Friday
Oct 28, 2005
SGN.org
Volume 33
Issue 43
 |
Tuesday, Dec 02, 2008
05:04
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| - - |
|
 |
 |
City Council weighs funding for Center for LGBT Health |
||
.jpg) |
||
| City Council weighs funding for Center for LGBT Health | ||
| "I am just really pleased to support what Verbena and Gay City are trying to do," said openly Gay City
Councilmember Tom Rassmussen.
By Robert Raketty - SGN Staff Writer The City of Seattle Council will consider a proposal by openly Gay City Councilmember Tom Rassmussen, which would make $75,000 available to establish the Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Health. Verbena and the Gay City Health Project hope to open the facility at 517 East Pike Street in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood by March of 2006. The two organizations hope to combine resources in an effort to reduce operating costs, increase visibility and enhance the continuum of services each provides. Verbena offers health advocacy, education, support services for Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender women. Gay City promote Gay, Bisexual and Transgender mens health and seeks to reduce HIV and STD transmission by "building community, fostering communication and building self-esteem," according to the group's website. "We really hope that this partnership will be a model for the ways strong community organizations can collaborate and build partnerships for the greater good," Gay City Executive Director Fred Swanson told the Seattle Gay News on Wednesday. "Verbena is an incredible organization and we're thrilled about the opportunity to work more closely with them. Together, we are stronger; more informed advocates for our communities." Currently, there are 27 major U.S. cities that have dedicated LGBT Health Centers, according to a joint press release. The Seattle Center for LGBT Health will include staff offices, a large community meeting space, two smaller conference rooms, exam rooms, a volunteer work area and a full service coffee house. The Center for LGBT Health will offer HIV/STD testing, access to free Pap tests and mammograms, referral services, cancer support groups, trainings and health related classes, forums and fairs. Rasmussen applauds the plan. "I am just really pleased to support what Verbena and Gay City are trying to do," he said. "This is exactly what I hope to see in LGBT organizations - cooperation, collaboration, pooling of money and teamwork. This, I believe, is the kind of thing that serves our community really well." According to an estimate provided to the SGN by Rasmussen's office, the construction, infrastructure and relocation costs for the Center for LGBT Health will cost over $240,000. The project has the financial backing of the Seattle Foundation, Pride Foundation, the City of Seattle and the State of Washington. The $75,000 Rasmussen hopes to secure is needed to bridge the budget gap. The City Council will hear public testimony on the proposal on Thursday, Nov. 3. In a e-mail to the SGN on Tuesday, Verbena's Executive Director, Mary Dzieweczynski, called on the LGBT community to contact their city councilmembers and ask them to approve Rasmussen's $75,000 budget line item for the Center for LGBT Health. "I need your assistance," wrote Dzieweczynski. "I need you to call, write, and - if possible - come down and testify at the public hearing on the budget." For more information about the Center for LGBT Heath, visit www.Gaycity.org or www.verbenahealth.org. |
||
.jpg) |
||
.jpg) |
||
 |
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
International Readers |
 |
 click here and make a difference |
 |
 Theatre Off Jackson & Vixen Productions Present A Pulp Vixens |
 |
 |
 |
 |
copyright Seattle Gay News - DigitalTeamWorks 2005