"' GAY CENTER STAFF MEETING Sunday, November 5, 1978 GENERAL BUSINESS Support Groups. It Chwee Lye reported that his support group is meeting regularly and is going well. Don Root said that he expects to form a new support group soon with the assistance of Jim Lombardo, of the Midwest Sexual Counseling Center. was suggested that Jim may also be willing to share some of his knowledge about the role of the facilitator in support groups. Telephone Service. Paul Branch announced that the WSA has agreed to contribute $14.80/month to our telephone bill through May, 1979. The WSA will also contribute $125.00 toward the purchase of a $200.00 answering service phone for the Gay Center (which allows people to call and leave recorded messages when no staff members are around.) The new phone should be picked up and installed soon. Gay Center Calendar. Gary Goodman said that he and Steve Deatherage are about ready to have the first monthly Gay Center calendar printed, which will list organizations and events of interest in the gay community. They are in the process of establishing contacts with bars and organizations so that we will be kept informed of all scheduled activities. Paul reported that we will not be getting WSA funding for the calendar, but that the Center has already committed $75.00/issue for at least two issues of the calendar. Gary also mentioned that there is some interest in reviving. the Gay Center news letter as well as continuing the monthly gay section in Free For All, but that this requires writers. A notice will be placed on the bulletin board soon, announcing a meeting for those interested in working on such efforts. (Tentative meeting time: Friday, November 10.) The United Clergy Conference. Dennis Carlson reported on the recent clergy conference, which brought clergy and gay people together to engage in dialogue. Although Reverend Pritchard still plans on leading a petition drive against gay rights in Madison, the conference did prove valuable in bringing together more 'liberal-minded' clergy who may help oppose Pritchard's efforts. Transvestites. Paul found a personal notice in the Press Connection recently Mark Aasturud will describing a 'Society for the Second Self' for transvestites. check to see if it would be worth referring transvestites to the group. Bus Posters. Dale Burke will be checking with Madison Metro Bus System to find out the current status of Gay Center posters which were to appear in the buses. There was also discussion of a possible redesign of the bus posters along the lines of the 'Someone in Your Life is Gay' posters appearing in Washington, D. C. buses. This would involve orienting our message to a larger audience, including non-gays, and no decision was reached on whether or how the posters might be redesigned. Lee Gilbert mentioned that one Sensitivity Training for Dormitory Housefellows. person in his support group had been hassled by his dormitory housefellow because of his gayness. No program is now available for sensitizing housefellows to gay people, although Paul said that the University hopes to have such a program by next fall. A copy of The Gay Center Library. Dale asked that counselors keep a close watch on all library books and periodicals, since new periodicals will soon be coming in. Joy of Gay Sex was recently found missing. --- 2 T Data Sheets. Paul said that it is very important that counselors record all calls and drop-ins on data sheets and that the sheets be filled-out as completely as possible. WSA funding, for example, is dependent upon the number of University students using the Gay Center. Also, don't hesitate to write comments on the bottom of data sheets. Last names should be included on data sheets if a referral is probable, but for normal counseling situations, first names alone are preferrable to protect the privacy of clients. The data sheet will be revised soon to eliminate unnecessary items, and several thousand new copies will be run off. FUNDRAISING BUSINESS Paul suggested It was decided The meeting concluded with a discussion of fundraising possibilities. that we might solicit contributions from those on our mailing list. that one way of handling these contributions might be to include a request for support in the Gay Center calendar. Paul expressed a belief that The United should take on more of the responsibility of financially supporting the Gay Center, and that we should encourage them to do The United might also fundraising for us as well as for the Lesbian Switchboard. be involved in lobbying for funds and helping prepare grant proposals for the Center. It was suggested that we might organize a coat check at 'Going My Way' on Friday year. or Saturday night each week, since this brought in up to $100.00/month last y Paul felt that it might be very hard to get enough people to devote the needed time to checking coats, but it was decided to put up a sign-up sheet to determine the level of interest. Gary suggested that some people who are not interested in being counselors but who would like to help the Gay Center might be involved. This possibility will also be investigated. Several people suggested that 'Going My Way' and the 'Cardinal' Bar might be interested in either direct donations, sponsoring Gay Center benefits, or establishing a small cover charge for the Gay Center one night a week. Paul and Chwee Lye will contact the bars to investigate these possibilities. Chwee Lye suggested that we might bring in an outside speaker, such as Malcolm Boyd, to raise money as well as to provide an educational event for the gay community. Other suggestions included: a gay film series on campus and a gay performing arts festival. Paul expressed his concern that these ideas might require too much of a time and energy commitment for the counseling staff, that other groups such as The United might better organize them, and that we should emphasize ideas that will bring in money fast. There was no consensus on whether or to what extent the Gay Center should be involved in organizing such events in the future. Next Meeting: Sunday, November 19, 7:00 p.m. d. c. --- GAY CENTER STAFF MEETING Sunday, November 19, 1978 GENERAL BUSINESS Dorm Housefellows. Gorden Byom, a dormitory resident, reported to the staff on a meeting he and Barb Constance of 'The United' recently had with University housing coordinators. Bill Sweet, director of student affairs, also attended the meeting. The meeting focused upon efforts to initiate a gay sensitivity training program Gordon said that for all dormitory housefellows and possibly for students as well. the administration is receptive to getting a sensitivity training program started soon, possibly as early as next term. Gay Center Window Cleaning. Paul Branch reported that Reverend Woodward of St. Francis House has asked us to wash windows in the Gay Center before storm windows are put up. Volunteers are needed to help clean windows on Saturday, December 1. Record-A-Call. Our new phone service, which allows people to leave recorded messages when the office is closed, should be operational by Thanksgiving or soon thereafter. Support Groups. Chwee Lye said that his support group has been meeting regularly on Sunday afternoons and that people are slowly beginning to open up to one another. He said that a number of group counseling techniques gleaned from books available in our library have helped him structure the sessions and made them more productive. Relaxation, sensitivity, and sharing experiences are designed to help group members develop trusting relationships. Paul suggested that those staff members who have experience with support groups should get together soon and 'brain storm' techniques which seem to work best. Don Root reported that the support group he and Jim Lombardo have coordinated had its first meeting last Wednesday. Coat Check at 'Going My Way?' Enough people have signed up for coat checking duty Dennis Carlson at 'Going My Way?' to get the fund-raising effort under way. volunteered to coordinate the effort. It was agreed that we should begin the coat check on Saturday nights, and if it proves successful, extend it to Friday nights. Chwee Lye will organize a meeting on November 27 or 28 with the staff at 'Going My Way?' to make plans for the coat check. The following people have volunteered to December 2, Dale and Dennis; December 9, check coats for the first several weeks: Glenn and Mark Gudeyon; and December 16, Dale and Lash. Gay Arts Festival. Paul mentioned that 'The United' is organizing a Gay Arts Festival, tentatively scheduled for sometime next February. contact Barb Constance. If interested, please Gay Center Calendar. Gary Goodman said that the Gay Center calendar needs information If you know of anything which on current events of interest to the gay community. might be included, leave it in the box marked 'calendar' in the office. Gary also asked that people clip interesting articles on gay themes to include in our clipping file. Common Sense Coalition. Steve Deatherage attended the Common Sense Coalition meeting November 19 and reported that the gay-related planks in the platform were retained, but only after a hard fight and a lot of work by gay delegates. --- 2 Miscellaneous from Dale. Rodney has paid the Gay Center the $100.00 he owed us, and according to Dale, we now have about $450.00 in our treasury. Dale also said that 'The United' would like to receive copies of our meeting minutes. After brief discussion, the staff authorized distribution of copies of minutes to 'The United', with counseling related items deleted so that the confident- iality of staff-client relations can be maintained. 'The United' has a position on its steering committee reserved for a member of the Gay Center, and presently the position is unfilled. Dale volunteered to represent the Gay Center for the next several meetings at least. Beyond that, several people suggested that we might rotate membership on the steering committee among all Gay Center staff members. There will be a meeting of the Gay Assistance Committee in Dean Ginzberg's office on December 7, at 5:00 p. m. Paul will represent the Gay Center. Our data sheets have been newly revised and simplified, so familiarize yourself with them. Madison Metro Bus Company has approved a new Gay Center poster for their buses. The posters will focus on the theme, 'Someone in Your Life is Gay'. Dale and Paul will have the posters printed at MARC (Madison Area Retarded Citizens) soon. Next staff meeting: Sunday, December 17, 7:00 p. m. d. c. ---