Bright Side Projects FW2016 V Newsletter by Bright Side Projects

From our yogasession workshop in ChingChuan with our interview of the season, Renaissance extraordinaire James Tang!

2016 Fall Winter Newsletter Issue V

Photo by Starry Cheng

Taiwan Ministry of Interior Filing No. 1030234173 Taipei District Court Registry Yr. 103 No.141

Finishing 2016 off strong! We can’t believe it’s been five years when we first started our journey creating and engaging communities in edu-courses, building friendships that last. Seeing many of the children grow up has bittersweet, as some have moved on from our monthly workshops but we have also been witness seeing them blossom into adults. We also have the added honor having current spots filled a new generation of children, many of which are their younger siblings! It’s been amazing to be able to a part of their lives and grow alongside them. Expanding beyond art and simple cooking classes, we were fortunate to have numerous skilled craftspeople involved so we could being workshops on woodcraft and also metalsmith. This turned out to be great for kids who enjoyed the new challenge and brought up the difficulty level. As per custom, our annual winter-time Jia-Xin activities this year continued and ballooned on a grander scale with more

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donations, more generosity and warmth to spread. We reached over six communities and hundreds of youth whom we will still be in contact with through 2016 and 2017. This was only possible with everyone’s support and belief in us! With our solid finish in 2016, Bright Side Projects has been able to finally hire part-time employees. This has boosted our quality and frequency of interaction with communities immensely. However, we still need to fundraise more to keep our staff onboard for the long term! Baby steps and positivity! We look forward to what this means for the new year!

Content fw wrap up

our activities

3-4

bsp updates

interviews

6-9

thank you’s

support us!

Daisy H. Lin / Founder

Our DNA What sets us apart? KITCHEN TABLE Freshly cooked nutritious plantbased meal options from our Kitchen Table at all events, especially during workshops with children. Veering towards local, organic, unprocessed foods. Junk food and candy items are not permitted to be brought by Big Friends.

What we’ve been doing overall…

Since the end of 2012, here’s a quick recap of those who have joined us on our journey in face to face interaction in the workshops to make friends: Number of activities: Full 49 / Others 34 Number of Community spots:962 Number of Big Friend spots: 806 Big Friend overall return rate: 70%

2016 FW Friendship Meter While we may spend 60-95 hours for each workshop regardless if it’s half day or full day and could easily execute a 300-500 person event during the same amount of planning, we limit each of our workshop attendance to approximately 15 members in the community and 15 Big Friends. This increases enhance the

2012 Q4 2015

2013 2016

2014

quality of interaction and depth of engagement, making everyone a memorable individual instead of simply a “volunteer.” Number of workshops: 6 full day / 2 Number of Community spots: 125  Number of Big Friend spots: 57

Plans for SS 2017 - Expand to new location as part of our annual Jia-Xin winter program - Continue crafts edu-workshops - Volunteer Training on Sexual Harassment and Domestic Violence - Secure stable resources to hire part-time and full time staff - Increased frequency in workshops - Focus on Mandarin updates and post reports - Elect new board of directors for 2017-2020 - Relocation of office and operations

1000

37.5 500 25

250

Full Workshops Half-Day / Others

INTERACTIVE & INTIMATE We don’t have just one teacher facing 30 kids. We attempt to bring a 1:1 or 1:2 ratio of “Big Friends” to “Kids,” to get more people involved and to enhance engagement. 30 people maximum per workshop. Everyone shares in the task of setting up, sharing food, bringing workshops to fruition, and cleaning up.  GENDER EQUALITY We maintain a gender neutral zone and respect so that no one is limited or discriminated of their full potential based on a social construct. CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD (CRC) This sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. In serving the best interest of the child, this benefits all. Bright Side safe spaces empowers everyone to speak up, abolishing a hierarchal “talking down” mentality.

750

12.5

SOCIAL AWARENESS  Workshops always have a deeper message by trying to raise awareness of different social issues and how our lives are impacted by it.

Big Friends

Kids

2016 Fall Winter

Wood Craft Due of the high frequency of return kids and Big Friends, we continue to strengthen the diversity of our workshop offerings. This year we rose to the challenge and found some wonderful woodcraft partners. This time we had passionate employees from MOODI WOOD lead and share the class with us, each child able to complete their own nail-less mini wooden stool to take home! This was the first time for many of us to take up measuring and sawing on something for ourselves and was definitely hard work. We had so much fun though - empowering each person to piece together and build a functional, beautiful stool. We were so proud of the team of Big Friend and child who worked side by side, alternating tasks! No one gave up and the result for all the

September We had a long summer piecing together the right people for the second half of the year and secured three different teams of woodcraft artisans. October Our first woodcraft team hails from Taichung, a group of passionate employees from furniture company MOODIWOOD who crafting wooden stools with the children of ChingChuan.

SKILLED CRAFT

November Jia-Xin’s Winter Solstice kicking off in Orchid Island offering three woodcraft creations courses to women and children. We coordinated to send over over 120kg of materials and hand carried a few more dozen!

effort they put in the long day was worth it. When we came back in November to spend time with kids, many of the MOODI WOOD workshop came back and said they were very happy with the class. Thank you to Kaye Yuan for introducing us to MOODI WOOD, a high quality furniture creator based locally in Taiwan with some of the kindest employees and the best founders! This really set the stage for us to be able to have faith in teaching woodcraft with our teacher Liao Chun Yan in Orchid Island making wooden frames and lanterns as well as TaoYuan MuHsiang Children’s Home with Franky Hwang.

December YuTsai Elementary School Fundraiser for Bright Side Projects - kids supporting kids thanks to Kevin Dam! We also continued with our Jia-Xin activities throughout the rest of Taiwan with workshops, Secret Santas, and partnering with Buy Direct from Farmers and Hualien Friendly Farm.

Everyone is welcomed to join us!

Between our October and January workshop, we felt we would miss the kids of ChingChuan if we did not see them! Because of our annual year end Santa JiaXin activities, we had to focus a lot of time on fundraising and venturing to different areas for our gift creation workshops. So before December madness and after our woodcraft workshops in Orchid Island, we wanted to have to share a plant-based brunch with kids, simply to connect with them.

KITCHEN TABLE

Eager to create Moments or Spend a Day with us?

Plant based Brunch

Initially we planned to cook “for” the kids – but this was impossible. Kids were eager to join and get involved as they always have during our workshops! A delicious plantbased lunch of waffles (waffle maker thanks to Kelly Lin) and carrot cake pancakes were slowly created while the veggie tray full of sweet potatoes, potatoes, bell peppers grilled in the oven. Kids had a wonderful time getting the salts and olive oil into the veggie tray – it was our first time to give this recipe a go and it did not disappoint! RUNIVORE Chia Seed coconut milk pudding with fresh fruit was the dessert of the day. What a wonderful day together sharing a delicious meal.

ARTS & CULTURE This workshop in Taitung was sponsored by Jia-Xin and sponsors like you, focusing on upcycling denim jeans, fabric, and yarns. Every Bright Side class we zone in on an educational aspect, sharing knowledge on a social awareness issue and upcycling materials or using what we already have on hand whenever possible. This time we brought in environmental consciousness and animal welfare by giving discarded clothing another life and also learned how to make doggy chew toys out of them! Teacher Rhea gave a short background on the current situation of stray dogs in Taiwan and we proceeded to upcycle the colorful materials. Thanks to the knotting skills of Teacher James and Rhea these chew toys made by kids would be donated to bring joy to the strays at Maryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Doggies. After a hearty diverse and rainbow sweet potato curry plant-based lunch paired with donated organic rice, each child was asked about their dream and the colors they felt represented it. Kids got used paper bowls we collected from an elementary school (yes the ones people use for takeouts) and we cut off the rim to use as the frame for dreamcatchers and used the remainder of the bowl to put scrap in. The task of looping the yarn around got off to a rocky start but after a few minute, even the youngest children thanks to patience and hands on assistance from Big Friends, were able to proudly complete their own dreamcatchers. Much like Jia-Xin had a dream to spread generosity and year end warmth to kids around Taiwan, Bright Side wants to be here for all youth and adults to empowering them to realize their dream. We all come different background and have different dreams but we must learn to tolerate and accept each others paths in lives. The afternoon ended with a messy but fun vegan gingerbread decorating session and a recap of the lessons learned we learned from the entire day. We are expanding to other parts of Taiwan and aim for long term involvement in communities, especially in our outreach to Taitung. If you are located in Southern Taiwan, we hope you can join us next time! If you want to sponsor our educational workshops, please contact us so we can keep looking towards the Bright Side with kids and grow alongside them!

Dream Catchers and Doggy Chew Toys

2016 marks our fifth year spreading the generosity and dreams of Jia-Xin, a 6 year old Taiwanese girl that was adopted by a family in Canada, and also our fifth year in operation. Thank you to all the sponsors for our annual year end activities that stress on creation, kindness, and empowerment. This year was an amazing journey due to the sheer amount of support we have received. We were not only able to provide local, organic foodstuff and necessities to over 12 families in Taiwan, with over 30 families with organic rice, but also hosted almost a dozen empowerment workshops through six different regions in the country to get to know the kids. On December 21st, we delivered food, necessities, and gifts from our Secret Santas to some of the families. TaoShan Elementary School has always been a strong supporter and ally of Bright Side Projects and we are so grateful for their school and all that they do for the kids! Teacher Lin Yu Hong took time after the morning performances to take us around the village to deliver gifts to each family. We cut down on packaging for deliveries and wrapping gifts from scraps if available, the night before. It was a different emotion we felt to see the kids outside of the workshops and in their own family environment. No matter the circumstance, their smile always brightens up our days.Bright Side Projects believes in long term involvement in puts a face and smile on those whose lives we want to become a part of. We are engaged with these communities all year round but having the ability to bring a little bit more warmth to families and children will lead to even stronger connections and builds compassion. With a special invite crafted by Salt for the children, we are excited to see the kids in the workshop tomorrow so they know that spending time together is also very important!

PARTNERSHIPS

Santa Jia-Xin & Reindeer Deliveries This year we had an outpour of support with three partners to assist with wishlist and fundraising for our activity this year. Buy Direct From Farmers created a special wishlist on their website just for Bright Side Projects! We want to support local farmers as we support local communities. We were able to provide families with high quality local organic goods. BDFF also donated a percentage of the sales to fund our future workshops – $7,436 NT.

Hualien Friendly Farm was another huge supporter of us, promoting locally grown organic rice, but supporting a plant-based lifestyle. We were able to provide over 30 families with rice and their donation of $4816 NT! Thank you Lily Lin from Plants for introducing us to them! We plan to volunteer at their farm in 2017 and see where the rice comes from - as we know whom it goes to! And of course RUNIVORE for their support over the years by providing Taiwan’s highest quality chia and oats! Their continuous fundraising and product to support us has exceeded over $30,000 NT and a friendship that is priceless. [Kids for Kids] fundraising program spearheaded by Kevin Dam really brought the spirit of Jia-Xin to kids locally. In our workshops we let Kids Give Back by donating to an organization and it was touching to have kids continue to play it forward. With YuTsai Elementary School’s support especially with teachers Theresa, Andrew, Caria, and Patty, in just a matter of a few days the first graders raised an astonishing $52,743 NT! This is the first elementary school to put any amount of effort in for Bright Side Projects and we are so touched. If you want to get your kids involved in fundraising for other kids who would benefit most, contact us and we can collaborate on something meaningful together.

INTERVIEW｜滕孟哲 James Teng Artist, teacher, apparel and accessories designer, yogi, chef, photographer, illustrator, production manager, intellectual - James is everything! We have been so lucky to have met this Renaissance extraordinaire at the beginning of our inception at Bright Side Projects. From Tainan to Orchid Island and Build a Home at Taoyuan, James has taken on many hats and aided the association in multiple creative directions, enriching the content of our edu-workshops and the lives of the children. We are grateful for his friendship and his Virgo-esque quirks at Bright Side!  Daisy: How and when did you find out about Bright Side Projects and what made you want to get involved？ James: In the summer of 2012 I joined Bright Side Projects not just as a Big Friend but also designed a course integrating art with body movement and dance. At that time I had just returned from living in Europe for six years and was “new” to Taiwan and curious about changes and also the indigenous culture, which I have never had contact with. Hearing about Bright Side Project’s program, I immediately decided to join. D: Since you have joined the workshops for the past five years, how do you feel this long term relationship is different than other volunteer groups? J: The last time I was in ChingChuan it all seemed the same - the homes, the mountains, basically the facade. However, the children have all grown up. The kids I once knew have all left perhaps to further their education elsewhere. That day we made sushi, ate sushi, did yoga, introduced “nagashi somen” or flowing noodles, and heard the news that back in Taipei city it was raining hard while the sun was out where we were. Halfway through the class Jr Lung, now grown up, suddenly appeared. He said nothing and did not want to get too close to the venue. However, despite this, he remembered each and every person who had come to ChingChuan before. We stayed under the same awning for ten minutes not saying a word. When I went to refill my bowl of soup he had disappeared. In just a flash, the children become teenagers, the teenagers leave these nestled mountains and I wonder if they will remember this day where we were together making sushi, eating sushi, partnering for yoga at the schoolyard, using chopsticks to capture the noodles.

INTERVIEW｜滕孟哲 James Teng D: In Bright Side, what are the moments that stand out to you? J: In those perfectly composed moment, interluded by the shrill shriek and laughter of a child and their running feet. Perhaps it’s the sparkle that shines from the wide-eyed expression of the child, maybe it’s the distance of the mountains, or its the lingering shadows of the children as they run in a line over the suspension draw bridge.

D: Why do you continue to join in Bright Side Projects workshops? J: The first time I went up to the mountains and met the kids of ChingChuan was also the first time I had interaction with the Atayal tribe. I remember all those years ago the thought on my mind when I went back to the city was that I was not here to teach them - but the children were the ones who have taught me so much just in a day. In their lives there is a sense of purity and straightforwardness, this muddled and unnatural cluttered in comparison to the metropolis jungle. To find footing again and reminder to restart the compass, I continue to join in Bright Side Projects. D: What are your hopes for the children or what you can do? J: I only hope that their lives are full of joy and perhaps once in awhile remember the happy moments of the fond times we have spent together.

INTERVIEW｜ JiaChi Su “蘇嘉琦” It has been an amazing journey in Bright Side Projects and JiaChi has been a huge part of it since 2012. So many of our beautiful memories have not only been captured by her but created by her. Her wonderful smile, gorgeous soul, and warm glow radiates the very persona of what Bright Side Projects and our Big Friends are about. Daisy: How and when did you find out about Bright Side Projects and what made you want to get involved？ JiaChi Su: It started in 2012 when my co-worker first joined in Bright Side Projects and invited me to come along with her on their next event. Because I was curious about how an art course would incorporate an interactive aspect between kids and adults, I signed up. D: Since you have joined the workshops for the past five years, how do you feel this long term relationship is different than other volunteer groups? J: Through long term involvement with the kids, you can better understand their personality and also how it changes. Through long term involvement with the kids, can better understand their personality ad changes and also how to interaction with them and how to capture their attention on things they are interested in. Understanding them more and having spent time with them, they are more willing to open up to you.

INTERVIEW｜ JiaChi Su “蘇嘉琦” D: What are your favorite classes that you’ve participated in with Bright Side Projects? J: I loved the Artistic Expression through Motion workshop, allowing kids to feel the environment and knowing their bodies through art creating a dance. This was very touching to see that moment. Mad Scientist was memorable as kids not only created their own volcanoes, but grabbed dinosaurs and created a story from it. Being able to listen to their stories was adorable. The Metalsmith workshop with kids creating their own mini me robots took place just last year and seeing the patience and dedication of the kids was mesmerizing!   D: What types of moments are the ones that make you want to take up the camera and snap? J: My favorite shots are when kids are listening intently and the enthusiasm they have during the class. And I also love the interaction between the kids and Big Friends. D: Why do you continue to join in Bright Side Project activities? J: Because the people involved are wonderful! Thank you to Bright Side Projects for providing this opportunity to be alongside the kids as they grow! While we are navigating through the courses together, their imagination takes me on a journey that is an alternate source of true healing. D: What are your hopes for the children or what you can do? J: I hope that a seed is planted in the children’s hearts and minds, that the world has endless possibilities and choices outside of traditional routes and mainstream values.   We look forward to you also joining the Neighborhood and our community!

GENEROUS SOULS Kelly Lin, Plants, Marco J. Grishaber, 典⼗十國際有限公, Tina Chen, A Well-Fed World, Anonymous Marathoner, RVenus Lai, MOODIWOOD 傢式國際股份有限公司, 筱晴 Kaye Yuan, 曜欐姐, 台東縣政府, 佳欣 Jia-Xin, Rachel Huang ⿈黃⼦子娟, Hiro Liao, 廖國宏, 佳欣及贊助者 Jia-Xin's Toys For Taiwan and Supporters, Anonymous Marathoner, Stephen Suen, Austin S. Lin, Debbie Liu, Ben Yang, Ann Lin, Kevin Dam, Lynn Fong,直接跟農夫買⾦金金欣儀, 蕭賀韶, 友善態度⾃自然農園, 漂流⽊木餐廳, 潘怡安, 潘俊光, 鍾貴真, Carol Wu Tina Chen, Soda Su, Sabrina Sutherland, Lulu Chandler, Jennifer Yi, Lily Lin, 范家瑋, Jenna Lynn Cody, Janet Lin, 葛⾺馬可 Marco J. Grishaber, Ben Yang, 南投⼆二⼿手交換愛市集, Fong Lynn, RUNIVORE, Anonymous (S), Paul Tenk, Timothy Robinson, Rachel Huang, Liao Guo Hong 廖國宏, Lili Lin, Anonymous 3961, Omadar & Marc Pauze, Terry & Guylaine Furness, Sharon and Bruce, Jayne Temple, Mike Sollanych, Mark Miesner, Andy Hsia 夏偉, Lily Lin, Paula Perry, Jonathan and Gemma Green, Oliver, Sam, and Rowan Green, Sumo Kindersley, Rhonda Gilby, Laura & Jeff Bryer, Marla Rosenberg, Chris Robinson, Lou Stillman, Richard Wang, 蕭聖穎, Anon 9880 元⼤大, 范家瑋, 福順股份有限公作服部, Anon 中信銀 2635, Anon 中華郵 7513, Anon 0136 永豐, Ironman Marcus, Scott, Megan, Hayleigh, and Caitlin Mac-Flem, 廖國宏, ⼆二⽉月童話, Anon (LD), 蕭x絜 COMMUNITY SPONSORS & SUPPORT   Jeremy Rosenberg, Jia-Xin Rosenberg 佳欣, Tiffany Phillips, 吳妃琇, 林林育宏, 丁神⽗父 Father Barry Martinson, 桃⼭山國⼩小蘇美娟, 袁筱晴 Kaye Yuan, 曜欐姐, 蘇美娟, 林林育宏, Kelly Lin, 睦祥育幼院- 劉劉緣⽟玉⼥女女⼠士, 鄭永⻘青, 新⾺馬蘭Fukid部落，郭祐慈, Mai Bach, Stella Wu, Ooh Cha Cha, PANTREE, Mary's Doggies, Liza Milne, Lily Lin & Plants, Chris Wu & VegeTable café & dining 蔬桌, Runivore / Tomasz Hasinski, 直接跟農夫買 BUY DIRECT FROM FARMERS, Kevin Dam, 友善態度⾃自然農園, ⽴立育才雙語⼩小學 You Tsai Elementary School, Theresa, Andrew, Caria, Patty, It’s A Vegan Affair, ⼩小雪⼈人與⼩小⼩小藝術家 Little Snow and The Very Little Artists TEACHERS & KITCHEN TABLE CHEFS 洪伯昇 Sam Hang, 廖俊彥, Rhea Chou, ⿈黃⽴立群 Franky Hwang, Paula Perry, James Teng, Haichen Hsu, Joanna Chou, 狄艾⽂文 CORE PHOTOGRAPHERS 蘇嘉琦, 鄭⼜又綺, Haichen Hsu, Daisy Lin, 林林建⽂文 , 陳智彥, Nobi Nakanashi BIG FRIENDS 吳妃琇, 廖述偉, 廖述宏, 郭芷含, 陳馨, 吳惠姿, Joan Fang, 林林榮興, 廖述璿, Haichen Hsu, 狄艾⽂文, 袁筱晴, 蔣麗珍, Rhea Chou, Joanna Chou, Snow Tsao En Ci, Jonathan Burke, Tana Choi, Jethro Jimeno, Joanna Chou, Sara Chien, 周⽂文和, 張麗華, 邱國聖, Kimo Hsu, Kim Chou, Chia Yu Liu 劉劉珈妤, Ichi Lin, Debbie Liu, Nobi Nakanishi, Perry Perry GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Haichen Hsu, Carl Nyman (Sixten), SALT Design

BANK DETAILS: A/C Name: 社團法⼈人臺灣嚮光協會  Post GIRO Account: 50315811 ATM/Online Transfer PayPal: BrightSide.tw@gmail.com Bank Name: Fubon Bank  Bank Code: 012 Account: 4901 0202 2421 Swift Code: TPBKTWTP Bank Address: 389 RenAi Road, Section 4. Taipei City, DaAn District BSP Tax Code: 3863 4481

JOIN US!

SPONSOR US!

We would love to have more Friends who have an interest in leading our courses. Many of our Teachers previously had little to no prior experience in leading courses or working with children - we can make this a possibility.

By sponsoring a dream in the Neighborhood, it brings us closer to knowing our targeted communities. We can achieve the dreams of workshop creations from start to finish. We urgently need funding to keep things at the quality they are now and to move forward. Our work for 5 years and over 80 events from conception to execution has been mainly driven by one person who does not receive a salary until this year November. From pre-event tasks in sourcing teachers, meetings, rundowns, call-outs for volunteers, venues, transportation logistics, course materials, Kitchen Table ingredients and preparation, post reports, each event requires 60-95 hours of work. This is an accumulated average of 7,885 hours. This is calculated for just one person and not inclusive of the tasks behind the scene in administrative tasks, volunteer management, website creation, member and benefactor relations, project planning, accounting, and more. Workshops are conducted at a threadbare minimum with attention paid to the quality of fresh nutritious food and striving to enhance interaction and fun for all. We want to do better and we want to do more. Please support us with an one-time transfer or regular monthly donation and we can issue with a tax-deductible receipt for your generosity.

Big Friends to join the workshops are always welcomed but remember to sign up early in advance as most of the limited spots fill up within 72 hours! We also need skilled volunteers for the following: translation from English to Mandarin, project assistants for events, video editors, fundraising, and basic database entry. If you have a skill and time to contribute, let us know! We would love to have you on board and to join in our Neighborhood!

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Please email brightside.tw@gmail.com when you fund us and advise on the amount and last 5 digits of transferring bank account. If you need a tax deductible receipt please include either your name (Surname/First) or Company name, phone number, mailing address, and your ID or company number. Official receipts will be processed within 45 days upon receiving payment and full contact information. Edu Workshops Translation Fundraising

Logistics/Admin Website

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