The Gay Auckland Business Association's Charitable Trust has just donated over $10,000 to a wide variety of LGBT community organisations.
Below, GABA Trust Chair Geoffrey Marshall reveals who got the money and the various projects it will be spent on.
NZ AIDS Memorial Quilt Project
The NZ AIDS Memorial Quilt Project wishes to establish a website where the history of the quilts can be recorded, and images of the quilts can be viewed. It is also becoming difficult and expensive to transport the increasingly fragile quilt panels for display. We believe that the quilts are an important part of our history and should be preserved and also be available to view. The Trust has granted $2,000 to assist with developing the website and is offering expertise in the future management of the quilts themselves.
GALS are an important and long-standing community group, giving 2 major concert series each year, and many other performances, and in 2010 will host the Australasian Out and Loud Choral Festival in the Auckland Town Hall. They have asked for money to build 3 transportable risers. These are long steps for the choir to stand on and which will allow better staging of their concerts. The Trust has agreed to give them $1,200 to fund these.
The Auckland Women's Centre wants to host regular evening events where lesbians can meet, watch DVDs and socialize in a non-scene, non-threatening environment. They see this as being particularly useful to recently out lesbians and those who are isolated by being solo mothers. To assist with costs we have agreed to give them $1,000.
Gender Resource Centre
The Gender Resource Centre is being established to provide counseling and other support around gender and related issues concerned with health, social welfare, legal and others relevant to gender development and understanding. To assist with the legal costs of finalising their trust deed the trust will give $500.
GenderBridge is an incorporated society which runs a helpline for gender issues. They are looking for funding to assist with the 4th Annual Transgender Day of Remembrance to be held at St Matthews-in-the-City. GABA Trust has agreed to give them $500 to cover publicity, food, drink and equipment hire.
Susan Potter
Susan Potter has completed a documentary DVD called An Ordinary Person which examines the legal defence to murder of provocation and its homophobic use, often called the 'homosexual panic defence'. She uses material from three recent Auckland cases (the killings of David McNee, Colin Hart, and Robert Hunt). This DVD has already been shown to great acclaim and Susan has asked for funding to produce commercial versions of the DVD and to promote it to film festivals and television. We have agreed to give her $1,254 to do this.
The Charlotte Museum is a charitable trust which has been set up to preserve the objects of lesbian culture from early lesbian life in New Zealand. They mount exhibitions and research lesbian history but have been hampered by the lack of scanning, copying and printing facilities. The Trust has agreed to give $1,200 to buy a suitable scanner/copier/printer.
Body Positive has been subsidising the costs of doctor's fees for many of their members on very low incomes. The medical centre they use has offered a very low rate but it is still unaffordable for many positive people who have high health needs. The trust has agreed to give them $1,500 to assist with this.
GABA Secondary Scholarship
GABA has created an annual scholarship of $2,000 to be awarded to an out and proud secondary student who is recognized by their teachers and fellow students as a good role-model, to assist that student with their first year of tertiary study. We celebrated the inaugural year by giving scholarships to two fantastic students and we have allocated $2,000 from this year's grants for the second year of the scholarship, to be awarded later this year.
Outline has been paying a high rental for its telephone system and has asked for assistance to develop a new one. We have not allocated money at this stage but GABA is working to secure a sponsorship deal which may need to be backed up with trust money.
Find out more about the Gay Auckland Business Assocation on its official website.
