Summer has arrived, and hopefully the monsoons, too. Some people think that things slow down for TIHAN in the summer, but the reality is that our CarePartners living with HIV don’t disappear—in fact the heat makes bus travel more challenging, as well as increased costs for evaporative coolers and a/c for those fortunate enough to have them. But some of TIHAN’s volunteers and staff take summer vacations if they can, so we often have fewer folks to provide support. So summer is definitely not a downtime for TIHAN, even though donations and volunteer efforts tend to wane at this time of year. As things become more challenging for the people we serve (in terms of the heat as well as cuts in government-funded social services and support), we’re offering ways for folks to get involved, including an important community session on civic engagement and how you can get involved and have your voice heard.
In our ongoing efforts to keep you informed and engaged,
Scott
Quick Links to This Month’s Articles
- Civic Engagement: Learn How You Can Get Involved as Important Decisions Are Made by Our Government
- Opportunities to Serve Our Community – TIHAN Volunteer Orientations Coming Up
- Supporting Local Businesses that Support Us This Summer
- Care & Support Training Prepares Our Volunteers to Serve
Civic Engagement: Learn How You Can Get Involved as Important Decisions Are Made by Our Government
We are excited to offer a session on civic engagement and helping people understand how to have their voices heard on the issue of HIV funding cuts and more. This is an important issue for all of TIHAN’s volunteers, donors, CarePartners, staff, faith communities, and partner agencies. We are grateful that so many nonprofits and faith communities have joined as co-sponsors of this non-partisan event, including SAAF, El Rio, Petersen HIV Clinics, and many more coming together in support of our community. Please share this information with people in your circles who care about what’s going on. Facilitators for this session include Dr. Kevin Carmichael, Dr. Alison Sutton-Ryan, and Pima County Supervisor Andrés Cano. In addition to an overview of the more than $2.5 million in HIV funding cuts already handed down in Southern Arizona, we’ll be discussing these topics:
- Identifying Your Advocacy Goals
- Understanding Risk in Advocacy
- Ways to Get Involved (Advocacy Tools)
- Intersectionality with other Justice Issues
- Safety Considerations
- Self-Care as Activism
Whether your key issue is HIV funding, or another justice issue, attendees will find this helpful. An RSVP to scott@tihan.org is required in order for admission. We’ll share the midtown event location after you RSVP.
Opportunities to Serve Our Community – TIHAN Volunteer Orientations Coming Up
Are you interested in finding out more about volunteer opportunities within TIHAN? We have direct services roles, as well as office help, and fundraising support needed, too. Additionally, we are seeking people to serve on our Board of Directors and its committees, including program evaluation and development/fundraising. We are also starting to recruit volunteers for our soon-to-be implemented Buddy program. We have lots of opportunities to learn and serve, and we have Volunteer Orientations coming up over the next several months. Advance registration is required – please contact us at VolunteerCoordinator@tihan.org or 520-299-6647 to get more info and get started with our volunteer onboarding process!
Supporting Local Businesses that Support Us This Summer
Summer is here, and it can be a challenging time for local businesses. Please support all of the local businesses, shops, and restaurants that generously support TIHAN and other important community causes. It’s especially important during these summer months when business might be slower. Thanks for always supporting those who support us!
Care & Support Training Prepares Our Volunteers to Serve
Depending on your volunteer interests, our Care & Support Training might be a great opportunity for you to be prepared with tools to provide meaningful, compassionate care to our CarePartners living with HIV. This session, which we just re-started, covers key topics such as:
- Standards of confidentiality
- LGBTQ+ 101
- Power, privilege, and cultural responsiveness
- Empathy and healthy boundaries
These areas are vital to strengthening our community and ensuring volunteers feel prepared and supported in their roles supporting our CarePartners. Our recent attendees (pictured here) gave the training very positive reviews: “outstanding and informative,” “fabulous!” and “very thorough.”
Our next Care & Support Training will be held on Saturday, August 16. Interested in joining us? Be sure to attend a Volunteer Orientation first — it’s a required step. To sign up or learn more, contact us at 520-299-6647!
