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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday March 15, 2008 - 5 Group offers support to families and friends of gays Continued from page 4 Sarah, who attends a Catholic high school, said she finds the lack of support available to gay and lesbian students frustrating. "I'm very proud of my school in almost all other ways, but the board does its very best to pretend no gay students go to their schools. There are no programs to help us, no mention that we're there." Halton Catholic District School Board director Lou Piovesan doesn't agree with her assessment. "Each of our high schools have a full-time chaplain, we have guidance counsellors, we have fulltime youth counsellors, one in each high school, we have social workers, we have school administration," he said. While the Halton Catholic District School Board declined to take part in Educating the Educators, it did participate in another HOPE program in which students from two schools participated to make them more aware and respectful of gay students. The board uses the Pastoral Guidelines to Assist Students of Same Sex Orientation, guidelines produced by the Education Commission of the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops, to educate its staff members. However, Sarah says gays are Where to find support There are resources available in Halton for gay and lesbian youth as well as their families and friends. · Halton Organization for Pride and Education, 905-632-4551, info@haltonpride.org, www.haltonpride.org · Social Networking and Pride committee, 905-632-4551, info@haltonpride.org, www.haltonpride.org · Halton Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), 905632-6664, haltonon@pflagcanada.ca portrayed negatively in the school's textbooks. "My most recent religion textbook says gay marriage would threaten the futures of families and Western society itself -- and it's talked about like they're discussing a strange group of people who could not possibly be the very students reading it." Piovesan said, "the church does have a position on gay marriage, absolutely, but the church's general teaching on homosexuality doesn't say it that way." He said the church advocates chastity among non-married couples, which applies to both heterosexual and homosexual couples. Piovesan adds that the board does not tolerate discrimination, saying, "As a board we have a moral and legal responsibility to ensure the safety of all our students. We need to be respectful of their needs and we would try to provide the guidance that is appropriate within the guidelines that have been provided to us." Students are not the only ones who need support. As Joanne Stacey found out, there are limited resources available for families. That prompted her to found a Halton chapter for PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). "I was meeting some great people, but there was no network connecting everyone," she said. "For a lot of parents, it was so new to them, they didn't know what to do or where to go next. A lot of them are wondering how to tell neighbours or friends, or how did this happen, or they fear their child will be bullied." Retired teacher Dennis Yeo said most people's fear is rooted in the fact they don't know anyone who is gay -- or at least they don't think they do. "If there's not a face on gays, they're a group to be hated," he said. "People say, `Oh my God, Dennis is gay? He must be the exception.' But I'm not the exception. I'm the rule." "My husband and I, we're the straightest gay guys there are," Logan said. "We're boring. We've got a house, a mortgage, a kid. We're just like everybody else." And for the students who worry about how their classmates will react to the news that they are gay, that is all they want them to know -- the fact that they are gay doesn't change who they are. They are the same person, gay or not. Until they can believe that everyone will accept them in that way, they will struggle with the decision of disclosing their sexuality. Until that day comes, they rely on their support networks. "Sometimes, it takes a lot of courage to be able to be sad," says Amanda, "but it takes even more courage to be happy, and optimistic, and hope that one day, your life will be so much better than this. And that you're worth so much more than you think you are. HOPE has really given that to me." Finest Belgian Chocolate Yummy Bunnies and friends Personalized Name Eggs Available visit us at... 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