SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. - Organizers of the P.E.I. Queer Youth Collective Summerside Chapter are excited about reaching more LGBTQ+ youth in the province.
Program director Angele DesRoches, with the P.E.I. PEERS Alliance, said the growing P.E.I. Youth Queer Collective has recently found a home in Summerside.
The Summerside chapter will meet monthly on the first Tuesday of each month from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Credit Union Youth Engagement Centre, operated by the Boys & Girls Club of Summerside. The first meeting was held on Sept. 4.
“The P.E.I. Queer Youth Collective, formerly the LGBTQ+ youth group, launched in 2016 in Charlottetown. It started with monthly two-hour meetings. That quickly changed to bi-weekly two-hour meetings. Now the group provides support to about 19 youth between the ages of 12 and 18.”
The group has three mandates: reduction of social isolation of LGBTQ+ youth, increase resiliency among youth participants by teaching positive behaviours, actions and through Talk It Out sessions, and lastly increase access to relevant health and wellness tools and resources for LGBTQ+ youth.
“So, we get together supplies like safer sex information, coming-out information, safe-sex protection, depression and mental health resource information, and access to the P.E.I. transgender network,” said DesRoches.
The program will be led by DesRoches, a Summerside native, and five community volunteers.
“We’re super stoked about this coming to Summerside. We’ve had kids come from this city, Tignish, Kensington to Charlottetown in order to participate, but that can be really hard on the parents and youth. With it only being in one location, it also limited the amount of youth we were able to reach. The more places on the Island that have this program, the more LGBTQ+ youth, questioning youth and LGBTQ+ allies we’ll be able to reach.
“I grew up in Summerside, so I can recognize what growing up in an area that doesn’t have a safe space for the young LGBTQ+ can mean to people.”
The P.E.I. Queer Youth Collective is the only community based social support initiative of the Island.
