Category: Meeting

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

Founded in 2006, Rainbow Railroad (www.rainbowrailroad.com) provides emergency travel support to persecuted LGBQTI people. Join our featured speaker, Development Officer Kyle Miller, to learn more about the work and history of this unique organization and delve into the current state of LGBTQI rights around the world and how these individuals are adversely affected during the current global migrant crisis. 

A graduate of The Randolph Academy for The Performing Arts, Kyle worked as an actor but soon his passion drove him into philanthropy in support of the arts he so loved. Kyle began supporting some of Canada’s most celebrated arts organizations including Canadian Stage, the Shaw Festival, The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, Soulpepper and Tafelmusik. Kyle is thrilled to have joined Rainbow Railroad as part of the Development Team, as it aligns with years of LGBTQI activism through his work as drag artist, Vanity à la Mode. He has performed with Pride Niagara, hosted Sex-Ed Bingo at Brock University and Niagara College, and can be found as a regular guest at Drag Brunch at Glad Day Bookshop. One of Kyle’s roles supports community events benefiting Rainbow Railroad. He is always so inspired by those who resonate with the work and want to help bring more individuals to safety.

Our guest musician will be Julia Fedec. At 21 years old, Julia Fedec has kicked off her music career with works that have been carried with her for years. For Julia, music has been the outlet through which she explores herself and the world around her – the only outlet that seemed apt to express the beauties and pains of vulnerability, finding inner strength and the complexities of life.  Julia only started performing publicly in 2018, and is in the process of writing and recording new music to release.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzpbfb/

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

Society has long celebrated the Hero’s Journey and the external accomplishments that result from worldly pursuits. But when triumphs leave us feeling empty, or when disappointments lead us to suffering, we may choose to answer the call of a different nature: to venture inward. 

The inward journey, or the archetypal heroine’s journey, begins with awakening to how disconnected we feel from our own needs, emotions, intuition, and purpose. Finding our way through the pain and confusion is less about DOING and more about BEING with what is, surrendering to transformation, and reclaiming a sense of connectedness.

But what does this path actually entail? What can it look like? Where can it lead? 

Our featured presentation, by Lindsay Kochen, will illustrate this inward process through the use of story-telling, drawing from her award-winning book Moving Through: A Heartistic Journey Towards Healing and Light. An invitation for reflection and discussion will follow.

Lindsay Kochen is the author and illustrator of Moving Through. She works as a psychotherapist and retreat leader, and she specializes in gently helping clients to move through the hard stuff in order to discover their own truths, heart-felt compassion, and sense of freedom. 

Our guest musician will be Amateur. Amateur is the solo project of self-teaching composer and accordionist Tristan Murphy. The title “Amateur” is both a disclaimer and a mission statement: a confession that he does not have formal training or a depth of cultural lore, nor any professional comprehension of genre or trend; but also a reminder that it does not matter, and that music can be made in a way that is explorative, for its own enjoyment, without striving toward or against existing musical standards. A link to Amateur: https://www.facebook.com/anamateur/

Clive Hannah will do the Community Moment. The Community Moment is a chance for one of our own to share their journey, thoughts about life, or something personal about themselves. It could be light and silly or it could be emotionally heavy. Either way, you’ll learn more about a valued person in our community. Interested in presenting your own Community Moment? Contact Tania at 416oasis@gmail.com.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryznbkc/

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

With increasing freedom from tradition and religion and the ability of women to attain financial independence, many of us can now make up our own unique relationship models for ourselves. We may choose to stay single for longer (or forever), create a family or not, be in a monogamous relationship or a polyamorous one. With all the possibilities out there, how can we know what is the right model for ourselves?

With the traditional ways, there were seeming deadlines and a sense of certainty and urgency – marriage by a certain age so that there is time to plan for having children and raising a family. Moreover, families used to stay together no matter what – even if relationships were abusive. Leaving a relationship was not always an option. Living in more progressive times and places, with less stigma associated with being single, separated or divorced, leaving a relationship is an option. Any relationship with a human is bound to hit rough patches. If leaving is an option, how do we know when to work things out and when to call it quits?

With greater freedom to choose our relationships comes the need to know more about relationships so we can make the right, informed decisions for ourselves. How does a healthy relationship look like? What are some of the common pitfalls we should watch out for in our relationships?

Our featured speaker, Laval Martin, will share some of his insights and lead us in a discussion on this topic. Laval Martin is a corporate trainer on topics such as resilience, conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness (lavalmartinconsulting.com). Holding a Master of Social Work degree, he also provides psychotherapy and relationship therapy (wisemindtoronto.com). Additionally, Laval has practiced various martial arts and self-defence systems since 2001, with a focus on avoiding and de-escalating conflict. He is a full-instructor of Senshido and also holds an instructor certification with Safe International. Laval has been hosting a monthly Beer and Philosophy Night for over four years.

Our guest musician will be Elizabeth Block. Her business card describes her songs as political, satirical, sentimental, and environmental. Elizabeth was a choral singer, and a church soloist, for decades, a folksinger since she joined Toronto Folk Song Circle in the 1980s. She learned to play the guitar, not well, but well enough to accompany herself and other people. She knows a lot of songs, has sometimes written new words to old songs, or new versions of them. She hasn’t written an entire song, but there’s still time. She is also a potter, check out:  www.elizabethblockpottery. com.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryznbjb/

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

This will be a conversation sparked by MLK when he said, “Power without love is reckless and abusive. Love without power is sentimental and anemic.”  How do we struggle with and then resolve these two primal forces, of power and love? How do we hold the paradox of both in our most intimate relationships, as well as in global and local politics? That is the question our featured speaker, David Jurasek, will pose, offering possibilities and concrete examples, as we all wrestle with the question, as a group together.

David Jurasek is a father, a leader, a Sensei and a therapist who is passionate about growing communities which empower diverse people to thrive. You can find out about all of his adventures and creative outpourings here: www.davidjurasek.com

Our guest musician will be Amateur.  Amateur is the solo project of self-teaching composer and accordionist Tristan Murphy. The title “Amateur” is both a disclaimer and a mission statement: a confession that he does not have formal training or a depth of cultural lore, nor any professional comprehension of genre or trend; but also a reminder that it does not matter, and that music can be made in a way that is explorative, for its own enjoyment, without striving toward or against existing musical standards.  A link to Amateur: https://www.facebook.com/anamateur/

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryznbjb/

We’ve all been there, trying to talk to someone with a position that seems so obviously wrong yet they just won’t budge. Someone pushes their opinion too hard and the conversation quickly devolves into an all-out tooth and claw argument. In this presentation our speaker, Miguel Mendez, introduces the method known as Street Epistemology as a better way to have these difficult conversations. Miguel will show real examples and give a brief introduction to the method with resources to learn more.

Miguel Mendez is a hobby humanist activist that loves challenging people’s ideas wherever he goes. Since he’s learned about Street Epistemology, he’s seen his challenges move from arguments into constructive and genuine conversations. He is eager to share his experience and knowledge on the subject with the world. Miguel grew up a devout Catholic. After being exposed to new ideas in university along with a healthy dose of critical thinking, he left his faith. He now uses his experience and knowledge to mentor students and help others think critically to become aware of the silent forces influencing their decisions.

Our guest musician will be Willow Rutherford. Willow is a troubadour balladeer of folk, jazz, Celtic and traditional standards, with deep roots in the Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver indie music scene. She has composed soundtracks for documentaries and animated shorts. Willow sings in English, French and Spanish.

James Winslow will do the Community Moment. The Community Moment is a chance for one of our own to share their journey, thoughts about life, or something personal about themselves. It could be light and silly or it could be emotionally heavy. Either way, you’ll learn more about a valued person in our community. Interested in presenting your own Community Moment? Contact Tania at 416oasis@gmail.com.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:

https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzmbmc/

 

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

Before she became a lawyer our featured speaker, Heather Hui-Litwin, held many assumptions about the justice system. She had a lot of faith in the system. She thought it was mostly common sense. She thought in terms of black and white, right and wrong. She believed that the person in the right will be saved, and justice always prevails. After having gone through a civil trial, becoming a lawyer herself, she realized that her beliefs were overly simplistic. Her idealization of the adversarial process prevented her from exploring and understanding the tremendous value in collaborative conflict resolution processes, such as mediation.  If she had known then, what she knows now, she would have done things differently. In this talk Heather will attempt to share with you the realities she learned, in her journey from being a client to becoming a lawyer. 

Heather Hui-Litwin is a non-practising lawyer whose passion is in public legal education.  She and her husband were once embroiled in a lawsuit which lasted many years. During part of the lawsuit, they represented themselves. Even though being a litigant was stressful, she developed a strong interest in the law. She went to Osgoode Hall Law School, and was called to the Bar in 2012. Her personal experience motivated her to work in the area of access to justice. She co-founded the Self-Rep Navigators (www.limitedscoperetainers.ca) in 2015, with colleague Mick Hassell, in hopes of developing limited scope services to be an acceptable mode of legal practice, and promoting it to the public. She is also starting a public legal education project, Litigation Help, www.litigation-help.com , where she and her colleagues will deliver legal education in plain language through its own YouTube channel, as well as speaking to the public in libraries and community centres.

Our guest musician will be Jessica Stuart (https://jessicastuartmusic.com/). Vancouver born, Toronto-based multi-instrumentalist/songwriter, Jessica Stuart has spent much of the last decade touring the world with her award-winning jazz-pop trio, The Jessica Stuart Few.  As an accomplished vocalist, guitarist and koto player (13-stringed traditional Japanese harp), Stuart has been praised for her on-stage charm, musical chops, and signature song writing style.   Described by The Globe & Mail as “endlessly charismatic”, Jessica has been likened to a modern-day Joni Mitchell with lyrics that describe the joys and challenges of the human experience, delivered in a catchy, but musically adventurous package.  

Some of Stuart’s recent career highlights include a Top 40 single in Japan, a “Best Album” designation in the international Independent Music Awards, festival performances in Australia, Germany, China, Japan and North America, and regular rotation on airwaves around the globe, from the BBC to the CBC.

Coming off of the release of the single “Fukue’s Theme Part I” that accompanied a record-breaking viral CBC documentary about the artist herself (3 million views and counting), Stuart has released an indie-pop single this summer (June 2019) called Simple Little Song, under the new project name JESSA.

Lola Bradford will do the Community Moment.  The Community Moment is a chance for one of our own to share their journey, thoughts about life, or something personal about themselves.  It could be light and silly or it could be emotionally heavy.  Either way, you’ll learn more about a valued person in our community.  Interested in presenting your own Community Moment?  Contact Tania at 416oasis@gmail.com.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzmbdc/

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

The Trans Mountain Pipeline: an integral view of the topic in the context of the upcoming 2019 Canadian federal election

In this conversation our featured speaker, Erick Carreras, will breakdown the topic of the Trans Mountain Pipeline by viewing it from a variety of disciplines and perspectives. The different perspectives will then be integrated to come up with key considerations when placing the topic in today’s “glocal” context of the 2019 Canadian federal election. Some of the different perspectives that will be reviewed include, but are not limited to, the following: a timeline of the pipeline since it was first built in 1953, until present-day; some key players on the issue; how the new federal carbon-tax, the Paris Climate Agreement (2017), and the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards relate to the pipeline; the incentives on both sides of the debate; real and viable integral alternatives to the colonial structure of competitive and restrictive dichotomous debate; and finally, how this all relates to the stance each Canadian federal party is taking on the issue, and how it may affect whose name you tick on the ballot on election day, October 21, 2019. Erick will link us to his website, keep channels of communication open to continue the conversation beyond the event, as well as offer his presentation material to anyone who would like a copy. 

Erick Carreras has a background in clinical surgical research, nutrition and methylmercury assessments in the Amazon of Peru, and was recognized with the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Faculty of Health Science at McMaster University when he graduated with a Master’s of Science in Global Health (2017). During his MScGH, Erick took a term to study abroad in the Netherlands at Maastricht University to specialize in a branch of Sociology known as Science and Technology Studies (STS), where his scholarly work investigated the economics of capitalism as a contributing driving force to the establishment of psychiatry as we know it today. Since the completion of his studies, Erick Carreras has worked to promote Gender Equity and Social Inclusivity in the workplace of the private sector in Barranquilla, Colombia; completed free-lance English to French translation work for a non-profit that helps establish Syrian Refugees coming to Canada who identify as a part of the LGBTQ2+ community; and currently supports the field work and administration of social programs created by, and for, urban Indigenous of Turtle Island residing in Ontario. Using his website (erickcarreras.ca), some social media platforms, public presentations (such as this one), and his upcoming book, Erick hopes to raise the consciousness of the world, at scale, to make the impact he hopes to have on the world: contribute to empowering the collective so we may all iteratively co-create a holistically healthier world for all, by all.

Our featured musician will be Cassie Norton, the music director of Toronto Oasis.  At times fragile and sweet, at other times strong, bold and even harsh, this Toronto based violinist/ singer-songwriter tells the stories behind her lyrics with sound. Cassie’s music is, at times friendly, familiar, and simple, examining ordinary characters with an extraordinary level of depth. Other times it is more adventurous, rumbling with dissonant and irreverent sounds and epic themes.

Cassie and her band have been performing at Toronto venues such as Burdock Hall, Arrayspace, and The Supermarket since January 2018, and released their first EP: Lullaby for the End of Time in February 2019. In addition, Cassie has recorded two full length albums as a solo artist, Little Strength (2009) and Quiet Wilderness (2010).

When she isn’t busy making her own music, Cassie shares her love of music with others through teaching. She teaches a variety of private and ensemble classes at Regent Park School of Music, and through her private studio. Check out her website: https://www.cassienorton.com/

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzmbtb/

Our event starts at 11 am on the 2nd floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue).  Social 10:45am – 11:00am.

We all inherently have an understanding of consciousness, our awareness that we are alive and able to comprehend our existence.  In this presentation our featured speaker, Philosofree (a.k.a Phil Cheney), links scientific perspectives from Quantum Physics, Holon Theory, and Dark Energy into an interesting way to view consciousness as connectedness.  The second part of the presentation will look at the fastest growing philosophy in North America and its reliance on these new views of consciousness as the energy/fuel to free individual belief from societal dogma.

Phil ‘Philosofree’ Cheney is awed by the Cosmos, and excited about human potential. He is a renaissance man who appreciates life, having worked in over 55 countries, including as a university lecturer in his native Australia, trade leader in Thailand, Government budget consultant in Papua New Guinea, software distributor in Zimbabwe, marketer in Germany, Building Construction in China, farm exporting in Japan and author in his current home in Toronto.

Philosofree is a mystic who is curious about integrating science and the metaphysical. He has published 8 books, 5 CDs of original music and won awards for software design and clinical practice in medicine.  His education background includes degrees in Economics, Business Administration and Information Technology.  Phil prioritizes his wife, daughters and grandchildren, and loves to sing and dance with them.

Our guest musician will be Erik Bleich. Erik is a singer songwriter whose genre blends classic pop and folk traditions – from street lit lullabies to manic, rambling romps.  It’s his vision of folk music for the Internet Age.  Check out his website: www.erikbleich.com

Cathy Fountas will do the Community Moment.  The Community Moment is a chance for one of our own to share their journey, thoughts about life, or something personal about themselves.  It could be light and silly or it could be emotionally heavy.  Either way, you’ll learn more about a valued person in our community.  Interested in presenting your own Community Moment?  Contact Tania at 416oasis@gmail.com.

You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzmblb/