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EMERSON
SANTOS
TOGETHER WE RISE
Volunteering is a meaningful experience that can bring joy and fulfillment to both the individual and the community. Giving one's time to help others can have a significant impact on the world around us. From organizing fundraisers for those in need to contributing to research for global diseases, volunteers have the power to make a positive change.
When people work together towards a common goal, it not only benefits the community but also enhances the quality of life for those involved. By sharing the workload, tasks become easier to accomplish, and everyone can feel a sense of achievement.
Volunteering can also lead to personal growth and development. It provides opportunities to develop important skills such as time management, communication, and teamwork, as well as the confidence to take charge and lead. Employers recognize the value of volunteer work and the dedication it shows towards helping others.
Volunteering is a selfless act that brings happiness, hope, and a sense of purpose. It is a valuable experience that cannot be bought with money and can leave a lasting impact on both the volunteer and the community they serve.
Achievements
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Founded Breakthrough Wellness Foundation-BWF helps vulnerable individuals deal with personality disorders and mental illness free of charge. This initiative has aided several people coping with grief, alcohol addiction, procrastination, job loss, and PTSD.
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HIM- Man's Health Vancouver - I provided private and confidential on-the-spot STI testing for gay, bisexual, and trans men, Two-Spirit, and queer individuals. Additionally, I offered a psychoeducation workshop aimed at developing self-awareness, freedom, and responsibility.
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QMUNITY - Provided personal support as a group facilitator for queer, trans, and Two-Spirit people of all ages to build confidence and accept themselves as they are.
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Volunteered to serve the ten days retreat several times at Vipassana Meditation Centre in Portland, USA and Merritt, Canada.
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Implemented 10 min break to the practice of self-awareness mediation that reduced First Nations Health Authority's employees' stress in the work environment.
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Initiated 21 days of mindfulness meditation to help friends and acquaintances deal with uncertainness caused by the Coronavirus pandemic while transcend limited believes.
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Supported Vancouver Pride Society produce events that reflect the pride LGBTQAI2S+ community.
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Brazil - Volunteer: Sociedade Viva Cazuza - HIV Awareness - Helped organize lectures to educate the public about the risks and prevention of HIV.
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Canada - Volunteer: Red Cross - Provided health equipment to individuals dealing with illness or injury.
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Brazil INCA – National Cancer Institute. Registered to give blood and save lives up to 4 donations per year for five years
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Supported PETA protesters inform citizens about animals that corporations, governments, and individuals abuse throughout the world.
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I provided individual income tax return services to overseas low-income students/workers in Australia.
Volunteer
SMART Recovery is a well-known addiction recovery support group that uses tools based on the latest scientific research. The program's innovative approach to addiction recovery helps participants transform their lives by replacing negative behaviors and addictive substances with a positive self-image and a willingness to change.
GROUP FACILITATOR
Our meetings are designed to support individuals in their recovery journey, whether they choose to attend in-person or online. The aim of these meetings is to help participants create and implement their own personalized recovery plan. Through active participation, individuals can achieve a more balanced, purposeful, fulfilling, and meaningful life.
Volunteer
BIFOUS is a community that aims to unite individuals who identify as bisexual, pansexual, non-binary, or non-monosexual. The group also welcomes allies who support their cause.
A peer-facilitated support group for folks of all genders who are (or think they might be) sexually and/or romantically attracted to people of more than one gender or regardless of gender. This can include people who identify as bi+, non-monosexual, pansexual, fluid, queer, & other queer self-identifications.
The group invites for a safe and non-judgmental environment to discuss a variety of topics, including relationships, loneliness, oppression, health, mental health, and community development. Whether you're new to these difficulties or have been dealing with them for years, we welcome you to participate in open and honest discussions.
Group facilitator - During group meetings, I encouraged participation and provided guidance to ensure productive discussions. Additionally, I facilitated conflicts or disagreements that may have arisen.
In September 2021, I organized one of the largest gatherings of bisexuals in Vancouver, BC to celebrate visibility.
HIM (Health Initiative for Men) provides a wide range of services for gay, bisexual, trans, and OMSM men aged 18 and over. These services include STI testing, classic HIV testing, rapid HIV testing, early HIV testing, hepatitis A and B vaccinations, HPV vaccinations, coaching, professional counseling, and sexual health education. HIM services are based on trusted, tailored, and targeted research-based health promotion services, and we engage the community through volunteer involvement, online access, and events. We strive to establish mutually beneficial relationships between gay men and health professionals to ensure the best possible outcomes.
I helped with tasks such as organizing appointments and intake of patients. Additionally, I developed a psychoeducational group meeting aimed at providing psychological support to prevent depression and anxiety. The group helped members become aware of their potential and take responsibility for their lives. The technique used in this work was a combination of Vipassana meditation and Existentialist ideas.
Details: https://checkhimout.ca/meditation/
Administrative Volunteer/ AIDS to Independent Living Program. Red Cross. Canada
Assisted in following up with clients and health care professionals in regards to the equipment they have loaned from the program; prepared client surveys and feedback forms; processed donation income and followed-up with donors.
Assisted with or take on special projects as directed by the coordinator.
Reported preparation; accounting procedures; creating creative memo pieces to distribute to the clients and founders; volunteer training.
Assisted in processing incoming client equipment applications.
 Socidade Viva Cazuza |
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Liaised with clients, supplies and employees to ascertain their precise event requirements. Produced detailed proposals for events; performed budget; organized facilities for parking, traffic control, security; first aid; hospitality, and the media; liaised with public relation colleagues to promote the event; overseeing the dismantling and removal of the event and clearing the venue.
Vancouver Pride Society strives to
produce inclusive, celebratory events and advocacy for LGBTQAI2S+ communities through an intersectional lens.
Supported organizers to building sets. Delivered equipment and supplies. Kept the staff fed, cleaned up the spaces, and other duties required during the event.
Vipassana, which means to see things as they are, is one of India's most ancient techniques of meditation. It was taught in India more than 2500 years ago as a universal remedy for universal ills, i.e., an Art of Living.
Preserved the center neat and clean. Supported the kitchen in food preparation; organized the dining hall; assisted the residences inquires; maintained the meditation hall, bathrooms, offices clean.
Donations at Salvation Army Australia, and blood donor in Brazil.
Donations
Salvation Army Australia
I lived in Australia with my wife until November 2012, when we decided to relocate to Canada. Before leaving, we donated a large part of our belongings to the local Salvation Army.
INCA – National Cancer Institute
Guidelines for blood donors
Some criteria allow a blood donation determined by the Ministry of Health's technical standards and designed to protect the donor and the safety of those who will receive the blood.
I was active for two years.
Up to 4 donations per year
“Guard well your spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds. Discard them and their value will never be known. Improve them and they will become the brightest gems in a useful life.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Leisure
Travel
England, Italy, France, Poland, Portugal, Switzerland, Netherlands, Scotland, China, Germany, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Dubai, Canada, and extensive travel in India, Belgian, Australia, New Zealand, United States, and Brazil.
Participation in recreational activities has a multitude of health benefits for the body. It does this by lowering levels of stress and sadness, which in turn enhances life's overall well-being. Optimism and self-assurance in the face of adversity are also quite helpful. I make it a point to keep all the activities in my life in harmony with how I live. It is invigorating to learn about and experience new cultures, ways of thinking, ideas, history, and landscapes. Travelling and dancing are two of my favourite ways to pass the time.
I also appreciate hiking, practising meditation, attending concerts and festivals, organising things and trips, listening to music, attending shows and festivals, and supporting the people I care about. I help people in various ways, such as by offering a cheery smile to a stressed-out server who is really busy or by simplifying my coworkers' responsibilities. I like doing volunteer work and donating things.
Just a sample of my work. To see more or discuss possible work >>
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