A Disease

Creating a space to breathe
Wondering connection?
Lights flicker
Lights ablaze
Hold held
Slight laugh
Long walks at evening

Can one wish be granted?
Hope often disguised
Don’t let me guess
More than survive
Perhaps coffee?
Sit a spell?
Whisper

Lean towards
A childhood beach
Crying out at times
Questions divine
Fostering
Night sounds
Gradual wisdom

Long lines
Pushed aside
Clutching springtime
Different kinds of frailty
Heart held high
Time travel
Bright moon

Every three months
Fear, sometimes slight
Waiting rooms
Old magazines
Waiting
Cold stethoscope
A blur

Present
Lowered gaze
Lifted
Never fully healed
And that’s ok
Lighthouses beam
Circumspect

          
Greg Miller
Rosehedge/Multifaith Works
Housing Program Director

Ryan White funding cut for BABES

Amid the 30th anniversary of AIDS, funding cuts prompt restructuring of BABES Network-YWCA, a peer-based program for women facing HIV that uses Rosehedge/Multifaith Works offices for meeting space. Cuts come as women and minorities become fastest growing population of the newly diagnosed.

The BABES Network-YWCA is streamlining operations in order to continue to serve HIV-positive women while also responding to the loss of federal funding. The newly structured program will provide leadership opportunities for BABES members while focusing on peer support for newly diagnosed women and those who are not currently under care. This new model will rely more on donations and volunteers – from both existing members and the broader community.

The BABES restructuring is largely in response to the Washington State Department of Health and HIV Planning Council‘s decision to cut all Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act funding to BABES. The Ryan White Act provides grants to states and hard-hit metropolitan areas to respond effectively to the changing epidemic. The funding cut amounts to a 75 percent decrease in BABES’ annual budget for 2011.

I am very excited about the new direction that the BABES program is going in.  I think it is very important for women to step up and advocate for themselves and others, especially now with the funding changes for people living with HIV.  It has been a tough transition, as change is really hard anyway. On July 19th some of BABES staff left due to layoffs.   We had a heart-warming going away reception for some of those leaving. It was, however, very emotional for staff and BABES members because we have all become very close to one another.

Now that we have started towards our new direction it seems that the program will not change too much.  The Peer volunteers are already facilitating support groups and on their way to providing one on one peer support to other women living with HIV. We want the Community to know that we are “Still HERE”!

To learn more about BABES got to www.babesnetwork.org we are also on Facebook BABES Network-YWCA!

Nicole Price
Program Manager

Thinking About Becoming a Shanti Volunteer?

Here are some things our volunteers at the summer training had to say about the things they learned, loved, and experienced during the two weekends of training:

•    I learned a lot about empathy and the shared human experience
•    I learned that Shanti volunteers are there to listen and not offer solutions
•    Learning to trust myself
•    I got to see a glimpse of just how powerful this is
•    I learned how stigma can affect different social groups
•    Learning to stop feeling so self-conscious
•    I loved the chemistry of the volunteers and their Shanti Partners [on the panel]
•    I was happy to see real Shanti partnerships and hear their stories
•    I felt validated when I learned that some of my anxieties were not unique
•    I found it very enlightening to hear volunteers and their Shanti Partners talk about their relationship. It became evident that each partnership is unique and has a life of its own
•    I learned the value of self-care and what that might look like for me
•    My check-in partner was very helpful. It’s nice to have positive feedback
•    This was lovely… and has helped me become a better friend/sister/person on this earth
•    Amazing food!

The next training is October 15th, 16th and 22nd, 23rd; two consecutive weekends.

Join us!

Nika Short
Shanti Program Coordinator

Connect the Dots

As a Western Washington University student graduating next Spring in the Human Services Program, I entered a summer internship with Rosehedge/Multifaith Works.  My goals for the internship were to understand the challenges of this population, WAC (Washington Administrative Code), and be able to apply it in support of a very vulnerable population.  I didn't really have any concrete expectations and I quickly came to realize that this organization offers a wider variety of services than I had anticipated.  I came into this wanting to learn more about the functioning of a nonprofit, the challenges of this population, and wanting to learn how best to interact with this population.  I walk away with education beyond books.  I now have the knowledge of what I can do to improve someone’s quality of life today.

The other day, I was chatting with a resident who was saying how she really needs to get her Washington State ID.  She was telling me how she very much wants to go back to school and get her high school diploma so she can show her family that she can do it. The only thing she needs is her ID and the help to find the resources that could assist her in getting what she needs.  Her drive to succeed is there; all she needs is a little boost to get there.  A simple connect the dots to many people but to this woman dealing with the daily struggles of a life-threatening disease, it was a huge leap.  I didn’t have to tutor her on Algebra. I didn’t have to counsel her or her family on repairing their relationship.  That day all I had to do was provide a few resources and be there to listen.  Today, I feel like I made a difference.

Mitra Abab
Intern - Rosehedge/Multifaith Works