DABC has received the following notice from BCITS:

Dear colleagues and friends,

Have you ever thought about what it means to be able to open a door?

Watch BCITS’ new video “Opening Doors to Independence” to find out what it really means for people with disabilities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYHYrSR-1aQ

BCITS, along with the Kinsmen Foundation of BC and the BC Rehab Foundation, are in partnership to help to provide people with disabilities in need with power door openers.

We are proud to be part of a unique initiative that brings freedom and independence to people who need it most.

Our major fundraising event for the Opening Doors to Independence Fund is the annual BCITS/Kinsmen Foundation Golf Classic which is coming up on September 17, 2015 at the Mayfair Lakes Golf Club.

We need your support to make this event a success.

Please circulate this video link through your social media platforms and let people know about the Golf Classic. More information here: BCITS & Kinsmen Foundation – Golf Classic

For more information on how to register, sponsor or donate prizes, please contact Clara Chalifour at cchalifour@bcits.org.

Thanks for helping us to open more doors to independence in British Columbia.

 Positive Living BC has launched a new online peer support group called Online Connec+ for people living with HIV (PLHIV). Online Connec+ will provide HIV education, support and community referrals to people throughout the province who might otherwise be unable to access these services.

Online Connec+ will be facilitated by Positive Living BC’s Peer Navigators. A Peer Navigator is an HIV-positive person trained in HIV-specific health issues, self care, safer sex, sexually transmitted infections, and disease progression. Navigators offer a valuable perspective on managing HIV based on their personal experience with the illness, training and their experience working with other PLHIV.

Program leader Michael Crate notes, “Online Connec+ was started as a natural extension of the Peer Navigator program. The group will be an open format meeting. We will talk about what is currently going on for participants in relation to their HIV diagnosis. This might include health, treatment or self-care issues, stigma, isolation, disclosure, or dating. Peer Navigators will be there to facilitate the group, or do one-on-one counseling.” Elgin Lim, Positive Living BC’s manager of programs and services adds, “Living with HIV can be isolating, particularly in smaller communities. Online Connec+ can help people feel less alone, allow people to share experiences, and provide an opportunity to make new connections with other people living with HIV, no matter where they are in the province.”

Online Connec+ is open to anyone living with HIV in BC. All genders, sexualities and ages are welcome. The group will meet twice a month on Monday night from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. For more information or to participate, call Positive Living BC’s toll-free number (1-800-994-2437) and leave a confidential voicemail, or email Michael Crate at michaelc@positivelivingbc.org.

We are delighted to introduce our newest video, “A Glimpse of Possibility: Resilience” about maintaining resilience while living with disability/chronic illness. Thank you to Carol, Lillian and Darren for sharing their stories about coping with illness and disability.

Lillian coined the phrase, “a glimpse of possibility” several years ago while talking about resilience with DABC’s Shelley Hourston. We felt it was an ideal title for our most recent video created by Brianne Nettelfield of Feel It All Productions (http://www.feelitallproductions.com).

We are grateful for funding from Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) for funding our AIDS & Disability Action Program/Wellness & Disability Initiative and this video.

To watch the video, please visit our website:  https://disabilityalliancebc.therightfitbc.org/health.htm