Both at work and in my spare time I engage in a lot of facilitation: I create spaces for groups of like-minded people to come and share in an experience. Okay, that sounds very tantric and ayahuasca-esque (and if that’s your thing more power to you), but I’m talking about things like a book club.
I’ve never had any formal training in facilitation, but I do love the art of gathering. Here are a few projects I’ve worked on.
Queer Salon (2018 - now)
I started this community because I was fairly new in Amsterdam and wanted to meet new queer people without having to be at a discotheque until the early hours. Queer Salon is for “quiet” queers: people who love a good conversation over afternoon tea. I grew the community into a popular Meetup group with 700 members. In 2023, I decided to take it in a different direction, and make it an invite-only space to better curate the types of interactions people have there.
QPOC Reading Club (2018 - 2020)
I ran a tiny club for queer people of color, during which we gathered to compare and contrast two texts. It could be anything from a poem, a book chapter, a video, a song, a recipe, or a manual. It was lovely to discuss topics that are close to my heart with people whose life stories resonate with mine.
Vine & Fig (2020 - now)
Vine & Fig is an online community for queer Catholics putting out various types of media. I’ve contributed to our podcast, managed our Instagram account, organized prayer groups, and hosted live events. At the moment, we’re all trying to figure out how we want to contribute moving forward.
All Saints Amsterdam (2023 - now)
When I first attended an All Saints service, I knew I was home. What began as a pilot for a radically-inclusive, expat-oriented church, is turning into an official church plant of the Episcopal Church. I’ve joined the board as a warden, which mostly means I take care of “all the digital stuff”, as the priests said. I am very keen on helping to shape the type of church I would’ve been a part of my entire life if I could.