Prosper Place Pioneer

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Issue 68, September 2020

Created and published by members and staff of Prosper Place.

Prosper Place is a peer-run organization for people living with the effects of mental illness.

Issue 73, February 2021

Inside this issue:

Come Meet with Us Pg. 2

Peer Member of the Month Pg. 3 Message from the Executive Director Pg. 4 Greetings from the Peer Directors Board Pg. 5

Black History Month Pg. 6

A Little Bit About Love Pg. 7

What We Did Pt. 1 What We Did Pt. 2 What We Did Pt. 3

Bell Let’s Talk Conversation Valentine Reflection

The Seven Greek Words of Love Netflix Series Review

Defeat Depression Edmonton Walk/Run Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

Acknowledgements Pg. 8 Pg. 9 Pg. 10 Pg. 11 Pg. 12 Pg. 13 Pg. 14 Pg. 15 Pg. 16 Pg. 17 The Little Happiness Corner Pg. 18

Events Calendar Pg. 19

Events Calendar Pg. 20

Prosper Place Pioneer

10455 – 172 St. NW, Edmonton, AB, T5S 1K9 Phone: 780.426.7861 Fax: 780.426.7874

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Prosper Place Pioneer Issue 73, February 2021

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Meetings are a very important part of Prosper Place. Meetings are open to peer members and staff. Connect with us by CONFERENCE CALL OR ZOOM!

Come Meet With Us

MONDAY AFTERNOON ANNOUCEMENTS

Join us for virtual Announcements via Zoom with

Julie “Tea Time”everyMonday* afternoon throughout February at 2:30 pm.

*Tuesday in the event of a holiday Monday

TEAM MEETINGS

• Fundraising Team

• Employment Team / Workshop Team

• Social Rec. / Special Events Team

• Newsletter Team

• Menu Planning Team

See the events calendar for dates and times of all our Team meetings.

CONFERENCE CALL:

Dial 1 855-392-2520

Enter Access Code –#1531109

Zoom Meetings with Julie:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85896702602?pwd=eU FMSGFqQThZTGwzcWhJN1U0UUdMdz09 Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330

SOCIAL RECREATION

Wednesdays at 1:30 pm

Join in virtually to enjoy games, cards, movies, crafts and so much more!

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed in the Prosper Place Pioneer are those of the authors, not necessarily those of Prosper Place. Please feel free to contact Prosper Place at 780.426.7861 with any questions or concerns.

FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS

Akan A. Alison I. Allen W. Arlene C. Ashton C. Ava K. Bosco W. Bryna C. Candace M. Carla C. Charles L. Chris M. Chris S. Craig B. Darcey C. Darren V. David P. David R. Dena J. Devon A. Diana H. Dragan K. Farrah S. Gordon B. Ilona P. James S. Jason N. Jordan N. Joseph F. Karen K. Kelly K. Lorie M. Margaret P. Maureen M. May J. Melody M. Raymond R. Rhonda E. Roula A. Roxanne B. Ryan H. Tammy W. Tegan B. Tommy D. Toni C. Valorie K. William C.

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Peer Member of the Month

FEBRUARY 2021

–

BRENT W.

Brent is someone who takes initiative in getting to the clubhouse early in the

morning! He is an active participant in many activities that go on at Prosper Place.

Brent has a very respectful and positive attitude towards other members. He has a

friendly personality and is totally willing to help out with the upkeep of Prosper

Place! Brent is also very patient with other peers and staff! Congratulations on

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Message from our Executive Director

Sharing

Definition of sharing:

giving of (something) to another or others.

Please take a moment to think about what you could give others. Yes, we all have ideas of what

we can give one another! (skill(s), experience, funny story, time to actively listen, special photo,

compliment, and so many other ideas…)

I want to hear from you!

Please email me your list of 2

–

3 things that you could give to others.

[email protected]

Submitted by:

Lori Pratt

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Greetings from Peer Directors Board

Colin S. - Staff liaison - Happy New Year to everyone. I believe I will remember 2020 as "the year of

the virus" and optimistically I am thinking of 2021 as "the year of the vaccine". These are

challenging times and I see all sorts of resiliency around me. We are strong and resilient and we

will get through this.

Pauline G. - Co-chair - May the blessings of

God be with you in 2021 and all your

endeavours be good for you. I pray you get

through COVID unharmed.

Sam Y. - Co-chair - I would like to wish

everyone a safe and happy new year. I know

last year and the first month of this year

hasn't been great but as your Peer Board of

Directors we are here for you.

Jason M. - Board member - I would like to

wish everyone peace and prosperity in the

New Year! I wish everyone to find the

strength and character within themselves to

become a stronger person throughout the

headache of dealing with new challenges in

life!

Dani O. - Board member - Wishes us all to get back together to socialize with members.

Lisa L. - Board member - I know we have all been struggling this past year due to COVID. This is a

stressful, lonely and frightening time. Prosper Place is doing as much as it can to offer members

ways to socialize and connect with other members, Zoom meetings, conference calls, and daily

activities etc. Please continue to be safe and healthy. I'm wishing everyone a new year full of

hope, happiness and laughter.

Tammy T. - Board member - Hello members. I

’d

like to welcome new and old members to Prosper

Place. We are like a family here. It's a great place to be. Hope we have a good year this year.

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Black History Month

Rosa Parks by Jason M.

Rosa Parks was a very courageous African-American citizen who adamantly refused to give up her seat in a white section of a segregated bus. There were black and white seating areas! This was the start of giving people of colour rights they never had before. By being willing to stand up for fellow members of her race, this paved the way for what would later become known as the Montgomery boycott! However, she wasn't the first African American person to refuse to move seats. Rosa Parks was born Rosa Louise McCauley on February 4th,

1913 and later married but had no kids! She died peacefully in her home on October 24, 2005.

Michelle Obama by Brent W.

Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, is a lady in which I have been honored to write about regarding this great time in February known as Black History Month.

Michelle was raised on the south end of Chicago, Illinois, of the United States of America. She is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. In her early career in the law field, she met Barack Obama whom one day became the 44th American President and coincidentally, the 1st African American President. Michelle, with the great duty of being First Lady in the White House, did so humbly for 8 years but with great empowering love and intelligence. A mother of two daughters, Malia Ann, and Sasha, she transformed the mould of what it means to be an African American lady.

Of many books based on her life and interests, her latest titled “Becoming”

published in 2018 won a Grammy Award for best Spoken Word Album. It also won

“Best Non-fiction Narrative” and received an audio book award at the British Book Awards. Among stealing our hearts with her brevity, grace and wisdom her book

“Becoming” won bestselling book of 2018. Some people set the bar high. And some

people simply are the bar. Michelle is of the highest standard to look up to for African Americans and is a great ambassador to continue the true legacy towards Black History Month.

She is a lady of courage, and regardless of skin color, we as a whole can learn so much from this special human being. We among other great things she shows to this day can learn that skin color, gender, age, or anything cannot hold us back from our true purpose ambition, and dreams.

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A Little Bit About Love

This February as Valentines Day approaches, we are reminded of the love that we

are blessed to have in our lives. Love can be defined in a variety of ways, but the

one common feature of love is that we all need and deserve it. Love can be shown

to others through random acts of kindness, or towards oneself through acts of

nourishment or kind self thought. It can also be given by others gratefully to be

returned in a cycle that can exponentially be transformed into love that goes

beyond our own years of existence to help future generations. The Beatles sang,

“All You Need Is Love,” and how true those words are. I, personally have seen how

much love can accomplish. How it keeps us alive. In 11 years, Prosper Place went

from a small organization to now, quite a thriving one. It started well before that,

as many of us know. It started with love, and love keeps it growing. So be the

water and let love be the sun that sprouts this sunflower known as Prosper Place

for generations to come. Happy Valentines Day.

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What We Did Pt. 1

TEA TIME!

VIRTUAL MUSEUM TOUR!

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What We Did Pt. 2

VIRTUAL ZOO TOUR!

FUNDRAISING TEAM MEETING!

TEA TIME!

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What We Did Pt. 3

TEA TIME!

CREATIVE SANDWICHES!

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Bell “Let’s Talk” Conversation

Bell Let’s Talk is an awareness campaign to combat stigma surrounding mental illness in Canada. According to

a report prepared for the Mental Health Commission, “In any given year, 1 in 5 Canadians experiences a mental

illness or addiction problem.” And unfortunately, the stigma associated with mental illness makes it difficult for

us to seek help and many of us struggle in silence.

On Thursday, January 28, we held our very own Zoom “Let’s Talk” conversation asking each participant to share “What inspires you?” with us.

The positivity during our open and honest conversation was inspiring.

You. Are. Inspiring!

And here it is in summary from the Board of Directors -“All of you inspire us, with your courage to share your personal stories, challenges, and triumphs. We are inspired by your perseverance, resilience and hope as you continue your journey to mental wellness. You inspire us with your compassion, support and willingness to help one another. Thank you for including us, we are grateful to all the members of Prosper Place for sharing and working with us. It is our pleasure to work with all of you and we are proud to be a part of Prosper Place.”

Submitted by:

Fay Swann

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Valentine Reflection

Message of Love!

I LOVEValentine’s Day!! It’s not about expensive gifts or even couples to

me. It is about those that are important to you and taking some time to

let them know it! Maybe it’s a phone call to a good friend or family

member, maybe it’s a little note sent in the mail….whatever and whoever

is important to you – take a moment to share some love with them on

Valentine’s Day!!

Happy Heart-Day to all my Prosper Place friends!! Love, Jessica

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The Seven Greek Words for Love

Try to identify which word speaks to you most!

1.

Eros

: romantic, passionate love

2.

Philia

: intimate, authentic friendship

3.

Ludus

: playful, flirtatious love

4.

Storge

: unconditional, familial love

5.

Philautia

: self-love

6.

Pragma

: committed, companionate love

7.

Agápe

: empathetic, universal love

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Netflix Series Review

Virgin River has a full cast of exciting realistic characters!

Melanie Monroe is the nurse practitioner who left a tragedy in LA to live in small

town Virgin River.

Hope McCrea and Vernon Mullins

are the town's supposed

"separated couple".

Jack is the quiet but

compassionate bar owner who

can't take his eyes off Mel.

There is the Preacher who is the

military buddy of Jack.

I wonder how Jack and Mel would

interact in the real world? Would Jack find Mel's past in the way?

Hope and Vernon seem like an old couple you would find in the world. They know

each other completely. And find ways to make their relationship exciting again.

No spoilers here.

Please enjoy two seasons of learning how this small town interactions are just

fascinating. And do you agree the relationships are realistic?

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Defeat Depression Edmonton Walk/Run

Support or Join our Team!!

Prosper Place is honored and proud to be the chosen charity for the 2021 Defeat Depression

Edmonton Walk/Run!

This is the second year in a row we have been fortunate to have been

chosen!

The event is on Saturday, May 29, 2021 and will raise awareness and funds across Canada in

support of mental health - and specifically for Prosper Place!

CLICK HERE NOW

to join the Prosper Place team or to Donate!

Either virtually or together,

whatever it may be...let’s get out and get

active as a team to DEFEAT DEPRESSION and better our mental heath!!

*** The Defeat Depression Edmonton Committee is launching its fundraising campaign with a

Purdy’s Easter fundraiser.

***

You can shop using this link

https://fundraising.purdys.com/1313161-82687

where you will be connected to Jessica at Prosper Place. She will

ensure to have your order ready at Prosper Place for pick up.

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Kelly’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Heat oven to 375f degrees.

Mix in a large bowl until fluffy:

1 cup margarine/butter room temperature

½ cup brown or white sugar (I use brown)

2 large eggs (I use XL eggs)

1 tsp vanilla

Mix in another bowl:

2 cups flour

1 cup oats

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

Add dry mixture to large bowl, mix until well blended.

Add 2 cups chocolate chips, mix well.

Spoon out onto a full teaspoon and roll dough into a ball.

Place ball onto an ungreased cookie sheet or parchment paper.

Bake at 375f for 8

–

10 minutes.

Have a glass of milk ready for dunking. Enjoy!

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Acknowledgements

At the end of last year, Prosper Place was so

thankful to have participated in a fabulous

online event hosted by THE 100 YEG. Three

charities were invited to share their story to

this group of philanthropists…..and Prosper

Place won!! In January of this year we

received a $2,800 donation from this group

–

we are so grateful for the opportunity and

amazing donation!

Thank you again to Capilano Glass

for the donation of two turkey’s!!

Although we were not able to have

our traditional Christmas Dinner in

December 2020, we have turkeys in

our freezer at Prosper Place ready

and waiting for us to be able to

come together again and enjoy a

delicious dinner

–

something we are

all looking very forward to!

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Events Calendar

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February 2021

Monday, February 1

10:00 am WNLC “Creating Resiliency” Course Registered participants only

1:30 pm Newsletter Team Meeting Zoom Meeting ID: 844 7745 8891 Access Code: 469569

2:30 pm Zoom with Julie “Afternoon Tea Time” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Tuesday, February 2

11:00 am WNLC “Creative Sandwiches” Course Registered participants only

1:30 pm Workshop/Employment Team Meeting Zoom Meeting ID: 891 5195 1268 Passcode: 327298 Wednesday, February 3

11:00 am Zoom with Julie “Virtual Deep Sea Tour” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330

1:30 pm Social Rec “Virtual Pictionary” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Thursday, February 4

1:00 pm Virtual Yoga Link will be sent via email

2:00 pm WNLC “Goal Setting” Course Registered participants only

Friday, February 5

10:00 am Conversations at Prosper Place ‘Coping with Change’

Zoom Meeting ID: 872 1843 8656 Passcode: 171764

11:00 am Zoom with Julie ‘Group Birthday Party!’ Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Monday, February 8

11:00 am WNLC “Creative Sandwiches” Course Registered participants only

1:30 pm Social Rec/Special Events Team Meeting Zoom Meeting ID: 852 7570 8473 Zoom Meeting ID: 266087

3:30 pm Book Club (Conference Call) Dial: 1 855 392 2520 Access Code: 1531109 Wednesday, February 10

11:00 am Zoom with Julie “Virtual National Park Tour” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330

1:30 pm Social Rec “Virtual Jeopardy” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Thursday, February 11

12:00 pm Peer Directors Board Meeting Peer Directors Board only

1:00 pm Virtual Yoga Link will be sent via email

2:00 pm WNLC “Goal Setting” Course Registered participants only

Friday, February 12

10:00 am Conversations at Prosper Place ‘Stigma and Stereotypes’

11:00 am Zoom with Julie ‘Let’s Write Poetry, Again… Valentine’s Day Edition!’

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Above is our current February calendar. If Prosper Place is permitted to re-open during February, we will adjust the calendar for in-person activities and also create a menu. In the meantime, we will follow all Government COVID-19 regulations and guidelines, knowing

that we are helping to flatten the curve and will be together again very soon!

Events Calendar

–

February 2021

Monday, February 15

CLOSED – FAMILY DAY Tuesday, February 16

2:30 pm Zoom with Julie “Afternoon Tea time” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Wednesday, February 17

11:00 am Zoom with Julie “Virtual White House Tour” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330

1:30 pm Social Rec “Virtual Wheel of Fortune” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Thursday, February 18

11:00 am Fundraising Team Meeting Zoom Meeting ID: 843 7266 0371 Passcode: 642779

1:00 pm Virtual Yoga Link will be sent via email Friday, February 19

10:00 am Conversations at Prosper Place ‘Let’s Talk Communication’

11:00 am Zoom with Julie ‘Virtual Zoo Visits!’ Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Monday, February 22

2:00 pm WNLC “Leadership Series” Registered participants only

3:30 pm Book Club (Conference Call) Dial: 1 855 392 2520 Access Code: 1531109 Wednesday, February 24

11:00 am Zoom with Julie “Virtual Egypt Tomb Tour” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330

1:30 pm Social Rec “Virtual Card Games” Zoom Meeting ID: 858 9670 2602 Passcode: 127330 Thursday, February 25

1:00 pm Virtual Yoga Link will be sent via email Friday, February 26

10:00 am Conversations at Prosper Place ‘From Thoughts to Emotions’

11:00 am Zoom with Julie “Pet Therapy (Pets on Zoom!)”

CLICK HERE NOW

https://fundraising.purdys.com/1313161-82687