Feb
20
My name is Rahael Yohannes, I’m 19 years old. Just recently, I returned from the most amazing trip of my life; Ethiopia. I travelled there with my dad with the sole intent on visiting family I have never met before. From my Aunts and Uncles, all the way to my Grandparents. Being immersed in the culture and lifestyle at full blast was one of the most incredible experiences EVER! Continued…
Dec
30
What a remarkable year it has been for the Passion Foundation. We have so much to be grateful for and extend our appreciation to all our supporters and the young women who are doing so many great things in their communities. Continued…
Aug
16
Thanks to Reel Youth we were able to get three amazing videos into the United Way Care to Change contest this month.
Please take a moment and check out our videos and help the youth win by voting!
AGE OF VULNERABILITY
HER STORY
GOING NOWHERE
Jul
5
Prepare to be moved…. These youth are all under 18 years of age and passionate about sustainability
passionTOaction sustainability video for Care to Change Contest
passionTOaction sustainability video for Care to Change Contest
passionTOaction sustainability video for Care to Change Contest
Special thanks to Mark and the Reel Youth team for sharing this great opportunity!
Jun
24
Earlier this year we started a new pilot project called passionTOaction (p2a) thanks to our amazing volunteer Jenn McRae.
We’ve highlighted some of their journey in our Vancouver Observer articles as these girls are really taking their leadership to the next level and it’s something that needs to be shared with our beautiful city.
Recently the girls from p2a were given an amazing opportunity to take part in the Love Vancouver Festival.
Marie-Claire and Hannah shared this video from their experiences at LVF. Oh! Did we mention their amazing blog?
Today three of the girls: Laura, Marie-Claire and Hannah met Loretta Cella, Passion ED at Lunapads where Madeleine Shaw shared her story of starting Lunapads and why their amazing products make a difference in this world and in the lives of girls and women around the world.
We can’t thank people like Madeleine and all the other volunteers enough for sharing their experiences and energy with the p2a team. As well at Vancouver organizations like Gordon Youth Search Employment Programs for donating space each week.
The p2a girls are also taking part in an incredible new tv series on SHAW cable called Good for You, Good for the Earth with our fabulous Passion Board Member Lori Petryk. Stay tuned for details!
Jun
18
We all know how important it is to know our personal space right? But how often do we actually take time to look at what our personal space (aka comfort zone) looks like? What it means to us? And how we can use the awareness of our personal space and other people’s space to build positive relationships as well as keep harm away from us.
There are all kinds of statistics out there about the high percentages of girls and young women who experience abuse and violence. Today we were shown a stat that 1 in 8 girls are sexually assaulted before the age of 18. And the average age of a woman who enters into prostitution in Canada is 12-14 years old. That’s real. We also know that when a girl feels confident in who she is and is socially connected in a positive way the percentages go down and she more likely she is to ask for help if something does happen.
So instead of just talking about it, a group of girls in Vancouver got to design their personal space, talk about what it means, and shared with their peers how it changes based on how they were feeling. They even got to take their personal space and share it with others as they moved around the room. They were able to determine how it changed as they encountered some of the others in the room (bigger or smaller) and how they’re emotions accompanies the change.
Essentially Passion Projects build life literacy. Passion Projects are ways that girls really get to know who they are, what they want, and how to bring positive community together to make it all happen! They provide girls a safe space to build their potential from the inside out!
Check out some of their designs. You can imagine how fun the dialogue was and how empowering it was for the girls to own their space and bring that space in their community.
Jun
10
Since April we have been working with a dynamic but rather shy group of grade 7 girls in Vancouver who the school identified as girls who could really benefit from some leadership development. We’ve posted some of their work on our blog
Today we completed our work together but holding mini conference fun day at their school. They had the ideas, they generated the activities, and we put it together. They even got to invite some of their class mates
Thanks to some amazing volunteers including Tiffany from Beauty Night Society who taught the girls to make homemade hair condition and face masks and Julia Spitale who sing with and for the girls (even Loretta, Passion ED, did her duet debut!). With generous donations from Kat Thorsen we made sock pigs. And thanks to Vyvian’s mom who came out and did 30 sets of nail polish designs we had a busy four hours and lots of fun!
It was amazing to see all the girls, their leadership and the positive contribution to their school and peers. We even had our sponsor teacher state how amazing it has been to see the transformation in the girls and the vice principal has invited us to come back next year.
Passion Avenue girls.. you are amazing! You’ve done amazing work and we are all so proud of you!
We’d also like to give a special shout out to our amazing new volunteer Sabine who gave her entire morning/afternoon to helping us out and making today run smoothly!
Check out some pictures we shot today!
May
28
We received some exciting news on Thursday afternoon! Passion Foundation is one of three recipients for the Little Give Vancouver 2011.
Edelman is Canada’s leading independent public relations firm and we at Passion are so excited to see what wonderful things we can create in the 48 hrs we have with our Edelman team.
Passion Foundation is ready for the next steps. We are ready to reach out to more girls so they in turn can reach their goals and contribute more positively in their communities.
Stay tuned!
Apr
23
Over the last couple weeks I’ve been working with an amazing group of girls at an elementary school in Vancouver.
Some are bold, some are shy, and some are all smiles. They are all unique, special, and talented.
Last week they finished their Positive Me’s from the Elements of SUCCESS coaching series and worked on recognizing their personal limitations
and transforming those limitations into positive affirmations.
These young women will be heading into high school next year and our goal is to get them as connected as possible to their light, passion, and energy!
We all know high school can be quite the challenge for those who aren’t as connected with their esteem and so our goal is to get them in the know about how truly amazing they really are!
Here is some of their work:
At the end of the workshop I asked the girls to stand on their chairs and declare one thing they loved about themselves. And even challenged them to look at each other than they said it.
” funny…. smart…. beautiful… friendly… kind… truthful… athletic… honest… creative… real ”
They left feeling tall and smiling!
—Loretta, ED- Passion Foundation
Apr
5
The Passion Project
By Laura Fritz (published in the custody center newsletter)
Forgiveness and acceptance are two concepts with which many people grapple throughout their lives. Therefore, when the young women at Burnaby Youth Custody Services decided to gift these acts to the community for Christmas, it was not surprising that the emotional response was immense.
Their Christmas present came to fruition when several of the girls completed a program entitled, “Phenomenal Women: The Elements of Success”. This program had been designed by Loretta Cella, founder of the Passion Program, and presented by her with the assistance of Laura Fritz, the Center’s Social Worker. After ten weeks of self-examination, the young women were given the opportunity to look outwards, to see what they could do for their community. While brainstorming on the basketball court, the themes of forgiveness and acceptance were generated and the young women decided that these acts could be embodied in several sculptures. The Asperity Unit decided to create “The Lady of Forgiveness”, envisioning a vibrant 6’7” tall woman who would protectively hold a heart in her arms. “The Beautifully Honoured Women of Originality”, which were envisioned by the Emerald Unit were to be of varying shapes and sizes, united and defined by their refusal to adhere to beauty, body and ethnic stereotypes. The girls all agreed that they wanted to build “The Women” from recyclable materials and then would add pictures, poems and thoughts about what they wanted to forgive and accept about themselves and others. With final words of encouragement from Loretta the implementation of the plan was then turned over to the young women and Laura.
As there was just over a month until Christmas, the pressure was on. Not only were the girls’ emotions challenged as they had to think about their personal lives, they also had to figure out how to piece together a pile of recyclable material, honour their commitment to the community, manage their time, work together and respect each other’s varying abilities to contribute to the project.
Although the project was meant to be a gift to the community, it started to have a ripple affect even before the first pieces of newspaper were shredded and dipped into warm gooey flour water. Staff members at BYCS contributed recyclables, the Passion Foundation received donations for start up materials and once things got going, staff members lent a hand with gluing, stapling, taping and painting. A genuine interest and excitement on the staff’s part was evident as was their support in encouraging the girls to complete the project, in mediating issues that arose and complementing the young women as the sculptures took shape, in keeping the girls on track and also in showing them that they and their project were of worth and value. Being believed in is also a tremendous gift.
Prior to leaving the Center, the sculptures were displayed during the Christmas Open House so the rest of the youths and their families could see the girls’ gift. The sculptures were then taken to UBC Robson Square and given to the community as a public display over the Christmas holiday. An explanation of the project as well as a drop box was left with “The Women” so that the public could add to them.
In her article for the Vancouver Observer, Loretta Cella described the impact of the young women’s sculptures: “Some people left drawings and notes for the girls to read, and others left poetry and stories. It’s hard to say how many viewed the art pieces, but there were over 50 notes left on site. They were written by girls, women and men from as far away as New York, Montreal and Kamloops. Many were also left by Vancouverites”.
These contributions were then added to the sculptures. Loretta continued that, “Each time, I was left speechless. The words and drawings were moving. One contributor expressed, ‘I spent years cutting myself. I have 400 scars. Should I have them removed by surgery or accept them?’ Others sent messages of encouragement to the young women. ‘Your representation of women is a solid insightful statement of our society. We need to encourage creativity and to give everyone an opportunity to explore their inner ‘selfs.’ I, as a man, am equally inspired,’ wrote Mahood from Kamloops. Another wrote, ‘Thank you for your honesty. Your art is inspiring. Forgiving ourselves is hard work, yes, but we’re worth it…you are SO worth it. May you be free of suffering. May your hearts be full of love and light. With Love’.’’
After the holidays “The Women” returned to the Center and were displayed on a rotational basis in the lobby. Again a drop box has been left so that the connection between the girls, their gift and the community can continue. Shortly after the return of the sculptures, Loretta had an opportunity to share some of the remarks with one of the young women at BYCS. Loretta said that, “She read them, sat in silence for a short while and said, ‘That’s pretty darn cool. All these people got to be a part of this.’ I explained to her how these people’s courage to change had a ripple effect on the community and asked her to imagine for a minute how these lives might have been moved because of it. She smiled in silence.”
Laura Fritz
Feb
1
INFUSE BC is a partnership between the Passion Foundation and Strength within Girls Group.
It’s 10 hours of life enhancement and leadership coaching combined with a 5 hour girls conference open to schools, community organizations, and institutions in BC. Call 604.395.7685 or email infusebc@passionfoundation.org
Feb
1
Vancouver is blessed by an amazing woman named Katie Jeanes. Katie, 24, is all about raising awareness on the the importance of giving where we can in this crazy world of ours.
Check out this weeks article in the Vancouver Observer
We are proud to know Katie and her team!
Jan
24
Passion Foundation has made a decision to take a leap into the social enterprising world.
Working with an amazing group of young women (Lucia, Kiran, and Manpreet) from the YWiB SFU Project Give, Loretta is looking to create a euro style pastry shop in the memory of her nonno (grandfather) Giovanni Marcuzzi.
Giovanni’s Passion will be a old New York meets Euro style pastry stop with an urban twist. Not only will it be offering great coffee but old school pastries and yes… raw desserts. It’s social, local, and has value.
Giovanni’s Passion will be a place that will offer young women in the Metro Vancouver area a one year term employment opportunity in front and back of the house. Providing not only formal skills and stable employment but also an opportunity increase literacy and social capital.
The idea of Giovanni’s Passion is to take a long standing dream that Giovanni had. He had hoped that someone in the family would open a restaurant where people could come together have great food and chance to connect and celebrate life.
We’re set up a twitter account, youtube channel, and will be posting videos and updates as we move along in this journey.
The idea is to open Giovanni’s Passion on May 9, 2012, what would have been Giovanni’s 90th birthday.
Follow our progress through out social media outlets.
Have questions or would like to be involved? (604). 395.7685
Dec
22
Here are the Women of Originality:
The girls created these women after a discussion took place in the cell unit one evening.
The girls indicated that forgiveness was not enough; acceptance of our selves is just as, if not, more
important in creating 
change in our lives. Based on the need for them and most girls they know to start accepting their bodies and individuality they created this circle of women.
They have represented diverse ethnic groups, body sizes, and heights; crossing their characteristics to illustrate that although they aim to be “perfect” and unique we are all one and yet diverse in our own way.
They believe that girls need to start respecting and accepting their bodies, their cultures, and them selves more.
Their Ask:
The young women ask that you contribute a letter, poem, photo, or small drawing to contribute to their artwork. This is their way of bringing community together for a common cause.
Email us at info@passionfoundation.org subject line: Women of Originality or post a comment here on the topic of Acceptance and Body Image.
Dec
22
Today someone gave us an great idea.
Why not blog pictures of the Burnaby Youth Custody’s art exhibit for those people who can’t make it down to the UBC Robson Square so people can post comments? Then you can type them out and bring them down every day, adding them to the art pieces.
BRILLIANT!
So here is the Lady of Forgiveness
The girls of the Burnaby Youth Custody Center created the Lady of Forgiveness with a thought that most of us need to create some form of forgiveness in our lives. They believe that we either need to forgive the actions of other that have affected us or to ask for forgiveness for actions we took that caused pain to others.
To them, the Lady of Forgiveness raises awareness that self harm and violence can be ended with forgiveness and creating inner peace.
Their Ask:
The young women ask that you contribute a letter, poem, photo, or small drawing to contribute to their artwork. This is their way of bringing community together for a common cause.
Have something you want to share with them or something you want to contribute to the topic? A belief, want, idea, experience of inspiration?
Please post it here or email it to info@passionfoundation.org with a Subject line: Lady of Forgiveness
Check the next blog: Women of Originality
Dec
22
But where’s the snow?
Okay Vancouver, where are you hiding all of the snow? I could have sworn that I saw it snow in New Westminster yesterday for about 5 minutes while I was on the bus. Could it be my imagination? Did you see it too? Also, does anybody know where you can buy “Christmas spirit”? They MUST sell it somewhere at Wal-Mart, I mean, they sell EVERYTHING there! Lately, I’ve been feeling quite down and depressed about Christmas, but things seem to be looking up!
I’ll admit it, I’ve had such a difficult time with not being in the Christmas spirit. Lately, I’ve been so busy that I haven’t even had time to consider going Christmas shopping, let alone enjoy a Christmas movie or holiday baking! These days I’ve been feeling stressed out and I’ve been very distant from everyone. I suppose it could be the fact that I’ve had way too much on my plate lately, or the fact that I was moping about missing Christmas in Vavenby for the first time. This would be the first Christmas without my grandparents and immediate family. It’s scary thinking that you’re going to spend it away from the people who you’ve spent it with for your whole life. Basically, I felt like boycotting Christmas this year.
Recently, I’ve had quite a few people invite me for Christmas, because they knew that I’d be spending it alone. What I absolutely LOVE about Christmas is that no matter what, you’re never going to be alone. There’s always amazing people out there who have a heart of gold and invite you in! Undoubtedly, I felt loved and special!
Last Friday, I helped my school out with picking up and delivering Christmas hampers, and I was floored by how generous people are! We delivered to a few immigrant families who barely knew English, and who were just starting out. They seemed so overwhelmed by how much we were delivering to them and seemed so appreciative! It felt so great spending the day helping others out, for the first time this holiday season, I felt the “Christmas spirit”. I find that people are constantly talking about how horrible people are getting, but when I witnessed how much people were BUYING and donating for complete strangers, I realized that there’s a lot of good in this world still. No matter how bad the world gets, there’s always going to be excellent, bighearted people out there. I’m excited to do it all again tomorrow!
Last night I joined my school at the Winter Harp concert downtown at a beautiful church. We ran a concession stand to help raise money for the 2011 grad. We raised quite a bit of money, and it was a wonderful experience! When we went into the sanctuary to enjoy the eccentric sounds of harps unraveling their elegant harmonies, it was so beautifully done and filled my heart with the Christmas spirit!
This morning I decided something very, very exciting. I’m able to go home for Christmas!! Sadly, I had to cancel my Christmas plans with a few people, but on the other hand, I get to see my family! It’s been such a long time since I’ve seen them all, so I’m absolutely stoked to see them! I’ll be leaving on Christmas eve and coming back on Boxing day! Fingers crossed, the roads will be good though, because if they’re full of snow then I can’t go. The coquihala highway is known for treacherous roads in the winter, so lets hope that they stay clear!
Excited from making arrangements to go home for Christmas, I went to Metrotown mall to go Christmas shopping. It was crawling with people, I thought I was going to suffocate to death! All in all, I am almost done my Christmas shopping, and I’m almost ready for the adventure to Vavenby! Unfortunately, I haven’t sent out Christmas cards out yet, but I still plan on doing it within the next day or two. I guess they’d be classed as “New Years Cards?” Oh well, I guess it’s the thought that counts in the end!
I hope that everybody enjoys their Christmas, I’ll be back next week with a new, fresh blog!
Merry Christmas everyone!!
Dec
14
If there was one word to describe my past week, it would either be spontaneous or adventurous.
The week started out like any other week of mine, going through the motions of school, a casual hangout with friends at the local coffee shop, devouring homework, and writing! Well, aside from my usual, but fun week days, I had a SPECTACULAR weekend!! One of the most random encounters happened on Sunday. It all started this past Saturday, I spent the whole day at home doing homework. At one point, I logged onto my personal twitter page to see what the celebrities were up to that day. Now, I’m going to admit my guilty pleasure to you, and I’m sure you watch it too: I’m addicted to the Family channel. It’s just SO adorable!! On twitter, I’m following a cast member of The Suite Life On Deck, Debby Ryan, who plays Bailey Pickett (the farm girl!). She posted a tweet saying, “Okayy, so if you’re around Vancouver, BC tomorrow afternoon, I wanna go for a late lunch/tea with a few rad fans. Wanna come?” Word for word. Since I was on at the same time as she posted it, I wrote back, “I’d love to come!” Not expecting a reply at all. After I posted that, she wrote back to me a couple of minutes later, “Are you in the area?”, to which I replied, “Yep!” and my heart raced. She noticed me? ME? Out of all of the thousands of followers who wrote to her, she noticed MY tweet? Wow. Knowing that her twitter page was authentic, I decided to go along with it. I mean, what did I have to lose? About an hour later, she DM’d (direct message) a few fans the exact location and other applicable information.
Leaving work on Sunday, I made the adventurous trip to Marble Slab in Coquitlam, the meeting place. When I arrived, there were many young ladies lined up to meet the star. She emerged from the back room, and the girls all cheered. The first thing I noticed was her slight Texan accent. She also said “Y’all” a lot. She was so adorable! What really surprised me was how kind and caring she was towards her fans. She asked us questions about life, gave us advice, answered questions, took pics, signed autographs and even scooped ice cream! What really made me smile was when I called up my little cousin Tasia to see if she wanted to talk to Debby, I asked Debby if she was able to talk to her, and Debby took the phone and talked to her for a very, very short time! Tasia said afterwards that she was in shock. She just finished watching the show, and one of the characters called her! She was starstruck! That’s another thing, the whole time I hung out with Debby, I wasn’t starstruck at all, it felt like I was just hanging out with a friend! She’s a very laid back, real, and adorable person. She even recognized my twitter name! She signed my purse, took a picture with me, and talked to me for a few moments. All I can say is that she really helped put things into perspective, and I have a high respect for that girl. She’s a gem.
After that wonderful experience last night, I went to school this morning, and had a meeting with my youth worker and social worker. For those who don’t know, I’m on a youth agreement, and I have to meet with people who help me along the way once a week to get on the same page with them, and make plans for the next step in my life. We all agreed upon the fact that I will not be graduating this year. After miscommunication and misunderstandings, it has come to my attention that I will not be graduating this year. Somehow I’ve got to figure out how I’m going to be able to continue through with school for the next two years (at the most), but I have to figure out how, funding wise, I can pull it off. I’ve got a couple of ideas, but it’s quite scary at my age not knowing what’s going to unravel in the future. I suppose that all I can do is just wait it out, and let the future reveal itself. Focusing on right now is my priority (well, I’m trying to look at it that way, anyways.)
Anyhow, after the meeting, I went my Tourism 12 class and did a couple of assignments. After lunch, our Outdoor Recreation 12 class took a short road trip to Squamish to take an adventurous hike. Now, the teacher told us to not leave our valuables in the bus, so I brought the autographed purse along with me. Stupid move on my part, because my purse was WHITE! Thus, when I got to the bottom of the mountain, it was all muddy. You can still see the autograph though! Anyways, we hiked up Chief Mountain, and we climbed up to the first peak. Boy, I wasn’t expecting it to be that challenging! A couple of times I feared falling off the cliff, and I almost did once! All in all, the challenge in itself taught me something on my ride home… if I can climb a very difficult mountain, I can find a way to finish school. There’s nothing to worry about! I’ve got great people behind me who’s there to support me, so I’ll do excellent! Resources are spread like Starbucks in Vancouver, everywhere!! When I reached the peak, I felt a triumphant explosion of satisfaction crash over me like a tidal wave. Sure, it was challenging, but hard work paid off. Lesson of the day: NEVER take your white purse up a mountain, no matter what you think, no matter how careful you are, it’s going to get ruined.
(I’m the tall, curly haired girl near the left. Debby is the beautiful girl in the center, with the blue shirt on.)
If you want to follow Debby on Twitter, her link is:
www.twitter.com/thedebbyryan <http://www.twitter.com/thedebbyryan>
Dec
7
Hello, again!
How was everybody’s week? Mine was… well, challenging. I spent it piled under a mountain of blankets, quarantined to the four walls of my apartment. I caught the flu bug two Thursdays ago, and this week was less than fun! Fortunately though, I caught up on my sleep and rested up for the next few hectic weeks! I’m feeling 100% better now, and I’m back to my energized, happy-go-lucky self now! Christmas is now seventeen days away! Is everybody prepared? I’m halfway there, my apartment is decked out in Christmas decor, and most of my Christmas cards are done, but I haven’t started my Christmas shopping!! Well, like I said, there’s still 17 days away, I’ve got plenty of time!
For the past week or so, I’ve been privileged to help organize and contribute to a food drive/food bank. I’m excited to announce that it was a very successful turn out, and we fed many! Also, my friends at The Vine Church made several Christmas packages for the homeless, and handed them out on Sunday afternoon, and it was a great success! It makes me happy knowing that the less fortunate are still getting some sort of Christmas gift this year, even in the smallest of ways. I’m planning on continuing helping out charities, food banks, and soup kitchens throughout the winter. I’m encouraging everyone I know to donate what they can to food banks, it’s very easy to drop a canned good off at the nearest one! Remember, while you’re enjoying your Christmas classic by the fire place, drinking your egg nog and eating mountains of cookies, there’s someone just dying to be in your position.
Hopefully this week will be a little more relaxing, so that I can catch up on sleep and other important things. I took tonight off and went to the mall to pick myself up a couple of treats. I must say, it felt great to get out and reward yourself every once in a while! Everybody should do it, it should be a necessity when you accomplish important things! I completed a HUGE assignment that I have been struggling with for the past two weeks, so I rewarded myself for it. Tomorrow I’ll be going to see the movie, Burlesque, with a friend – I’m very excited for it!
I can’t wait to update you next week! Have a successful, happy, positive and FESTIVE week!
Thanks for checking in!
Nov
28
Every week Loretta, our ED, writes an article for the Vancouver Observer. Here’s last week’s article.
Alex R’s story was so compelling that Emily Barca from VO offered Alex an opportunity to write about Vancouver shows.
Passion girls just keep going!
Nov
28
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s… SNOW?!
Christmas is in the air, Vancouver! Has everyone started their Christmas shopping?!
How has everybody’s week been? Well, after the snow blasted down and painted the city white, I called up some friends, and we all piled into one vehicle and ventured forth to Metrotown Mall! When we got there, we blasted through the mall, and rounded up everything “Christmas-y” that they had to offer. What can I say, I’m a sucker for Christmas!! Preparing for Christmas can be madness at times; the malls are crammed, people are pushing and shoving to get to gifts for their loved ones, Starbucks line ups go down the street, but when you go with friends, it makes things more fun! Aside from Christmas shopping, I’ve had a challenging, yet adventurous and accomplishing week of climbing the Lynn Valley peak, which was freezing cold but fun!! Also, I spent some quality time with friends, went to build a bear, had an eggnog latte at Starbucks, and decorated my apartment for Christmas!
A favorite tradition of mine is to bake up a storm of shortbread and gingerbread cookies, and enjoy some Christmas movies with my friends!! For the first time, I’ll be spending the holidays in Vancouver this year. Things are going to be a bit different. Yes, I am definitely going to continue the tradition with my friends down here, but I realize that Christmas goes a little deeper than that. You see, while we’re all snuggled up with a cup of hot chocolate, watching our favorite Christmas classics, there are people on the streets who have nothing, nowhere to go, and nobody to do it with. This year, I’m going to do whatever I can to help whoever I can, and I encourage you to do it too!! Whether it’s dropping a few canned goods off at a local food bank, or dropping a few coins into a Salvation Army kettle pots, anything and everything helps. I am encouraging everyone to carry a few granola bars in your pocket/purse and if you see a homeless on the street, hand one over to them. Remember, they aren’t going home to a warm house and home cooked meal!! My plan is to volunteer at a homeless shelter with a few friends, collect some sweaters, jackets, socks, gloves, toques, and anything that I can do that will help make someone’s holidays that much better, and take it to a homeless shelter.
Christmas countdown: 36 sleeps!
“Peace on earth will come to stay, when we live Christmas every day.” – Helen Steiner Rice
Nov
21
Optimistic Disaster – Tanya Lee
As I’m walking along a crooked ridge
Moments tumble and shatter on the ground
Eruption of passion, I feel enriched!
All I see is light, I’m not looking down
Liquid oozes over the horizon
The world is shaped like a silver screen
Shades of wonder reveal what’s surprising
Life gets dark, but I can still see the gleam!
All I see are the objects I can face
I’ve lost everything but I’ve still got hope!
Handling everything with simple grace
My glass eyes become a kaleidoscope
Ink connected to paper, I begin
Art burnt by eruption, I’m jumping in.
Nov
13
Underage Thinking
Hola! Je m’appelle Tanya Lee!
Anybody who knows me knows that I’ve always wanted to move to Vancouver. While visiting it when I was 13, the infectious, lively, colorful, cultural city gave me a high, an awakening, new level of hope. It was a done deal, I knew that one day I would end up living here.
Embarking on a very adventurous move from a small town to Vancouver was a challenge but it’s been a great learning experience. Resources are spread thin in a small town, and in the big city, they are scattered all over the place like wildfire.
At 17, I made the decision to move to Vancouver. I saved up enough money to live off for a month and a Greyhound ticket to get there.
Drive, optimism and ambition have helped me towards discovering my passion and pursuing what I’ve been dreaming up ever since I was fourteen. Adventures inspire me to the max and helps carve a path towards my dreams. I’m a curious, optimistic, driven, and relentless girl who is trying to figure life out.
This blog is going to be full of stories from back home, how I’m accomplishing my goals, challenges that I’ve faced and conquered during the week, and many other encouraging, positive things!
Journalism has always sparked an interest in me for a few years now. Practicing writing fuels the inspiration. Pursuing it keep the flames burning.
Writing is my life. writing down my feelings and expressing myself helps me paint a picture. It helps me discover things that I haven’t discovered before. I live for late night coffee runs and endless hours writing in coffee shops. Finding the “perfect” sushi restaurant, talking to people, getting to know them and their theory on life fills my curiousity. And devouring and assembling words, like a puzzle, into stories and songs is something I can do with ease. Soaking up inspiration from anything and everything makes me happy.
Writing keeps me sane.
Five goals of mine for the years to come, are to help someone through a challenge, get a degree in journalism, publish the book that I’ve written, copy-write and send my lyrics to a producer, and finish my other book.
Words are beautiful in my eyes. You can play with the same set of words and create many different stories with them. How I would describe my style of writing is “unique.” Nothing makes me yawn more than reading the same mainstream, generic styled stories. I’m constantly challenging myself to twist, turn, re-form, and look at my stories and lyrics in new perspectives and I’m proud of every song and story.
They are all inspired by something and have my feelings spiraling through them and smudged across them. Re-occurring themes that I enjoy writing on are optimism, medieval times, love, colors, dark and twisted feelings, and happiness. Honestly, I believe that anybody can write, people who’ve been through a lot have the most to write about it, they just choose to bottle it up.
I find it interesting how many people run away from challenges. I believe that they’re meant to be there. We’re supposed to battle them, to strengthen and grow. It’s not meant to be easy, it’s meant to be difficult, so that when it’s all over and done, you can look back and think, “I won the battle, I conquered my fears! Life was adventurous.” Challenges are what keeps me going. If life didn’t have challenges, then life would be boring and wouldn’t have meaning.
Blogging has always been a dream of mine. When I was asked by The Passion Foundation if I wanted to write for them, I felt absolutely ecstatic and honored! Being asked to write this blog, I hope that I can use my dream to help others fulfill theirs. If this blog makes you feel happy, optimistic, and inspires you to life out your dream, then I’ve done my job.
This blog is dedicated to you. I want to to help inspire you to live out your passion in life. If you haven’t discovered it yet, then I hope it helps spark something in you. You deserve it!
Thank you for reading, and I hope you continue coming back weekly!
I’m going to leave you with quotes that I live by,
Enjoy!
“Until further notice… Celebrate everything!!”
“Do not follow where the path may lead.
…Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
- Harold R. McAlindon
Nov
8
We are proud to announce we have some amazing volunteers with the Passion Foundation. Each man and woman who gives their time and energy brings such incredible gifts to the table and we can’t express our appreciation enough. So much so, that we’ve decided to highlight each one over the weeks to come.
Today we honour Julia Spitale
This past year Julia became involved with the Passion Foundation. She believes in the foundation’s mission to help young women discover themselves, their passions and create their own community projects.
Last summer she organized a charity event, Little Lilith. The night showcased Vancouver female singer/songwriters, including Nat Jay, Elaine Ryan, Jodi Doidge and Lisa O’Neill. Proceeds from the night went to the foundation.
A singer/songwriter herself, she also pledged to volunteer for the foundation an hour of her time for every person who attended one of the dates on her Outside the Cottage tour Summer 2010.
Julia will volunteer as a facilitator for the passion foundation’s upcoming workshops.
Julia Spitale is a lover of life, communication professional, singer/songwriter, traveler, personal cook and volunteer coordinator.
http://ca.linkedin.com/in/juliaspitale
http://www.myspace.com/jspitale
Nov
4
Check out this new project and how you can help make it happen!
http://www.pincgiving.com/campaign/burnaby_custody_passion_project
Sep
27
Our team is excited to release that we are offering Passion Projects across BC.
Passion Foundation
Passion Projects
Passion Projects are unique opportunities for community organizations to help young women aged 13-18 years increase self-awareness and develop social consciousness
Utilizing the Passion Foundation’s book Phenomenal Women and it’s accompanying
coaching series girls have the opportunity to grow as individuals as well as develop peer and community leadership skills. Interactive workshops lead participants through the Elements of SUCCESS:
S – Self-Exploration
U – Understanding Limitations
C – Courage to Make a Change
C – Co-operation: Creating a Positive Community
E – Evaluation of Formal Life Skills
S – Skills: Gaining Tools to Enhance Leadership
S – Service: Giving Back to Your Community
During the projects the girls consolidate their learnings by embarking on a community project of their own design to hone in on leadership and community participation.
Time Commitment
For Lower Mainland based organizations the series runs over 8 weeks.
For Coastal / Interior BC organizations the workshop series is condensed into 3 half day workshops.
Requirements: Organizations should have a minimum of 1 adult mentor to offer support to young women while working on their projects, regular internet access, and a comfortable space
Costs:
Lower Mainland Organizations 8- 1.5 hour workshops $950 (with a maximum of 14 per group)
Coastal and Interior Organizations 3- 4 hour workshop days $950 + Accommodation and travel costs with a per diem of $45/day for facilitator
All workshop series include: A Phenomenal Women workbook per participant and 2 Phenomenal Women books per group, 1 follow up session for local organizations and 2 follow up via phone/ web for Coastal/ Interior locations
Passion Foundation is also offering Train the Trainer training an opportunity for organizations to have a representative trained to run the workshops with organizational support
For more information please contact Loretta Cella, Executive Director at 604.395.7685
