Safe Sex and Whatnot

well the safe sex condom art making event went very well. A lot of people showed up and made some great artwork. We also got a bunch of signatures for the free birth control thing. Its really great that this event turned out so well and I am looking forward to the Juno movie night coming up in a few weeks. Volunteering with Planned Parenthood is a really great thing. I really like that we are helping spread information and encouraging safe sex and preventing STD's. There have been some communication problems but we seem to figure everything out in the end.

On a different note living in summit is going pretty good . The people I live with are all great people and I am glad I have gotten to know them have become such good friends. We make a lot of pancakes and go to IHOP often. Im also surrounded by great neighbors. over all summit is really great and im proud to be in the summit program thing.

On a different different note yoga and Tai chi are very relaxing. The times at which they are offered are convenient. After I do yoga or tai chi I am much more relaxed and calm. It is a good way to end the night. I would like to take a yoga or tai chi class at Drury to keep with it. I am not a fan of the on line thing. I feel like I am more worried about finding time and trying to remember to listen to the recordings. I feel like this takes away from the point of it being relaxing and stress free.

November

November has been a busy month with the Panthers for Planned Parenthood. A few of us attended the monthly volunteer meeting at Planned Parenthood to discuss the events we have on campus and to discuss other volunteer opportunities that Planned Parenthood itself is planning. We also met with VOX, the Planned Parenthood group at MSU. On campus this month, we teamed up with Allies and the V-Warriors to host Kinky Krafts. The event went swimmingly! People showed up to create safe-sex themed artwork and receive information about Planned Parenthood and show their support for our cause. We are also planning a movie night featuring Juno in Lay Hall on November 29th.
In the past Planned Parenthood has had difficulty in dealing with the Drury community. Students haven't taken them seriously and have had the incorrect impression of what exactly it is that Planned Parenthood does. We as a Summit group have formed the link between Planned Parenthood and Drury. Aside from our stolen condoms incident, we haven't encountered any issues to speak of. Relations between Planned Parenthood staff and members of our group have been excellent.
I appreciate the efforts to supply us with outlets to deal with stress, but the Stress Free Now program is in no way, shape, or form a stress-reliever. It's just another thing that we have to remember to do everyday that doesn't provide any benefit. The Wellness classes each week also aren't serving any real purpose other than eating up time. I appreciate the concern for our wellness, but this program is serving an opposing purpose as to what it's intended.

Things

Things are going decently. Nothing has been stolen. Instead, nothing has been given freely.

We had a sexy art thing last week in tandem with Allies that came off really well. The FSC ballroom was filled with condoms on the breeze and passerby were kind of weirded but that is okay because we are too real for them. Lots of decent art was manufactured and a sheet was graffiti-tagged 'SAFE SEX' by our good delinquent friend Nicholas.

Also, a Planned Parenthood meeting was attended by me and others and it resulted in my accepting of mild responsibilities. So look for a 'Letter to the Editor' in the News-Herald in the upcoming week that will be just positively dripping with information.

That's it.

GREAT SUCCESS!

The safe sex campaign went off without a hitch Monday night! We had a great turnout and lots of arts and crafts were created! I was afraid that no one would want to make “kinky crafts” in public but several people did. Those who were uncomfortable just did art instead. We showed people how to make their own flogger out of a dowel rod and tassels and a feather tickler made with a boa. The best part was that it wasn’t even awkward! It was just plain fun. Some of us tried out our new floggers on the arms of those around us if they asked us to of course. Overall it was a great night.

Our house is working hard but sometimes we struggle with getting everything organized. Eight people are a lot to do one event and sometimes not everyone has a job. It’s hard to delegate responsibility evenly. But in the end we are able to come together and create successful events to raise awareness. I really believe the safe sex art campaign was a step in the right direction. If people are going to be experiencing sex than we need to try everything we can to help make it safe. Just being able to talk about it and do art that is inspired by it is an important feat in this culture that considers it still somewhat of a taboo. Our goal as Panthers for Planned Parenthood is to increase the knowledge and decrease the STIs and unplanned pregnancies, more or less. I feel that we really are making an impact by volunteering with this agency, even if it is through baby steps like passing out condoms.

In other news stress free now is still going but I do not know how much of a difference it is making in my life. I can hardly relax to do the exercises because I am worried about completing my other school work. I sometimes don't know how to prioritize. If my stress level comes first then I might not get my work done for class but if I try to get all my work done I get stressed out. It is sort of a vicious cycle. I do like the classes although I don't think they alleviate stress. I am so EXCITED to try acupuncture and for the massages at the end of this semester.

There is a lot to look forward to in the months to come including Juno! Everyone should come out because it's guaranteed to be a blast!

Love,

Stephanie

Der Blog

Hiiiiii everyone,

I hope everyone is doing well, the weather is finally cold, I'm SO excited! This semester has been super stressful, busy, but also a lot of fun. We will be hosting one more really awesome event this semester, Juno night! It's going to be a really chill night on 29. November in Lay Auditorium at 6pm. Bring your friends and come out (literally) to hang out, watch Juno, get some kinky goodies, and some food and drank.

Now it's time for Q&A with me, courtesy of Andrew Wiemer:

What events have taken place at the agency you have volunteered and how have you assisted?

There are all types of different promotions and events Planned Parenthood hosts. We got to help with a few events like Ovarian Cancer Awareness month, there are also things like petitions, and more grassroots style events. I mainly help with advertising and getting the word out about our events to everyone that I know.

How do you feel your volunteerism is making an impact upon the agency thus far?

I definitely feel like volunteering with Planned Parenthood at Drury has helped to open up the topic of people using such services. Taking away the stigma attached was my ultimate goal.

Looking back over the semester so far what struggles have you encountered with the agency?

Definitely communication. Sometimes emails aren't answered, and this leads to less effective volunteering. As a busy individual, I rely heavily on email to communicate and keep progressing as a volunteer. When the emails aren't answered it makes it much more difficult to keep up with what is going on.

What is your experience like in Summit Park with your roommates and how have you interacted with the Summit community?

Summit is a really great social experience. Living with my roommates has been a relatively positive experience. I am fortunate to have great people in my house that I can go to for help and support. Summit socials are tons of fun! There was one last night at the C.A.R.E. house and it was really great to see everyone out even for a quick bite to eat and conversation.

How is the Stress Free and Wellness Experience going for you as we hit the midway mark?

I loved yoga, tai chi...not so much. But it is a great way to get to sample each type of activity. It definitely helps relieve some stress that everyday life tends to burden everyone with!

yours truly,

austin

Uno Juno

Hello, hello...

Just going to say that our Safe Sex campaign with safe sex art and kinky crafts went extraordinarily well! We had a great turnout and a lot of positive feedback. It was a blast!

Planned Parenthood has one more event in the works for Drury students this semester. And yep, you guessed it...its JUNO! We will be playing the classic movie Juno in Lay Hall auditorium on November 29th at 6 pm. We will have grab bags with condoms and informational pamphlets inside as well as lube, Planned Parenthood pins, and dental dams for free! There will be some form of refreshments for your enjoyment that will include Twizzlers, Sunny D, and possibly even Taco Bell. Hopefully there will be another great turnout so we can spread awareness on safe sex, getting tested, sexual consequences, and all the amenities Planned Parenthood has to offer.

Now I'm supposed to answer questions Andrew Wiemer asked of us. So here goes:

What events have taken place at the agency you have volunteered and how have you assisted?

There are many events Planned Parenthood plans and participates in each month. We had the liberty of picking which ones we wanted to be involved in and how to help. We helped raise money and spread awareness during Ovarian Cancer Awareness month, and have a petition for free birth control we take to events and raise signatures for their Birth Control Matters campaign.

How do you feel your volunteerism is making an impact upon the agency thus far?

I feel our volunteerism is helping to form alliances with Planned Parenthood through Drury. It also helps to get rid of the stigma of birth control and spread awareness in general about sexual health and responsibility.

Looking back over the semester so far what struggles have you encountered with the agency?

We have had struggles getting all 8 of our Summit group members together at the same time, marketing and organizing events, and getting in touch with our Planned Parenthood community advisor. It just becomes difficult to get events completed efficiently with so many people in the mix.

What is your experience like in Summit Park with your roommates and how have you interacted with the Summit community?

I love living with my roommates. There is always someone to talk to, hang out with, and work on homework with. I enjoy the Summit socials because it helps the people of each house and group mingle when otherwise we wouldn't have. I find it interesting and inspirational to hear what each house has done for the community and their philanthropy.

How is the Stress Free and Wellness Experience going for you as we hit the midway mark?

I like the events we go to like Yoga and Tai Chi. However, I find the online program slightly corny and at (most) times hard to take seriously. I would like to see a yoga class on campus once or twice a week that I can continue to attend after this program is over. It works well to have the classes at 8 pm on weeknights. This is a good break from homework and my hectic schedule.

Don't forget to attend JUNO NOVEMBER 29TH at LAY HALL at 6!!!!

Peace, love, and Elyse

For Beard Lovers Apleanty....

Keep yourself safe now that No-shave November is in full swing!

These past couple of weeks have been some busy ones for us here at the Planned Parenthood Summit House. So let me run over some of our accomplishments thus far:

Last week the gang headed over to our local Planned Parenthood (located on E Battlefield between National and Campbell) to participate in their monthly volunteers meeting. Here, we were introduced to several of the MSU planned parenthood student group members (they call themselves VOX, Voices for Planned Parenthood), as well as a member of APO and several planned parenthood volunteer coordinators including Crystal, who we've been working with.

At the meeting we discussed our upcoming project with V Warriors and Allies here at Drury tonight which is the Safe Sex Campaign, promoting students to make artwork inspired by safe sexual practices as well as kinky toys. The VOX representatives talked about their upcoming event for World AIDS day which is December 1st. They are having a benefit show on November 30th with the DJ Makout. It will be an 18 and up event that night. APO is also hosting an event on December 1st that will be a candle vigil in founders park from 5-6. There was also a PROMO representative there that talked about their upcoming trivia night that is to happen on December 6th. It will be 50s themed, from 7-9:30 at the Unitarian Church and will cost $15 for an individual and $75 for an 8 person team. They are looking for people to sponsor a round, which last year planned parenthood made a bunch of sex ed questions for a round that didn't count towards the score but the winning team got condoms and other planned parenthood goodies.

World AIDS day is right around the corner and we will be teaming up with Allies and V warriors again to remind you to et yourself tested and practice safe sex.

We also went out and bought some supplies for the safe sex campaign. Friday Night the group got together and made brown paper grab bags with condoms, coupons, and information in them for students to take at the information table.

We've also been busy planning Juno night which due to POL had to be moved to November 29th now. We're throwing around different ideas for food. Some say taco bell, some say sunny D and twizzlers... but we'll just have to see where we end up on that front closer to the date.

As for tonight: we hope to see everyone at our safe sex campaign in the fsc ballroom. There will be music, kinky crafts, sex inspired art, photography, as well as us at the information booth. Drop on in between 6 and 8. Even if you don't want to keep your artwork the V warriors would love it to have on display at their annual production of the Vagina Monologues.

Also stay tuned for our Facebook page to be coming out any day now created by the lovely Kevin Rogan (website designer extrodinare, ect. )

october, where art thou.

hello everyone,

october flew by. i can't believe it's almost the end of the semester. during the month of october our summit group really focused our attention on planning great events for november. we have a juno movie night coming up and i'd really appreciate all of your support in attending our event.

we have begun a wellness class in summit and i really enjoy it, october was yoga month, and november will be tai-chi. it's really interesting to get to see how these exercises help keep stress levels down in the wake of term tests.

i am really excited to finish this semester on a strong note. i just attended a law school conference in chicago, and am really looking forward to spend as much time as possible working with planned parenthood to promote it's purpose (wearing fun sweaters and boots, of course!)

best,

austin