ACAS Annual General Meeting

On behalf of Asian Community AIDS Services (ACAS), it is my pleasure to invite you to our 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Saturday, November 21 from 2:00 – 3:30p.m. The highlight of our AGM is the ACAS award ceremonies for Aries Cheung for the Community Builder Award and Paul Fernandez who received (posthumous) the Patrick Truong Award. Please fill out an online registration form at https://forms.gle/CzCdJj3cWzViCwoW9. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we will be holding our AGM this year via video-conference. We will send the program and meeting link to registered attendees closer to the day of the event. If you are interested in becoming a Board Member of ACAS, please contact me at boardchair@acas.org, or Noulmook Sutdhibhasilp, ACAS Executive Director, at ed@acas.org by Friday, November 13, 2020. I thank you for your continuous support of ACAS and look forward to seeing you at our AGM. Supporting our community, caring for our future, Fiona Lee Chair, Board of Directors Board Recruitment Info:

Rainbow GPS Project

Register at https://forms.gle/3cekSdxxFwZy1tY59 Rainbow GPS Project is an orientation project for East/Southeast Asian LGBTQ Newcomers and International Students who are transitioning to live in Toronto and in Canada. Through weekly drop-in sessions, the Rainbow GPS project will be a learning space for people to explore themes around sexuality, gender identity, coming out, consent, dating and relationships, and body image. The objectives are to LEARN different concepts and themes, APPLY key learning outcomes, and SHARE personal or lived experiences. Through these objectives (learning, applying, and sharing), the Rainbow GPS Project aims to explore various LGBTQ+ identities that are specific to East Asian and Southeast Asian cultures and how those LGBTQ+ identities are being translated to Western society. The Rainbow GPS Project is open to East and Southeast Asian LGBTQ+ International Students and Newcomers. The Rainbow GPS Project focuses on LGBTQ+ resources in the Greater Toronto Area, but people can register from across Canada and can participate in the workshops.* The program will have a total of four (4) workshops on TUESDAYS starting November 17, 2020. All workshops are held through Zoom. The 4 sessions are: November 24, 6pm EST: Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) 101 December 1, 6pm EST: Coming Out (to Myself) December 8, 6pm EST: Sup? Looking?: Navigating queer dating in an online world December 15, 6pm EST: I am My Body: Consent, body image, and desire Contact Bryan Quinones (acasrainbowgps@gmail.com) for more information. *(Due to the unprecedented events that was caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic, the sessions will be happening online via zoom. This allows the program to be available for other LGBTQ+ newcomers and international students who may not be physically living in Toronto.) The Rainbow GPS Project is funded by Community ONE Foundation

Volunteer Training: Intro to ACAS & HIV 101

Want to be a volunteer at ACAS? We have 3 training workshops to equip you with the necessary knowledge and skills to volunteer with us. These skills can also apply to your professional and/or personal life. Looking forward to you joining our ACAS family! The first workshop will give you an introduction to ACAS, the staff, services, and programs. It will be important to know so that you are able to clearly refer peers and community members to the right services and programs. ACAS services are rooted in HIV education and reducing HIV stigma. It is important to understand HIV transmission and the latest prevention strategies in order to help educate your peers. To register, email the Volunteer Coordinator: Trisha at volunteer@acas.org Please try to attend all 3 workshops in order to receive the full training, but you can still join if you can only attend 1 or 2. 3 workshops, every Tuesday, 7pm-9pm EST Dec 1: Intro to ACAS & HIV 101 Dec 8: Anti-Oppression within Asian LGBTQ+ Spaces Dec 15: Intro to CHAMPS Program and Mindfulness

HIV Treatment and Prevention: What’s new?

Dear Clients and Caregivers, You are cordially invited to our last virtual Macro-educational workshop of the year. The date is on Friday, December 4, 2020 from 7 to 8:30p.m. via Zoom. The topic of this workshop is; HIV Treatment and Prevention: What’s new? Since HIV medication is so advanced and effective, many of us feel we can have a good life and live longer. Don’t you like to know more about what is the newest treatment and what is in the pipeline in HIV medication? I am pleased to announce our ACAS supporter Dr. Alice Tseng to present on this topic which is dearly close to the heart of many people living with HIV. Dr. Tseng works as a specialist consultant at the Immunodeficiency Clinic, Toronto General Hospital and is an Associate Professor with the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto. She has published extensively on drug interactions and adverse reactions, and is a Chief Editor of a website/mobile app on HIV and hepatitis C pharmacology and drug interactions (http://app.hivclinic.ca). Dr. Tseng is a co-founder of the Ontario HIV Pharmacists Specialty Group (est. 1996) and the Canadian HIV and Viral Hepatitis Pharmacists Network (est. 1997). She is a Fellow of the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists and is credentialed as an HIV Pharmacist through the American Academy of HIV Medicine. Dr. Tseng was recently award the inaugural Hall of Distinction Alumni Award from the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, recognizing her significant achievements in the profession of pharmacy. Question and answer session will follow the presentation. To compensate for your meal, only registered ACAS support program service users will be provided with an honorarium of $15.00, providing you complete the evaluation of the workshop. Space and budget is limited and please RSVP to your support staff (Alex Ma/Amutha) [...]