Weekly Newsletter // October 29th, 2019
The mission of Our Gente is to encourage and recognize lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex and asexual youth by providing a safe, supportive environment during our monthly social support groups, community trainings, and community events facilitated by the Queer/Trans Youth Collective. The purpose of this newsletter is to keep the members of our community informed about upcoming events and engaged with LGBTQ+ issues both locally and nationally. We hope that this can become a great resource for young LGBTQ+ identifying individuals in the Monterey County area!
Epicenter's Halloween Potluck
On Wednesday, October 30th from 5 PM to 7 PM, The Epicenter will be hosting a Halloween Potluck open to the general public. Come and join us, bring your family and friends and enjoy an early evening filled with dancing, delicious food, games, and much more! If you have any questions please call the Epicenter at (831) 998-7921, or e-mail Mellisa at mellisa@epicentermonterey.org.
Our Gente Hike Day
NOTE: Because the 4th Thursday of November is Thanksgiving, we have a modified schedule for our social support groups for the month. We will be having an Our Gente Hike Day on November 9th, and will continue with our Sharing Circle series on November 14th.
The Epicenter's partnership with Big Sur Land Trust brings Monterey County youth out into beautiful nature environments several times throughout the year. On Saturday, November 9th, Our Gente and Big Sur Land Trust will host a small group of youth on an outdoor day camp in Marks Ranch just outside Salinas, incorporating hiking, art, and poetry in a fun interactive day on the trails. We'll leave The Epicenter around 9 AM and return around 4:15 PM; all transportation and meals will be provided!
Youth aged 10-17 who are interested in participating in the Our Gente Hike Day are encouraged to sign-up by contacting jacob@epicentermonterey.org or visiting the Epicenter Tuesday through Friday from 12 PM to 6 PM during drop-in hours to pick up a participation form. Space is limited, so please sign up as soon as possible!
Sharing Circle
NOTE: Because the 4th Thursday of November is Thanksgiving, we have a modified schedule for our social support groups for the month. We will be having an Our Gente Hike Day on November 9th, and will continue with our Sharing Circle series on November 14th.
Continuing our series on peer-led and peer-focused social support, Sharing Circle will take place on November 14th, the usual second Thursday of the month, from 6:30 PM to 8 PM. LGBTQ+ youth are invited to share what's on their mind and listen to what their fellow youth have to say in a comfortable and supportive environment free from judgment. It's been very successful and continues to grow every month. Please join us!
Pronouns with
El Sausal's Be Yourself Club
In honor of International Pronouns Day on October 17th, the Be Yourself Club at El Sausal Middle School hosted a table every day of that week during lunch period to help raise awareness of being conscious of people's pronouns. This new generation of youth leaders understand the importance of using correct pronouns and want to make sure their classmates could share in some helpful information to keep them up to date. Name tags and mini posters helped with familiarizing students with self-identification, while informational posters explained how to pronounce different pronouns and how to use them in conversation. Efforts like these shouldn't go unrecognized, so we offer our proud gratitude to El Sausal's Be Yourself Club for their efforts! Keep up the good work!
Latinx LGBTQ+ Film Festival
We have a date! The 5th Annual Latinx LGBTQ+ Film Festival will happen February 8th & 9th, 2020. We are currently developing our film screening schedule, and we're so excited to bring you even more quality film celebrating the intersection of LGBTQ+ and Latinx identity! More details as we have them!
QTYC Recruitment
Our Gente is currently recruiting officers for our Queer/Trans Youth Collective. Our goal is to develop the future of local LGBTQ+ leadership through peer-led education and sharing. QTYC officers are essential to the development of Our Gente programming, ensuring that our events are truly made for youth, by youth. These volunteer positions require a commitment of only a few hours a month and are compensated via small stipends based on participation and attendance. For more information, please contact jacob@epicentermonterey.org.
Visit our website at epicentermonterey.org.
The Epicenter's drop-in hours are 12 PM to 6 PM, Tuesday through Friday of every week.
This issue of our newsletter featured contributions from Jacob Agamao and Mellisa Duarte-Love.
If you are interested in contributing content to this newsletter,
or participating in the Our Gente program,
contact jacob@epicentermonterey.org.
To subscribe to the Our Gente weekly newsletter,
send an e-mail to ourgente@epicentermonterey.org
with "SUBSCRIBE" in the subject header.