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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 3, 1997)
10 ▼ January 3. 1007 ▼ just out local news Rising to the challenge he mental health establishment has historically been less than supportive of sexual minorities. Indeed, after gen erations of being branded as abnormal by so-called experts, locked in institu tions, or forced to “change” orientations, many sexual minorities justifiably harbor skepticism to ward the profession. Let’s face it: We’ve all heard Phoenix Rising finds it will need community support to the horror stories, and some of us have experienced the abuse firsthand. maintain its current array of services Perhaps that’s why the founding of Phoenix ▼ Rising Foundation nearly twodecades ago should be by Inga Sorensen viewed as a revolutionary—and Jife-saving—act. Unlike other mental heath service providers, may have heard of Phoenix Rising Foundation, creased service contracts in Multnomah and Wash Phoenix Rising’s specific mission is to “promote they may not know what the agency actually does. ington counties. the common interests and well-being of lesbian, “Many people think we are primarily a youth Phoenix Rising spent six months developing a gay, bisexual and transsexual people through men agency, which isn’t true. Most of our services are youth group in Salem, and then turned it over to tal health, education and other support services.” for adults,” she says. “We’re also not a foundation, local control. Additionally, it coordinates five youth Phoenix Rising, which is located in downtown and people may not know what a Phoenix is...it groups in Multnomah County and has developed a Portland, has been providing specialized mental makes for a public relations challenge.” group in Washington County. health services to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans Among the services provided by Phoenix Ris Most recently the agency has created a PRIDE sexual and transgender communities since 1977. ing are individual, M entorship Project, Incorporated as a nonprofit agency in 1978, it is the couples, family and which makes one-to-one only explicitly identified sexual minority non group counseling, matches between high- profit social service agency in Oregon, and only including special school-age youth and one of a few nationwide. ized services for adults for the purpose of “Over the years a lot of people have viewed those with HIV and positive role modeling. Phoenix Rising as a safe place for coming out, as AIDS concerns; sup Phoenix Rising is the well as a place where they feel comfortable and port groups, a fiscal agent for the regu welcome,” says Allanya Guenther, who has served speaker’s bureau and larly occurring Lesbian, as the agency’s executive director during the past mentorship project Gay, Bisexual and Trans- two and a half years. for youth; commu sexual Youth Confer nity information and Yet Guenther says despite Phoenix Rising’s ence, which will be held unique contribution to the queer community, the referral; and com again in April 1997. agency is at acritical crossroads in its evolution. At munity and political The agency has also the end of January, she says, the board must decide advocacy on issues produced a youth resource whether to scale back staff and services due to a affecting sexual mi manual called You Are Not monthly funding deficit of roughly $10,000. nority communities. Alone, and sponsors a “The community has to understand that our From 1990 to youth speaker’s bureau, agency and other queer agencies can’t make it 1994, Phoenix Ris which features a team of without the community’s support,” says Guenther. ing provided an av young adults who share “While we seem to be able to raise lots of money erage of 200 to 300 their personal stories in for political campaigns, we sometimes appear to client sessions per high schools and col leges abandon those who need help.” month and had an in the metropolitan area. operating budget of According to Guenther, in early December During the past two $180,000 to Phoenix Rising mailed close to 4,000 fund-raising years the agency has solicitations. When we spoke with her at month’s $260,000. added two support end, just 25 responses had been received. In 1996, the groups for the trans “I think there is an anxiety in society about agency provided sexual community and a money—a fear that we will somehow not have nearly 800 client ses support group for women sions per month and enough,” she says. “Yet I also think there may be who use violence and in had a budget of more Allanya Guenther a cultural poverty of spirit—that we have some timidation to hurt their how collectively lost hope. But I was raised with than $500,000. partners. the ethic that we must take care of the needy. I truly According to Guenther, the rapid growth was Guenther says Phoenix Rising responds to an believe that a closed hand cannot receive.” due in part to the development of services for youth average of 1,000 calls per year. The agency’s Guenther also says that while many people and people with HIV and AIDS, as well as in future goals include developing a more multifac eted list of services, which may include domestic violence and drug and alcohol counseling, senior support services, and more social events, including sponsorship of the 1997 Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. The agency’s budget of $534,400 for fiscal year 1996-97 is supported by fees for service, govern ment contracts, United Way funds, fund-raising events and individual donations. Client fees ac count for 44 percent, followed by government contracts with 24 percent. Individual donations account for 18 percent of the budget. Just a couple of years ago, Phoenix Rising provided services to 300-400 individuals each year. That figure jumped to nearly 1,000 in 1995. “There has been a lot of growth,” says Guenther, adding the agency vigorously developed an infra structure—i.e., hiring more administrative and counseling staff—to respond to that growth. In 1994 the agency was the recipient of the John James Vasey estate and in 1996 the Jack Abele estate (totaling more than $250,000 combined), which gave it the opportunity to invest in increased administrative staff, move independent contract therapists to employee status, increase marketing and purchase necessary equipment and furnishings. And then, with a new solid infrastructure in place, there ironically was a drop-off in clientele. According to Guenther, in November 1995 the agency had 995 client sessions. In November 1996 that number dropped to 790. Guenther is not exactly sure why that is. What she does know, however, is that the client and/or funding base has to increase if the level of services currently being provided is to be sustained. She says staff took a 5 percent to 10 percent pay cut in November because of the unexpected fund ing situation. Guenther, who says she works between 50 and 60 hours per week, earns less than $35,000 annu ally. She says full-time therapists make between $21,000 and $24,000. “We are obviously not in this line of work for the money,” she says. “We do this because we care for our community.” And she hopes others will demonstrate that they do, too. am Monette, board president for the Port land-based Lesbian Community Project, says LCP Executive Director LaVeme Lewis has been laid off due to an organizational funding crunch. "As with most nonprofits, the money doesn’t come in on a consistent basis,” explains Monette, owner of a local costume store. “It can make things difficult.” According to Monette, LCP’s funding took a major blow earlier this year when one of its long time grantors, the Ms. Foundation, rejected the group’s grant proposal for several thousand dol lars. “That was a significant setback,” she says. Lewis and the LCP board had been striving to move the organization away from being primarily grant dependent toward increased self-sufficiency. In August 1995 the board kicked off its first major donor campaign, pulling in $9,000. This year LCP launched a $ 10,000 major donor campaign which, says Monette, attracted an estimated $6,000. Despite that, Monette says acquiring stable funding remains an elusive goal. “What we need to do as an organization is ask, ‘What do you want us to be?’ Ten years ago when LCP was first established, there really was no other and scaled back its annual budget from $ 100,000 to $80,000, with cuts in payroll and overhead. Throughout, the organization continued to spon sor a number of projects, including its Anti-Vio lence Project, which documents reported bias and hate crimes against sexual minorities; a Lesbian Health Project, which includes support groups for lesbians with breast cancer and other diseases; a speakers’ bureau, newsletter, various dances and social activities; as well as lesbian dragon boat, softball and “Race for the Cure” teams. “We are planning to meet with community leaders in January to talk about the direction we should take as an organization,” says Monette. “Again, things are different than they were 10 years ago. We have to ask the lesbian community, ‘Do you want us?’ ‘Are we valid?’ ‘If you do want us to continue, what do you want us to be?’ ” T P LCP lays off director , Financial woes take a sharper turn bringing the 10-year-old lesbian social/service organization to a point of reckoning ▼ by Inga Sorensen social group for lesbians. LCP was it. That obvi ously has changed, particularly in recent years,” she says. LCP’s mission, in part, is to “promote the well being of the lesbian community through a grass roots organization with an evolving multi-issue, multicultural perspective.” Due to the tenuous financial situation, the LCP office is now being managed by LCP’s volunteer board members. Monette says the only other paid staffer, a part-timer handling office maintenance responsibilities, was released from her duties sev eral weeks ago “in an effort to pay the bills.” Lewis did not respond to our calls for this story. However, during a recent interview with Just Out, she told us that just a couple of years ago, LCP, which touts an 850-person membership, was 70 percent grant dependent, and its fund-raising events were barely making a profit. “It’s very dangerous to become that grant de pendent,” she said. “If you lose your major grants and have no other source of funding, the organization’s future is clearly in jeopardy.” In 1993, LCP received a grant from McKenzie River Gathering to implement a Blue Print Project, the purpose of which was to craft a five-year internal strategic plan for the board of directors to implement and maintain. Not surprisingly, a key element of the plan dealt with LCP’s long-term economic development base. In order to shift from being lopsided toward grant dependency, LCP increased its fund-raising Phoenix Rising Foundation is sponsoring two community meetings this month at the agency’s offices at 620 SW Fifth Ave., Suite 710, in Portland. One is set fo r Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 6-7:30 pm; the other will be held Saturday, Jan. 18, from 11 am to 12:30 pm. To learn more about how you can support Phoenix Rising, call 223-8299. Those wishing to help LCP or express their opinions may do so by contacting LCP at 223-0071 or Monette at 284-0722. Donations to LCP are tax-deductible i f checks are made out to its Community Education Project. Mail donations to: LCP, PO Box 5931, Portland, OR 92228. Membership fees are sliding scale.
