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Project Mangåffa' Peer Education Program

Project Mangåffa' Peer Education Program is one of our core services that utilizes a cultural empowerment and social learning model, delivering health & social services to our LGBTQI community.  Mangåffa' is the Chamorro word for family. In the Pacific, the family is the anchor and center of our social lives, playing a central role influencing our identities. For us in the LGBTQI community, family is also slang referring to those who identify as LGBTQI: she is "family", to mean she is lesbian or transgender.  A unique aspect of Project Mangåffa is that services are delivered by those impacted by the health issues we seek to address, such as HIV/AIDS, substance abuse and suicide; they are trained to help others overcome difficult situations and build and maintain healthy lives. Since it's implementation four years ago, over 50 people have been trained to be peer educators. They are LGBTQI and straight allies, parents of LGBTQI children, high school and college students and individuals seeking to make a difference in the lives of others. They range in ages from 15 to over 40; they are Chamorro, Chuukese, Filipino and other ethnicities. Peer educators are certified in Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), safeTALK, Suicide Postvention, HIV Risk Reduction, Tobacco Cessation, Brief Tobacco Intervention (BTI) and Storytelling for Empowerment curriculum facilitation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Cho'guiyi Volunteer Program

Our volunteer program offers you an exciting and rewarding experience to share your talents and skills. Volunteers assist with GALA's Ginger Bread Tree Project, which provides holiday cheer to children and families impacted by HIV/AIDS; assist with fundraising and sponsorship drives; organize and implement Pride Month Festivities in June (such as our annual Pride Picnic, Pride Mass in collaboration with the Episcopal Church in Micronesia, St. John the Divine Church; assist with commemoration of National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (May 19) and World AIDS Day (Dec. 1) and various outreach activities. Experience our mission by becoming a GALA volunteer today!

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Internship Program

The Internship Program gives students an opportunity to learn and participate in GALA's social service delivery system. GALA's Internship Program challenges and rewards select applicants to work with GALA in improving the lives of the LGBTQI community. GALA has maintained an ongoing partnership with the University of Guam and University of Hawaii in helping to shape the identities of future helping practitioners in the fields of social work and psychology at bachelor's and masters degree levels. If you would like to intern with us, please call 969-5483. 

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