Archive
Hendrik and J Hock’s thoughts on homelessness in Gastown and inviting J-Hock to be part of AHA MEDIA!!
In this video, Hendrik Beune, Director of AHA MEDIA with J-Hock speak about a fancy furniture store in Gastown where Storeyeum used to be. They recall that Audrey Laferriere, a well known DTES campaigner advocated for 2 years to convert Storeyeum, which was a vacant city-owned building to be turned into a homeless shelter which didn’t happen.
Impressed with J-Hock’s thoughts, April Smith and Hendrik Beune then invite J-Hock to join AHA MEDIA and help in community reporting 🙂
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobile cameraphone. April is passionate and skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.
AHA MEDIA is very pleased to support Megaphone Magazine one year anniversary party !!
Megaphone set to open office in DTES
It has been quite a year for Megaphone. Since we renamed the magazine from Street Corner to Megaphone a little over a year ago, we have produced 30 hard-hitting and entertaining issues that have put thousands of dollars into the pockets of the homeless and low-income vendors who sell the magazine on the street and helped raise awareness across the city about poverty and homelessness across the city.In May, Megaphone won three esteemed journalism awards, which included two international accolades: Editor-in-Chief Sean Condon and photographer Ahmad Kavousian both received awards from the International Network of Street Paper (INSP), while Managing Editor Amy Juschka received the Rafe Mair Award for Excellence in Journalism from the University of British Columbia.“Megaphone has worked hard over the past year to give marginalized people a chance to speak up about the issues that impact their community,” says Condon. “Whether it’s the Downtown Eastside or the West Side, Megaphone has become a strong voice for the voiceless.”Megaphone expects to carry the momentum from last year’s successes into the next. On Monday, June 8th, Megaphone officially opens its office at the corner of Hastings and Carrall (9 E. Hastings). Having a street-level space in the heart of the Downtown Eastside (DTES) will allow us to significantly expand our distribution base and help dozens more homeless and low-income vendors become self-sufficient through the magazine.To celebrate our one-year anniversary, Megaphone is teaming up with local artists and holding an art auction fundraising event at the Interurban Gallery (1 E. Hastings) on Friday, June 12th. The fundraiser will help raise funds for the magazine so it can continue supporting its vendors and will feature artists from the Downtown Eastside and across Vancouver.“The fundraiser gives us a chance to celebrate the incredible work that our vendors and volunteers have done over the past year and help keep the magazine going as an effective voice for the community,” says Condon.Proceeds from the silent auction will be split between Megaphone and the artist. The event will also feature prize draws, music, food and drinks.Megaphone’s one-year anniversary party:Interurban Gallery (1 E. Hastings)
Friday, June 12th – 6 p.m. to midnight
Cover charge: $5-$20 (sliding scale)For more information contact:Sean Condon – 778-835-4440
sean@megaphonemagazine.com
AHA MEDIA meets Colorado Church volunteers giving away Free hot dogs in Oppenheimer Park in Vancouver Downtown Eastside on June 9, 2009
AHA MEDIA was strolling by Oppenheimer Park when they noticed a food lineup gathering near the Clubhouse
In the photo below, AHA MEDIA spoke with Julie Ann DeBoer and found out that they were all the way from Colorado! They were visiting our area for a few days and were here to provide food and drink for Park residents today 🙂
In this video, kind Church volunteers give out grilled hot dogs, potato salad and beverages to hungry and happy area residents at Oppenheimer Park in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside ( DTES). Julie Ann Deboer identifies that they are from Colorado when asked by a hungry person in the food lineup.
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobile cameraphone. April is passionate and skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.
In this video, kind Church volunteers from Colorado give out grilled hot dogs, potato salad and beverages to hungry and happy area residents at Oppenheimer Park in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside ( DTES). A very polite young man identifies that some of his fellow volunteers are from Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church in North Western Colorado. Ken Glofcheskie of AHA MEDIA speaks about how it’s a good thing that people are trying to help the less fortunate.
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobile cameraphone. April is passionate and skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.
To see 31 photos, please see our Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahamedia/sets/72157619646159576/
AHA MEDIA is pleased to introduce a Benefit Concert for DTES NH with Earle Peach and Solidarity Notes Choir – Friday May 29th 7:30pm
AHA MEDIA is pleased to introduce a benefit concert for DTES NH with Earle Peach and the Solidarity Notes Choir http://www.solidaritynotes.ca
Earle Peach is a legendary singer, songwriter, conductor and composer whose political activist work has included the Vancouver Downtown Eastside. He was Carnegie Centre’s band and choir leader until a few years ago. http://www.earlepeach.com/
AHA MEDIA wishes to congratulate Megaphone Magazine on winning two International Awards!
AHA MEDIA wishes to give a big THANK YOU and a huge round of applause to Megaphone Magazine – Vancouver’s Street Magazine! Fantastic work and very prestigious honors! You have represented us to the world in the very best of ways and we are honored to have worked with you! ! 🙂
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Megaphone Wins Two International Awards
On Thursday, May 14th, Megaphone Magazine was the proud winner of two international awards at the International Network of Street Papers (INSP) conference in Bergen, Norway. Functionality‘, which appeared in Megaphone Issue #2.Falling Through the Cracks,’ which was published in The Tyee and then republished in Megaphone Issue #15:The prestigious international judging panel included Martin Wanjala Ocholi, a media consultant from Kenya; Sanjay Suri, editor for Inter Press Service (IPS), Europe-Mediterranean (IPS); Silja J.A. Talvi, an award-winning investigative journalist and author from the United States; and Oddleiv Apneseth, an award-winning photographer from Norway. The awards were chaired by David Schlesinger, Editor-in-Chief of Reuters News and INSP’s Honorary President.Megaphone would like to congratulate Ahmad, Sean and The Tyee for their dedication to raising awareness about poverty and ending homelessness.
Megaphone contributing photographer Ahmad Kavousian won ‘Best Photograph – Evoking deeper perspectives on poverty and injustice’ for his photo, ‘
“A beautifully shot image of a hammock rigged up on a beach debris – as Vancouver’s lack of affordable housing pushes more and more people onto the streets, the photo expresses the lengths to which some are driven just to find a place to sleep.”
And Megaphone Editor-in-Chief Sean Condon won the ‘Special Award for External Press – Advocating for the needs and rights of homeless people’ for his story, ‘
“Paul ‘Duncan’ Geisbrecht, a Vancouver homeless man, suffered from schizophrenia and crack cocaine addiction. When he died last year, he was just one week away from entering supportive housing. Tracing Paul’s life story, this piece illustrates how faults in Canada’s social system can have tragic consequences for society’s most vulnerable.”
“On behalf of all our vendors and volunteers, I would like to express what a great honour it is for Megaphone to win these awards,” said Condon, who attended the ceremony in Bergen with Megaphone editor Darren Atwater. “The International Network of Street Papers is a powerful movement that is reshaping the debate about poverty around the world while helping provide thousands of low-threshold jobs to homeless and low-income people. We here at Megaphone are very privileged to be a part of this movement and thank the judging panel for recognizing our hard work.”
“As a member of the official judging panel for two years running, I can attest to the continuing quality and depth of these entries, across the board–a fact most certainly due to rather than in spite of the diverse contexts, languages and geographies from which they have come,” said Schlesinger.
For more information, contact:
Sean Condon
Editor-in-Chief
778-835-4440
sean@megaphonemagazine.com
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