Just Housing, Homeless Camp Residents Organize

Above: Michelle, a former medical assistant, lives at the Nickerson encampment for the houseless off Eastside Street in Olympia. She has gastroparesis, a digestive system disorder, and other chronic illnesses. 

By Invitation, Little Hollywood Visits Nickerson Camp

By Janine Gates

Little Hollywood

https://janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

“I had two closets full of shoes!” Michelle laughed, but then paused. “It almost makes me want to cry,” she added.

Michelle, a former medical assistant, has lived at the Nickerson homeless encampment, a wooded, 2.5-acre property located on Wheeler Avenue off Eastside Street in Olympia, for about three months.

She has always worked, and is waiting for her Social Security disability benefits to start.

From Pierce County, Michelle became homeless after a divorce, but says she is healthier now in spirit than she was while married.

Her decline into chronic illness began after colon surgery in August, 2014. She has gastroparesis, a digestive disorder in which the stomach cannot empty itself of food in a normal fashion.

Then she suffered her first heart attack in July, 2015.

She needs regular colostomy supplies but has no address for them to be delivered. Instead, she uses sanitary pads as a heavy duty, makeshift bandage for her stomach so she doesn’t soil herself. She is in pain, which perpetuates vomiting.

“I’m used to being the one who takes care of others, but I’m resourceful,” she says. “I grew up on a farm in Lewis County.” 

Michelle is just one of nine residents at the Nickerson Camp who has a story, illustrating how easy it is to slip into a life of homelessness and lose access to the everyday conveniences of modern life.

Above: A meal of ravioli at the Nickerson Camp.

Nickerson Camp History

The city recently bought the Nickerson encampment area for use as a future park.

Camp residents were served a 72 hour notice of eviction on July 12. The area has been a homeless encampment for many years, but this was the first time this specific property had been served with such a notice.

Last month, Olympia city council members put off the eviction until further notice.

It was the same evening the council declared homelessness a public health emergency and the optics didn’t look good to take action on both actions on the same night.

Then, on July 24, the city announced the proposed locations of two city sanctioned sites for the homeless. A council finance committee met July 31 to discuss financing options for those sites and other homeless response efforts.

Councilmembers will hold a study session on August 21 to discuss those financing options, which include current operating and capital budget monies, and the possible use of Home Fund sales tax dollars, parks funds, and emergency reserves from the city’s operating budget.

City manager Steve Hall says the Nickerson site is not an ideal site for a permanent camp due to the environmental sensitivity of the area. In reality, hundreds of Olympia residents are living in wooded areas around Thurston County and all of them are environmentally sensitive.

Residents of the Nickerson Camp are interested in being part of the solution.

Prior to the eviction notice being served, they had collected numerous bags of trash to take off the property. The bags have been removed by members of Just Housing, an all volunteer advocacy organization, without the assistance of the city. 

With boots-on-the-ground, the group works directly with the homeless on daily and long-term solutions to local homelessness issues and urges councilmembers to adopt realistic, cost-effective approaches to managing the city’s unhoused residents.

Above: Tye Gundel of Just Housing takes a call while sitting at the Woodland Trail trailhead near the Nickerson Camp. 

Tye Gundel of Just Housing visits the Nickerson camp and other homeless encampments several times a week. She not only listens to residents, she washes their laundry at laundromats, brings needed supplies, and facilitates communication among residents, councilmembers, the faith community, and other community social service providers.

“City staff and councilmembers are gradually taking steps to embrace some of our ideas,” Gundel said diplomatically this week.

Gundel has suggested numerous goals, policies and procedures regarding local homelessness since the group started its work advocating for open 24/7 restrooms in November 2016.

Recently, the group created several half-inch binders, one for each city councilmember and some for staff, chock full of solid local research and practical strategies. Gundel gave them to councilmembers prior to their July 24 study session on homelessness.

For example, Just Housing provides suggestions for regulating camping rather than imposing an outright ban.

One approach includes a “shelter-in-place” plan to working with existing encampments, in addition to the creation of alternative legal and safe encampments, like the two recently proposed emergency housing locations.

People will camp even if it is banned, because some people have no other choice, says Gundel.

The study session fell flat, as Just Housing and other community social service providers were not offered a seat at the table and the material did not appear to be used.

Now, as the days inch toward cold weather months, councilmembers are increasingly interested in making sure community partners and social service providers are included in future conversations.

In the meantime, Gundel will continue her efforts.

“I have had some great meetings with folks about structure and organizing the camp. 

We are also continuing to look for a partner for a camp. So far, two churches are interested. Our next step is to arrange a meeting with some representatives from the churches, the city, the camp, and some of our folks to go through more of the details of how we should move forward,” said Gundel this week.

Nickerson Camp Residents Speak to Little Hollywood

Above: Micky Nelson, 34, a resident of the Nickerson Camp, has twice addressed Olympia city council members during public comment time, and has ideas for organizing the camp.

Little Hollywood visited the Nickerson Camp property, by invitation, with Gundel in late July and last week.

Many residents of homeless encampments do not want to or cannot live in an enclosed shelter or camp-like environment.

Mickey Nelson, 34, moved from Texas to Washington State in 2009. He and his girlfriend, Jackie Taylor, 39, have lived at the Nickerson Camp since January, making them the longest, consecutive resident campers on the property.

Nelson is a jack-of-all-trades and has worked in construction, remodeling, steel fabrication, welding, auto body, detailing, lawn care, dog services, and cook.

Nelson has back issues which began with a motorcycle accident, then a car accident, in which he was a passenger, three months later. He is on state disability and is reapplying for Social Security. He says he has a long standing mental health history and is a participant of Capital Recovery Center programs. 

Capital Recovery Center is a community nonprofit, peer-supported agency that has special programs such as Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH), a point of contact for adults experiencing homelessness who also suffer from mental illness.

Nelson says the camp is on good terms with its housed neighbors, and one neighbor brought them trash bags. He credits Taylor for cleaning up the camp, almost single-handedly. Trash is gradually taken off the property by individuals with Just Housing, without the assistance of the city.

“Evicting us off the property would push us back into downtown, or on other city property,” he said. “Since we have been here, foot traffic and noise has gone down. It’s a safe place for the sick, youth, pregnant women, and domestic violence victims.

“We are looking to be a camp that has a positive impact on society. Not all of us have the desire to live indoors because we’ve been homeless for so long. We have to do the best we can with the best we have.”

Nelson hopes to start a nonprofit whose mission it would be to purchase property for homeless people to camp on and use as a safe place.

He is co-director of InReach, an organization organized by the homeless community. In collaboration with James Joy of The Jungle, Olympia’s largest homeless encampment of about 200 residents, Nelson is creating a practical survival guide for the houseless. The guide would be updated every six months.

“I’ve done so many bad things in my life as a kid. Doing this is my way of atoning for the people I can’t ask forgiveness from, for whatever reason. I’m making it up to the universe,” he said. Nelson has an eight year old son and a 21 year old cousin living elsewhere.

“I want this world to be better than mine was,” he said.

Jackie Taylor, sitting nearby, was born and raised in Olympia, and patiently waited to tell her story. 

To relieve her stress and anxiety, she likes to bicycle at night.

“I don’t do daytime. I can’t be around traffic and people,” she says.

She says the state department of social and health services provides outdated information, such as telling women who are homeless to go to Bread and Roses, a former shelter for women that has been closed for years.

It is her goal to create a donation supply drop off center at the Nickerson Camp, similar to the one at The Jungle.

She also wants a more organized camp. All the area camps are currently self-managed through peer-support but Taylor wants the city’s support in establishing a resident list and process for approving people as new residents.

Taylor brainstormed a Nickerson resident code of conduct and her wish list for the camp: it must be clean and sober, no theft, no bullying, and no violence. She would appreciate it if the city would provide the camp a small dumpster and a porta-potty with a sink.

“This is my safe haven – a small community where people follow the rules and help out. I don’t want the city to spend a lot of money,” said Taylor.

Taylor says the Just Housing organization has been supportive of their work. “You couldn’t ask for anyone better,” she said.

Little Hollywood often writes about homelessness issues, and unsheltered, street dependent individuals. For more information about these issues, go to Little Hollywood and use the search button to type in key words.

Independent, local journalism takes time. If you appreciate community journalism and photojournalism, please consider a donation to Little Hollywood. A PayPal donation link is located on the sidebar of Little Hollywood’s main page at www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com. Other ways to donate are also available. Thank you!

One Year In: Is Congressman Heck Giving 'Em Heck?

Above: U.S. Representative Denny Heck (D-WA10) listens to remarks at a swearing-in ceremony for Thurston County officials on December 28, 2013.

 

By Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

United States Representative Denny Heck (D-WA10) went back to the other Washington earlier this week, but during his two week Christmas break, he was home in Olympia.

Congressman Heck visited Quixote Village, Thurston County’s new permanent community for the homeless, made several speaking engagements, toured local businesses and non-profits, and relaxed with someone he calls his best friend, his wife, Paula.

The timing seemed to be right to check in with Heck after the completion of his first session of the 113^th Congress as a freshman from the newly created 10^th district. Little Hollywood requested an interview and appreciated Congressman Heck making time for this opportunity. 
 
The 10^th district, created after the 2010 census, encompasses parts or all of Thurston, Pierce and Mason Counties, with Joint Base Lewis-McChord thrown into the middle.

According to the website OpenCongress, Heck voted with fellow Democrats  93.1 percent of the time.

Accommodating a range of political and philosophical viewpoints, Heck ranked among the highest 15 percent among all representatives in joining bipartisan bills, and of the 115 bills that Heck cosponsored, 39 percent were introduced by someone other than a Democrat, according to the website GovTrack.us.

As Heck stated at a recent swearing-in ceremony of local officials in Thurston County, “Never stop looking for common ground and always be civil – you have so little control over all the rest.”

This interview was conducted on January 4 at Batdorf and Bronson coffee shop on Capitol Way in downtown Olympia, the day after Boeing machinists approved a ten year contract.

Since the interview, some of the issues we discussed have already transpired, such as the Senate’s confirmation on Monday of Janet Yellen as chair of the Federal Reserve, and yesterday’s movement by the Senate to extend federal unemployment compensation benefits.

Jumping right in, we stuck to my organized list of about 20 topics: questions about Boeing, the government shutdown, the federal minimum wage indexing bill, Syria, China’s ban on geoducks and the privatization of our shorelines for a growing shellfish industry, coal export terminals, Puget Sound cleanup efforts, his role on the House Finance Committee, and more.

I also prepared for our interview by looking over Heck’s re-election financial reports submitted so far, and, as a result, asked him about his thoughts about the movement to amend the U.S. Constitution to keep big money out of politics.

Is Heck really giving ‘em heck, as his campaign slogan promised?

Northwest Issues and 2014 Priorities

Not surprisingly, Heck was positive on the approval of the Boeing machinist’s new ten year contract.

“In the 10^th district in Fredrickson, Boeing builds composite wings, and will be one of the competitors as the 777X project develops….We now have an opportunity to create up to 4000 well-paying jobs in Fredrickson…the kind of jobs you can buy a home and take a vacation and send your kids to college, so we now have an opportunity for significant middle class jobs wage jobs to be expanded, and that’s a good thing….”  (The Boeing PAC has already given Heck $10,000 in 2013).

Asked what his priorities will be going into the 2014 Session, Heck said, without hesitation, first, to extend the unemployment compensation benefits to 1.3 million families, which were discontinued December 28, 2013, and affects 3,472 job seekers in the South Sound.  

“Letting that go was not the best thing to do economically or morally – we could be doing better by them…No single dollar that the government spends is circulated more times than unemployment benefits….”

To check in with constituents, Heck said he has held about six to eight town hall meetings and several telephone town hall meetings so far, the latter of which he prefers because thousands of people are able to call in and be part of the conversation, rather than 50 – 100 who can attend meetings in person. Heck says he’s able to answer questions over the telephone just as ably as in person. Still, he appreciates and welcomes all forums.

“(Regarding extending the unemployment benefits) I do hear several people say it’s the right thing to do, and I agree. Despite some of the flaws, the House passage of the Murray-Ryan deal mitigated sequestration….The austerity approach won’t work…”

“I’m also focused on the farm bill – that’s a great battle with serious consequences. We seem to have relative agreement on reforming the farm subsidy program – we’re essentially going to provide fewer subsidies to large corporations that are otherwise pretty profitable…but the problem is that the House Republican majority wants to devastate the program….It’s now in conference committee to work out the differences. I am cautiously optimistic that we’ll be able to work it out…. If we don’t fix the farm bill, come March, April, May, anybody who is the parent of a child 12 years or younger is going to feel it big time because milk prices are going to double….”

He said he also heard from his constituents regarding to topic of Syria, because he specifically solicited their opinion when it was looking like diplomatic solutions may not work:

“….I cannot imagine any more sobering responsibility by a member of Congress than to decide whether or not to engage in an act of war which will take lives, and my family has been personally affected in this way….”

Heck, who said he lost his brother to cancer as a result of exposure to Agent Orange while serving as a Marine in Vietnam, said he reached out to constituents about Syria, and was enriched by those conversations.

In the end, he said he felt that the President has not made the case for a military intervention in Syria.

Economic and Financial Issues

Last January, Heck gave up the chance to be appointed to other committees such as the Budget and Judiciary Committees. Instead Heck jumped at a last minute opening on the House Finance Committee and feels it’s his niche.

Most notably, Heck saw his bill, HR 2167, the Reverse Mortgage Stabilization Act of 2013, pass in June - no small feat for a freshman congressman.

Regarding the Federal Reserve, Heck said he thinks the Federal Reserve is a functional institution. "I’m an unabashed fan of Chair Bernanke and I think I will be of Janet Yellin as well. Both are smart, balanced people…tasked with keeping inflation and unemployment down, and this year Chair Bernanke was clearly concerned about employment levels….”

In early December, Heck signed onto the federal minimum wage indexing bill H.R. 1010 to raise the minimum wage to $10.10.

“It won’t kick start the middle class by itself…but 1 percent of our nation’s population has 20 percent of its income and the top 1 percent has 40 percent of its net worth…and two-thirds of our economy is built on consumption…. that’s a recipe for economic disaster….”

This comment provided a perfect segue to ask his opinion about the movement to amend the U.S. Constitution. Heck said he could support it depending on what it said, adding that Citizen’s United was just “plain wrong and is bad for the country” but seemed to feel the movement was an uphill battle.

“Let’s change it as we can.”

Minty Fresh, Green Businesses

Asked what local businesses provide him with a sense of where we should be heading with a clean, green local economy, Heck said he appreciated businesses like I.P. Callison & Sons in Lacey, which provides mint related products throughout the world, Ice Chips Candy in Yelm, which was spotlighted on the television show “Shark Tank,” and Allafia, also headquartered in Lacey, whose fair trade health and beauty product production is the second largest employer in the African country of Togo.

“Allafia told me the other day that they gave 6,000 bikes to high school girls to commute to and from the village and raised high school graduation rates from nine percent to 95 percent - now that’s changing the world!”

Speaking of green businesses, I asked about the state legalization of pot. Heck says he is devoting his energy toward removing the federal barriers for marijuana related businesses so they can access the use of depository institutions.

“That’s where I’ve concentrated my efforts…I will also say that we seem to be decades beyond the point that marijuana should be a Class 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act. I don’t think that’s supported by the science.”

Local Environmental Issues

Heck was asked a variety of environmental questions that he seemed to answer in terms of being an opportunity to discuss the issues.

Asked about China’s recent ban on geoducks, Heck responded, “I spoke with Ambassador (Gary) Locke a couple times…and our repeated tests were showing something different…Given the data I’ve been presented with, I’d be comfortable consuming that product….”

About the increased privatization of South Sound shores to the shellfish aquaculture industry, Heck said he prefers to think of it in terms of what the industry is doing to help global warming and ocean acidification.

“I tend to have a different view of shellfish farming - there is no stronger proponent of doing something about global warming than shellfish farmers and the reason for that is ocean acidification and what it does to the shellfish. In fact, I think shellfish is the water quality 'canary in the mineshaft.'  But if you believe, as I do, that global warming is one of the greatest threats to civilization, then that helps us spread the word….”

When pressed that what activists are talking about is the intensity and method that the shellfish aquaculture industry uses to scour the shoreline of native species, Heck said he knows people have strong feelings on both sides of the issue.

Asked for his opinion on the coal export terminals being proposed in Washington State, Heck said, “We are proceeding exactly as we should be, with the state Department of Ecology and the Corps of Engineering determining the outcome. I always use the question about coal as an opportunity to talk about global warming. Whether or not hauling that much coal traffic through our communities is environmentally damaging will hopefully be indicated by the results to these efforts that are currently underway."

Little Hollywood: “It doesn’t sound like you’re coming out against them…”

Heck: “What should be inarguable to everybody is that global warming is real and coal is a significant contributor and if we do not recognize that, we will pay a price beyond our imagination….”

LH: “But we’re aiding and abetting China to continue what they’re doing and it’s going to come back to us in the form of ocean acidification.” 

Heck did not respond.

Bringing more global issues local, I asked Heck how we can move to a healthier economy if our own Port of Olympia stays complicit in the degradation of our environment by accepting contracts to move raw logs to China and accept ceramic proppants from China, destined to be used in fracking. Heck was unfamiliar with this issue and/or the port’s role, so I provided him with several past issues of the South Sound Green Pages.

A little frustrated, perhaps, Heck added, “I don’t want to substitute my judgment all the time, ahead of time, for people whose job it is to evaluate this stuff – I mean, before their work product comes out, the state Department of Ecology and the Corps – yea or nay….”

Lastly, Heck was questioned about the slow cleanup efforts of Puget Sound, the Puget Sound Partnership, and his role with Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA06) as co-founders in June 2013 of the Congressional Puget Sound Recovery Caucus.

Heck said, “Not too much is happening yet, and that’s fair…In part, we see ourselves as defenders and advocates of appropriations designed to help with habitat restoration and the like, but we can also play a soft power role of being the ones who can prod improved coordination between these agencies….”

Heck described a Tacoma town hall meeting devoted to the topic of Puget Sound clean-up efforts, and a Washington D.C. based meeting between the state Partnership and the Environmental Protection Agency's Region 10, at which many of the parties had not met before.

“In terms of how I spend my time, it was a whole lot more than approving a press release – we are actually poking and prodding, trying to figure out how it is we can make a difference.”

Looking Toward Re-Election

Heck is running for re-election, and no Republican has stepped forth to challenge him. The primary is August 5. His last election against Republican Richard Muri cost a little over $2 million.

Freedom Foundation executive director Tom McCabe said last week in a meeting of Republicans at Panorama that they do not yet have anyone to run against Heck, but hoped someone would step forward. He acknowledged that the 10th district would be difficult for Republicans to win.

Toward his re-election campaign, Heck has already raised $603,335, according to a federal financial report filed October 14, 2013. Over half, $332,110, is from political action committees (PACs), and $271,225 is from individuals. Heck has $494,429.16 in cash on hand. His next financial report is due January 31.

I pointed out that in this last report alone, he has received thousands of dollars from the PACs of the very banks and financial institutions, such as Bank of America, Capital One, Citigroup, American Express, Ernst and Young, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs, that he is empowered to oversee and investigate as a member of the House Finance Committee.

Other corporations reporting contributions this quarter include Verizon, Walmart, General Electric, and $10,000 each from the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. 

I asked him if there is anyone he would not accept campaign monies from.

“I don’t know, really…I’d probably have a hard time if cigarette companies come knocking, and I’ve never gotten any money from Big Oil, but my record ringing the bell on global warming is well established, and my advocacy for closing some of the tax preferences Big Oil has is pretty well known, so maybe they’ll never come, I don’t know….”

Asked about his opinion on public financing, Heck said he’s conceptually supportive but if one’s position is that this is a good thing because it will impact policy in a good way, then all one has to do is look at Arizona. “They had a form of that for a while…and Maine…I’m not entirely convinced….”

When asked if accepting money from the aforementioned financial institutions doesn’t suggest a conflict of interest or leave him open to corruption, Heck said, “I am more than content to leave this up to the voters…I give thanks for being a member of Congress. I am not somebody who is going to retire post Congressional term to be a lobbyist…this is my home….I sleep pretty well at night.”

The House 113^th Congress, Second Session is in session for only 11 days in January, and 112 days total this year, for which Heck is paid $174,000.

On Wednesday, January 15, the Finance Committee will hold a hearing to examine the impact and potential unintended consequences of the recently finalized Volcker Rule.

On Tuesday, January 28, the committee will hold a hearing to receive the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau semi-annual report.

While many of the issues we discussed are far away from the minds of many South Sounders, Heck will be there, and giving ‘em heck, or at least, some pokin' and proddin'.

For more information about U.S. Congressman Denny Heck, go to his website at www.dennyheck.house.gov.

His congressional Thurston and Mason County office is located at Lacey City Hall, 420 College Street SE, Suite 3000, Lacey, Washington 98503, (360) 459-8514; Pierce County office is located at Lakewood City Hall, 6000 Main Street SW, Suite 3B, Lakewood, WA 98499, (253) 208-6172; Washington D.C. office, 425 Cannon House Office Building, Washington D.C. 20215, (202) 225-9740.

Full disclosure: Janine Unsoeld is a board member of the South Puget Environmental Education Clearinghouse (SPEECH) that publishes the South Sound Green Pages, a quarterly environmental magazine. For more information, go to: www.oly-wa.us/greenpages.

Thurston County HIV/AIDS Prevention Funding Cut

By Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

The Washington State Department of Health has confirmed that it will no longer fund some HIV prevention activities in Thurston County after June 30th. 

 

The state's approach to HIV prevention has been redefined and funding for it has been cut due to a recent state decision to focus scarce financial resources to areas in the state with a high number of cases, with first priority going to King County and Pierce County.

 

"Since March 2011, the state Department of Health has been working in partnership with the Washington State HIV Prevention Planning Group, a group of volunteers from a variety of backgrounds, to construct a framework for HIV prevention for the state. The strategies all aim to...significantly reduce new HIV infections in the state," says Maria Courogen, Office Director of Infectious Disease at the Washington State Department of Health.

 To meet this goal, there have been three main changes to prevention services: an increased focus on people living with HIV, an increased focus on populations and geographic areas with the most new HIV infections, and an increased alignment with a changing public health system.

 In 2012, the Washington State HIV Prevention Planning group established an ambitious goal to reduce - by 50% - the annual HIV incidence among gay and bisexual men living in Seattle by 2017.

Justin Taylor, HIV/AIDS prevention coordinator for the Pierce County AIDS Foundation, runs the Mpowerment Olympia program, which provides local HIV/AIDS testing in Thurston County.

 

The Mpowerment program received a portion of a $60,000 contract for prevention. The other parts of that funding went to pay for condom supplies for distribution, educational workshops, and HIV testing/counseling.

“This news, combined with the bleak overall funding landscape for behavioral interventions in Washington State, means that we can no longer continue to sustain the Mpowerment Olympia program…. It is our hope that the devoted and energetic community members that helped craft the success of the program will continue it as a volunteer run community group, if that is what the group wants,” says Taylor.

Mpowerment Olympia is an early intervention program focusing on young gay and bisexual men between the ages of 18 -29 years old. The group started in 2001 and is approved by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control as an empirically tested model proven to reduce risk among that demographic.

The group creates positive social connections for young men while promoting safer sex. Volunteers with the program hold drop-in social time at their community space in downtown Olympia, coordinate dances and events, and hand out about 1,000 safe sex kits per month at area bars, community events, college campuses, clubs, and clinics.

 

Courogen agrees that Mpowerment Olympia is a worthwhile program.

 

"The program provides great opportunities for youth leadership development and community building and we are supportive of their efforts to find funding to sustain their presence in the area. The Department of Health will be working to make sure that people with HIV in every county, including Thurston County, are diagnosed, linked to care, and have access to medication...." she said in an email today.

Taylor says he hopes to continue offering HIV/AIDS testing one day a week in Olympia. The free service is only offered to people deemed high risk: men who have sex with men and their partners, sex workers and their partners, injection users and their partners, those who have been recently diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease, and anyone who has had sexual contact with someone who is HIV positive. Taylor says the test is a quick process, using an oral swab, and no blood is drawn. Results are available in 20 minutes.

He also hopes to offer the group, if it continues, some support including continued free use of the meeting space, access to Mpowerment manuals, resource library materials, and some pre-purchased supplies.

“We work magic with the small amount of funds we would receive each year....This funding cut doesn’t just affect Thurston County. People come to Olympia from Grays Harbor, Mason County and Lewis counties. If we can’t continue, with community funding, those people will either not get tested, or have to drive all the way to Tacoma for services," says Taylor.

"The irony is the fact that we've proven in Thurston County that prevention does indeed have a direct impact on new infections....but it’s easier for the State to track the success of a biomedical approach and harder to track the work of education, information, and awareness. I fear we’re going in the wrong direction – giving up on prevention strategies is wrong. Three out of every four new infections are still gay/bi men in Washington State and many young folks don't realize HIV is still an issue,” says Taylor.

But Taylor isn't just waiting or relying on state government to educate young men about safe sex.

A 2009 graduate from The Evergreen State College, Taylor uses his media production and business leadership degree and skills toward his HIV/AIDS education work here in Olympia. He says it’s about understanding people, and being in a small town that affects people’s decision to get tested.

With his friend Sonny Nguyen, he created a spoken word film called, “How to Use a Condom,” which ended up winning the University of California Los Angeles’ Impact 2012 grand prize award. Nguyen lives in Olympia and is a volunteer with Mpowerment Olympia. The two filmed it on a whim in the space currently used by Mpowerment and were encouraged by friends to send the film into the contest.

The grand prize earned Taylor and Nguyen $5,000, which they donated to the Pierce County AIDS Foundation to support the Mpowerment program in Olympia. The film can be seen on The Hook Up, Mpowerment Olympia’s YouTube show, at www.youtube.com/mpoweroly. 

Taylor has also produced a 15 minute dark comedy called, “Tying the Knot,” about a closeted politician trying to find redemption through his secret, kinky relationship with a male prostitute. It recently showed at the Olympia Film Society. He also volunteers with Capital City Pride, which is Saturday, June 22 in downtown Olympia.

And with Taylor's help, a fundraiser for Mpowerment, the Red Ribbon Prevention Gayla, will be held on Saturday, June 22, 6:00 p.m., at the Olympia Ballroom, 116 Legion Way NW, Olympia. There will be a dinner, silent auction, dessert dash, 50/50 raffle, live performances and presentations from local LGBTQ community leaders. Contact mpoweroly@ucan-wa.org or go to www.mpoweroly.org for ticket information.

For more information or to learn how to support the activities of Mpowerment, go to: www.Mpoweroly.org or www.piercecountyaids.org/prevention. Mpowerment Olympia is located at 317 4th Avenue East, 4th Floor, Olympia, (360) 352-2375. No-cost, rapid and confidential HIV testing is on Fridays 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. and by appointment.

Free, rapid HIV/AIDS testing is also available through the Thurston County Public Health and Social Services Department at 522 Franklin St SE, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Their entrance is on the Legion Way side of the building.

For more information about Capital City Pride, go to www.capitalcitypride.net.

HIV/AIDS Facts

According to the Washington State Department of Health, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) attacks the immune system, causing deficiency or damage in the immune system. HIV damages the body's ability to fight diseases and infections.

HIV infection leads to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Without a healthy, functioning immune system, a person may become vulnerable to infections by bacteria, other viruses and disease-causing organisms. These infections may cause life threatening illnesses.

Nationally, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that approximately 47,500 people were newly infected with HIV in 2010.

In Washington, the first case of AIDS was diagnosed in 1982. Recently, the number of new HIV cases in Washington has remained steady, about 550 new cases per year, on average. More than 18,000 people in Washington have been diagnosed with HIV disease. Over 5,000 people have died as a result of the disease. Treatment for HIV disease is both effective and widely available. Most people with HIV survive long after diagnosis.

By the end of 2011, more than 11,000 people were reported to be living with HIV across Washington State. Between 2007 and 2011, statewide HIV incidence estimates ranged from 390 to 541.

 

Data indicates that four out of five recent HIV infections are among males; three out of four are gay or bisexual men; roughly half reside in King County, and more than one third are gay/bisexual men who reside in the city of Seattle.

For more information, contact the Washington State Department of Health, Infectious Disease Assessment Unit, (360) 236-3455, or go to: http://www.doh.wa.gov/DataandStatisticalReports/DiseasesandChronicConditions/HIVAIDSData.aspx