OUR Spaces inches along

“We certainly have not been on hiatus for the last couple of months,” says James Beresford of OUR Spaces, the grassroots group determined to build a new queer community centre in Vancouver.

Since its incorporation in December 2009, OUR Spaces has been focusing on the “very lengthy and involved process” of setting itself up and applying to Canada Revenue Agency for charitable status, Beresford says.

“We need charitable status to be able to host the types of large-scale fundraisers we’d like to see,” he says, noting the application was submitted about six weeks ago and will likely take three to six months to process.

“We do need funds,” Beresford admits, “but we’re a passionate, committed group of people. We’re going to get this built, and we’re going to do what it takes to do it.

“In some cases that means paying out of pocket and making sure that we get what we need at this point in time,” he adds.

Next on the agenda for OUR Spaces is a special general meeting (SGM) to review and update its bylaws, vote on an interim logo, move the adoption of the society’s draft vision and mission statements and present a draft of the organization’s 2010-2013 strategic plan.

Natasha Barsotti is originally from Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean. She had high aspirations of representing her country in Olympic Games sprint events, but after a while the firing of the starting gun proved too much for her nerves. So she went off to university instead. Her first professional love has always been journalism. After pursuing a Master of Journalism at UBC , she began freelancing at Xtra West — now Xtra Vancouver — in 2006, becoming a full-time reporter there in 2008.

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