Regent Park Focus

Divas Group September 29th 2017 Last Week was a very great week for the diva girls because they started their spoken word with Canvas. The girls started off with an icebreaker and decorated their notebooks. The girls then took part in the circle rock, where they told the group a few things about themselves. The Canvas ladies Londzo and Maymuna went over the program overview and came up with some “safe space” rules with the girls about what is expected when coming to the program. After a 15-minute break the Divas re- grouped to listen to Maymuna perform one of her spoken word pieces that she wrote. The girls were very moved by her poetry and after asking many questions and sharing their opinion on the poem they were able to create their own poems. The diva girls are excited for this week because they will be sharing their poems with everyone!

Date: Sep 29, 2017 Hosts: Brianne & Shadae Guests : Moya, Victoria (PowerfulXNature), Faith Hatchet, Hodan Osman, Monika Obermeier, & Sherry Rutter Topic : Who is Powerful by Nature & Jessie’s? This week, Powerful X Nature youth radio show debuts on the air. Our hosts, Brianne and Shadae introduce the Powerful X Nature team and lead a conversation to learn more about services and support offered at Jessie’s Centre. In the first part of the show you meet the PowerfulXNature team, consisting of 5 participants who have been actively involved in our Community Education Program and who share a commonality; they’re all YOUNG PARENTS. In the second part of the show, our hosts welcome staff from Jessie’s; Sherry, the Youth Leadership Program Lead; Hodan a Counsellor/Case Manager; Monika, the Parent Child Centre Lead; and Faith a Registered Nurse, who oversees the Health Program. This segment starts with a brief her story of Jessie’s Centre. Each guest then ...

For this episode of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, youth co-host Tyger introduced the topic of the adjustment period that students across Canada are experiencing now that school is back in session. Tyger and Diamond discuss their unique adjustment experience, as they both go to different types of schools. Tyger admits the change in time schedules is not an issue for her. As an international student, Tyger had been used to school in Vietnam, which she described as starting from 7AM and ending at 5PM- it is no wonder she had no issues adjusting! While Tyger is currently enrolled full time in highschool, Diamond discusses the differences for her, as she is enrolled in an adult learning centre, designed for mature students that need to complete their credits to receive a highschool diploma. For Diamond, she is enrolled in order to gain extra credit and to learn in the meantime while she waits for her university application to be approved. So her school schedule has not been very difficult ...

For our September 26th show, Catch da Flava explored the topic of racism in the education system. For our first half, our co-host Diamond led the discussion on racism in school. She brought up a recent event in Toronto hosted by Ontario’s Anti-Racism Directorate, which invited 30 Youth from across Ontario who witnessed or experienced racism, and how they participated in an engagement session. The event was held in order to bring a spotlight to the everyday struggles that students face, and to give legitimacy to the experiences that they youth face. Ontario’s Minister of Children and Youth Services Michael Coteau was present to give remarks before the start of the event, as well as the Minister Responsible for Anti-Racism. With the introduction of this topic, Diamond and another co-host, Tyger, discussed their personal experience in dealing with racism. Diamond discussed her general experiences as a young Black girl in the school system, and recalls an incident when she wa...

This week co-host Judy Pham shares an interview with Guo Gu, senior disciple to the late Chan Master Sheng Yen, and current author and Professor of Buddhism and East Asian Religions at Florida State University. The interview sheds light on how Chan Buddhist practice has helped both the guest and the interviewer in understanding oneself and one another through meditative practice. For more information on Guo Gu and Chan Buddhism, please visit:  www.tallahasseechan.com For our second half, co-host Rachael Abah chats with artist and spiritual seeker Evelyn Bailey on her inspirations, what art means to her, and how spirituality affects her creation. Evelyn studied animation before working as an artist, utilizing culture and spirit to inform her process.

Divas Media Group – Friday Sept 22, 2017 Today at Regent Park Focus, Sherry Rutter and guest speaker visited the Divas. Sherry is a youth leadership program leader at Jessie’s, which is the June Callwood Centre for young women. Guest speaker, a young mother shared her story with the Divas about what it is like to be a young mother and the challenges that mothers face. She also explained how Jessie’s helped her with her pregnancy, they even helped her get her high school credits and after she had the baby they provided her with supplies and daycare. After the girls heard about the story they had many questions that they were able to ask. The guest speaker answered all their questions and Sherry spoke a little bit more about what is offered at Jessie’s. The girls had a 15-minute break where they had refreshments and were able to chat. After the break the girls participated in a creative activity where they had to use words that described them to create an image. As a group they ...