other health-care providers (if requested by the plan member). This includes general practitioners, specialists, and dietitians to best support plan members.

SunLife will launch diabetes coaching to plan members in January 2024. They send emails directly to targeted plan members who are actively claiming for diabetes-related medication(s). These emails will aim to raise awareness about the service and encourage them to use it. Standard exclusions will apply for plan member communications.

When plan members sign in to the my Sun Life mobile app or mysunlife.ca, they’ll receive messages about the program.

More details will follow about the coaching program in January, along with a preview of the plan member emails.

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CLBC Reminder to get your flu and COVID-19 shots

Community Living BC encourages everyone who has yet to receive their COVID and flu shots this season, to kindly do so as soon as possible, ideally before the holiday season. COVID-19 remains a risk to the population (especially for those who are unvaccinated) and influenza cases are rising.

Priority to receive the COVID-19 vaccination is given to all individuals supported by CLBC. Invitations for this season’s vaccinations have been sent through email or text to everyone who has registered for a COVID vaccination in the past. It is possible to book both vaccinations in the same appointment! These vaccinations are free and available at pharmacies, health care authority clinics, and some primary care provider’s offices.

You can book your appointment through the Get Vaccinated System.

If you need help booking your appointment, you can call 1-833-838-2323. This number is open 7 days a week from 7am – 7pm and 9am – 5pm on statutory holidays.

Click here for BC’s fall respiratory illness immunization campaign

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Is there anyone you know that is looking for meaningful work?

If you have a friend, family member or meet someone in the community that is interested in joining the team and you refer them to Spectrum, you could be eligible for a referral bonus!

If the person referred is hired and maintains at least 6 months of consistent employment with Spectrum, we will award a $250 Referral Bonus.

*for more information on the program, please email hr@spectrumsociety.org

We thank you for bringing us quality applicants/employees!