Events for November 16, 2024 - November 16, 2024

FREE for East & Southeast Asian gay, bisexual, queer cis & trans men You don't need to be a professional artist to express yourself! Start date: January 26 Postponed to February 2 Dates: Weekly, every Thursday for 6 weeks until March 9 Time: 6:00pm - 7:30pm Location: ACAS (260 Spadina Ave, Unit 410) Chinese buns for snacks will be provided. Free art supplies will be provided. We encourage participants to attend all 6 sessions. Sign up at: https://forms.gle/syzgX9fKRAzrcLe98 These Expressive Arts Therapy sessions are provided through Hospice Toronto with a focus on the experiences of gay Asian men. This group takes place in a safe and meaningful environment where warmth, trust, and non-judgment abounds. Topics may include coming out, body image, sexual racism, family, dating, etc. The purpose of this group is to provide gay Asian men with a safe place where they can express themselves through a variety of art modalities, share their stories, express their grief, and explore their feelings in a non-threatening way by: Remembering the past Redefining the present Re-creating the future Our goals for expressive arts are to: Enable the expression of fear, anger, anxiety, and sadness through the arts Encourage the expression of deep inner feelings and thoughts Discover and tell the untold stories Provide an opening for both present and unresolved losses Find ways to say goodbye, speak unspoken words Provide opportunities for sharing memories and experiences of loss Provide support in a non-judgmental environment

🏮 When: Saturday, February 4th 🏮 Time: 2-4pm EST 🏮 Location: Online (Zoom) Register: https://forms.gle/6NQXUwpL5QGkWa3u9 With the Lunar New Year on its way, let's hop right into it with Vale! 🐇 Many of us are used to seeing or even receiving red envelopes on the New Year and other special occasions, but what does it really mean, and how does it relate to us as queer Asians? Vale will be exploring these questions with us and guiding us through how we can queer the red envelopes for ourselves! Join us as we navigate its meanings, histories, and connections to our identities as queer Asians in this thought-provoking, creative exercise. You might even end up with a red envelope or two at the end of the night! Supplies to make your own red envelope with us: - Decorations: paint markers, regular markers, pens, stickers, glitter, etc - Writing utensils - Print and cut the digital instructions ahead of time, if you’re able (they will be sent to you via email closer to the date of the event) - Scissors - Ruler & pencil/eraser if you can't prepare ahead of time - Tape and/or glue If you have any questions or concerns, or would like more information, please email Dany at youth@acas.org. See you soon~! [Image Description: On a purple-red gradient background, there are depictions of red lanterns, red envelopes, and a rabbit celebrating the Lunar New Year. In the middle is a red circle with golden patterns and information about the event above.] #QTAYEvents #ACASEvents #ACASToronto #LunarNewYear #QTAYToronto

Did you eat yet? 👉 When: Sat. Feb. 4, 2023 👉 Time: 6:30 pm - 7:30pm EST 👉 Location: Online (Zoom) Register at: https://forms.gle/cGZ7m9sdkoK2cHrH8 Hey friends! We’re bringing back the Digital Dinner Club as part of our new 2023 youth mental health program and we’d like to introduce you to our program coordinator Greg! Come on by, eat your dinner with friends and say hello! We’d love to meet you and hear your ideas. If you have questions of concerns, or would like more info, you can email Dany at youth@acas.org or Greg at community@acas.org Hope to see you there!

Dear Supporters, Sponsors, and Community Members, You are cordially invited to our ACAS Seed25+ community forum on Monday February 6, from 7-830PM on Zoom. The topic is :'PERSPECTIVES IN INTERGENERATIONAL EXCHANGE' Join us for a lively discussion about qualitative research, chemsex, coffee, activism, perpetual students, 2nd and 3rd careers, mentorship, student government, harm reduction, trans visibility, PHA solidarity, looking for work, working sh*t jobs, white corporate wellness, ancient wisdom, standing on shoulders, and learning and unlearning. Monday, February 6, 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m  (via Zoom) Our funny wise gorgeous panelists: Bradley Hampton-Wallis Loreto Macaraeg Jaye Garcia Moderator: Ambrose Fan To register please contact: Alex Ma (support@acas.org) Generously sponsored by Viiv Healthcare

ACAS and OPA+ would like you to join PADENA Third Session from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm Topic: Arts-based activism and research: More Than Fiction 1, 2, & 3 Meaningfully engaging Poz Asians to support the sharing of their experiences within a culturally-safe space To register to join this event, please go to https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0lc-muqj0pGtPHxJ92YUg0CclrukGVn-eg Neel or Shaz sabeth is curious and excited about which direction their life is heading in. They love community and have been working in the hiv and AIDS sector for 10+ years. neel or Shaz is grateful to the OPA+ of which they are a member for requesting their participation in this event.   Justin Anantawan is a Toronto-based HIV activist, social worker, teacher, musician, and photographer of Chinese and Thai Descent. Justin frequently travels overseas for outreach work in the LGBTQ community and PLHA community. Most recently, he worked in The Gambia with Actionaid, creating a social media platform for sexual health information and working directly with MSMs to provide safe sex supplies and HIV testing. He also works regularly in Toronto with Asian Community AIDS Services. As a photographer, he contributes regularly to publications such as Where Love is Illegal, One Day in My World and National Geographic Yourshot.

LINK TO REGISTER: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdX_I0ShOdN_ljwbrTGrTfug7DK7TFOmamyqLwvd5Pu_gjpJg/viewform   When: Friday, 10 February, 2023 Time: 6pm to 8pm Location: 260 Spadina Ave, Suite 410, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 2E4, Canada NOTE: We can only have fifteen participants in the office at the same time. If you sign up, please be respectful and let us know ASAP if you can't make it so we can invite folks from the waitlist in. Happy New Year! Are you a certified gamer? Come join us at ACAS for a fun night of video games! We will also have snacks and drinks! Here are some of the games we will have. Overcooked 2 1 2 Switch Gartic Phone Scribbl.io Jackbox AND MORE! This event will take place in-person at the ACAS office (260 Spadina Ave, Suite 410, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 2E4, Canada), meaning that the number of people able to attend at once will be limited to 15 people (plus two facilitators). As for accessibility needs, there is an elevator available, but it is slow. It generally works, but we will let you know if it is unavailable. Otherwise, there are stairs to get to the elevator in the foyer. Masks are MANDATORY to attend this event, and this is a scent-free space. This will be a sober event for the safety of everyone, including folks who may be triggered by the presence of substances. If you have any questions or concerns, please email Dany at youth@acas.org. See you soon~! [Image Description: A cute graphic of a screen on a pink background, stylized to look like the background to a Mario game, with information for the event described above. There are various game icons scattered about the image.] #QTAYEvents #QTAYToronto #ACASToronto #AsianYouth #QueerAsian

We are inviting you to join our ALPHA night, in partnership with ACT. We will have some good food, socialise, and get a tour at HQ. (HQ Toronto, just in case you don’t know what HQ is, HQ is the new queer men health hub located in downtown Toronto!) Date: February 16 (Thursday) Time: 6-8PM Venue: HQ Toronto (HQ Toronto, 790 Bay Street, suite 820) Please RSVP to Alex (support@acas.org) and we will prepare for the food. We hope to see you there. *ALPHA stands for “Asians Living Positively with HIV Alliance”. It is an informal group for gay Asian men living with HIV/AIDS in the GTA, who self-identified as having East and Southeast Asian heritage, and their family/friends. ALPHA members gather once every few months to socialize, have fun, and learn from each other.

This event is for East & Southeast Asian gay, bisexual, queer cis and trans guys and their friends. Skate rentals will be paid for thanks to Viiv Healthcare (for Asian guys who need it at $10 for 2 hours). Sign up is REQUIRED (so that I don't go for nothing if no one shows up): https://forms.gle/xWSC4aV4KAWmHyDw9 Date: Saturday February 18, 2023 Time: 3pm - 5pm Location: The Bentway (250 Fort York Blvd) Meet us at the Skate Rental shop! Look for Ryan with the turquoise/light blue tips in his hair. If you have any questions or if you cannot come anymore, please email Ryan at men@acas.org

Hong Fook Youth and Family Services partnering with ACAS to run a monthly LGBTQ+ peer support program for Asian LGBTQ+ youth ages 18-29. 👉 WHEN: February 22 👉 TIME: 6:30pm - 8:00pm EST 👉 WHERE: Zoom 👉 REGISTER: email Moshe at msakal@hongfook.ca The peer support group offers a space for youth to connect and share their experiences around a variety of topics relevant to their lives, including LGBTQ+ and mental health. Together we create a supportive, non-judgemental environment that inspires hope, healing, and change.

ACAS and OPA+ would like you to join PADENA Third Session from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm Topic: Dangers of resiliency and Defining life through activisim Mind-body and immune functions in PLHIV To register to join this event, please go to https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYpdeysqjIqGNyFPfMp8Iu5DhPYsCkNuMDe Devan Nambiar, MSc. has worked in the healthcare sector for over 25 years. He manages his own consultancy GHIS.CA and provides cultural and clinical training on the 2SLGBTQ+ population, HIV care and treatment, integrative health, and trauma-informed practice. In 2022, Devan launched Positivelove.ca, a free dating site for people living with HIV. He works full-time as the Manager of Capacity Building & Talent Development at Gay Men’s Sexual Health Alliance. Previously Devan was the Program Manager & Training Specialist at Rainbow Health Ontario on 2SLGBTQI+ health. Before that, he worked at CATIE for 12 years as HIV Treatment and Clinical Trials Educator. Devan has contributed to various publications and media on queer identities, HIV, MPX, and social justice. Devan has been living with HIV for 34 years. He currently serves on five committees. They are the Community Advisory Committee at CIHR, CTN; Patient Advisory Committee at CADTH; Co-Chair of the CHESS study on COVID vaccine effectiveness for PLHIV; The Ontario Caregivers Organization; and Missing and Missed Implementation at Toronto Police Service. Devan received leadership awards at Ontario AIDS Network (2002) and the Canadian AIDS Society (2006).   Andy Mok is a primary care and HIV Clinical Nurse Specialist (RN) at Maple Leaf Medical Clinic. Working under Dr. Gordon Liu and Dr. Ian Armstrong, Andy provides holistic care through an anti-oppressive and trauma-informed approach to a diverse population. He is committed to making a positive impact in the Canadian healthcare system by advocating for equitable rights and fair treatment of marginalized groups, such as 2SLGBTQI+, people living with mental [...]