Services and Resources

The Crones' Nest, A Community for Older Women, is sponsored by the women of the Pagoda Temple of Love, a spiritual and cultural center for all women, located in St. Augustine, Florida since July 7, 1977. The Crones' Nest is also being supported by tax-deductible donations from older women interested in the project. For more information or to send donations, write to The Crones' Nest, 207 Coastal Highway, St. Augustine, Florida 32084, or call (904) 824-2970.

Displaced Homemakers (women who have lost the support they were dependent upon) can get help through the Displaced Homemakers Program at all campuses of Cuyahoga Community College. The program offers services to help women become "job ready" and self-supporting. No fees are charged. To be eligible, a woman must have worked without pay as a homemaker for her family, not been gainfully employed, and be at least 35 years old. Courses include how to find and keep a job, interviewing, community resources, and budgeting. Call the campus nearest you: Metro, 241-5966; Western, 845,4000, Ext. 250; or Eastern, 464-1450, Ext. 275.

Education for Freedom of Choice in Ohio (EFCO) can provide professionals from all areas to speak to your group or organization on the subject of abortion. EFCO also provides research assistance to students and professionals on reproductive issues. To arrange a speaker, contact EFCO at 621-8224.

The Feminist Health Fund was founded in January 1980 for the purpose of aiding women with catastrophic illnesses who are economically disad vantaged. Our goal is to continue to raise funds and to distribute them to women in need of immediate financial aid. We are particularly sensitive to the discrimination women face due to racism, classism and homophobia. We are not a white, rich women's philanthropy. Members of the board are working women. Some of us are poor, some are professionals, some are married, some are lesbians, some are mothers, all are daughters. Our ages range from the 50's to the 30's. We anticipate getting tax-exempt status soon, and welcome your participation and interest in the Fund. Please write us with your questions, comments, money and love notes at Box 323, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387.

Domestic Workers of America has formed an Operation Job Bank with a grant from the Cleveland Council for Economic Opportunities through the State of Ohio's Community Services Block Grant. The Job Bank matches unemployed persons with employers seeking domestic workers in such. areas as child and invalid care, household help and custodial work. The Job Bank also provides job counseling and workshops. Geraldine Roberts, founder of Domestic Workers, is director of the Job Bank, Call 361-0373 for more information.

Appeals.

For several years there was a dream and a desire for a women's building in Cleveland. Finally, after a year and a half of planning and work, in November 1982 the dream was realized with the acquisition of several rooms in the Civic in Cleveland Heights. The Women's Building Fund (WBF) was created to subsidize this space and make it available to various non-profit women's organizations at an affordable cost. To date. these organizations have benefited through the use of this space: What She Wants. The Women's Wholistic Center. Oven Productions. The Women's Coffeehouse, Califia. AA and Al-Anon groups, WomenSpace. and a CR group. Future users will include Cleveland Abortion Rights ACtion League and the new Women's Enrichment Center. -

This undertaking represents a big step forward for the Cleveland women's community, and a large financial commitment. The long-term goal of the WBF is to establish an endowment fund which will support the space. But for the next two or three years, the Fund is relying on individual contributions in the range of $5 to $10 a month (tax-deductible). As of mid-February 1983. 86 people have pledged $6,400 to this effort. which is 2/3 of the total of $9.600 needed for the first year. Please take this opportunity to invest in your own community. Help us get over the top! To pledge your donation, or to arrange for use of the space, call 321-3054 from 10:00-5:00 Monday through Friday.

We are two lesbians, one a mother and the other leading groups for lesblans considering parenthood, writing a book entitled "Alternative Conceptions: A Workbook for Lesbians Considering Parenthood." In it. we help lesbians to identify and come to terms with the issues which they must face before they bring children into their lives. We hope that lesbian parents will be willing to fill out questionnaires for us to reflect all the many choices and viewpoints available to lesbians considering children. We are also interested in hearing from women who, after a conscious decision-making process, have decided not to parent. We ask that lesblans willing to answer questions about their experience write us. Cheryl Jones and Cheri Pies, at P.O. Box 3173, Oakland, CA 94609. If you are willing to share other resources or photographs. we would be very pleased to receive them.

Non-traditional blue collar women sought for Interviews and photos for forthcoming book. Send occupation, name, address to C. Seim/A. LoveJoy, P.0. Box 5584. Savannah, GA 31404.

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The Domestic Violence Outreach Project provides educational sessions to inform the community about the problem of domestic violence, therapy groups for baltered women and training for professionals who work with battered women. Education sessions and therapy groups are taking place at YWCA's throughout Greater Cleveland. The project is sponsored by WomenSpace. Cleveland, YWCA, Witness/Victim Service Center and Women Together. To volunteer or for more information, call the WomenSpace Helpline at 696-3100 or your local YWCA.

For the ninth consecutive year, the Free Clinic will unite its efforts with CWRU Medical School to provide an Afternoon Clinic at the Free Clinic from late January through mid-April. The clinic will provide routine pelvic exams and pap tests, family planning, pregnancy testing, and treatment of vaginal infections and sexually transmitted diseases. The purposes of the clinic are 1) to provide people with quality medical care, education and counseling related to their specific needs, and 2) to provide secondyear medical students with an introduction to the sensitive issues involved in performing female and male genital exams and talking with people about sexual matters. For appointments or further information call 721-4010 after 3:00 p.m. and ask for the Afternoon Clinic.

The Free Clinic is offering individual and group counseling for victims of incest on Tuesday evenings between 7:00 and 10:00 p.m. To make an appointment, call 721-4010 and say you want an appointment with Cynthia Griggins. There are no fees or eligibility requirements at the Free Clinic, 12201 Euclid Avenue.

If you are a woman with a problem and don't know where to turn. WomenSpace's Help Line, 696-3100, may be able to put you in touch with helpful community resources. The Help Line's hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Leave a message other times and we will return your call. Women who call for assistance are provided with information and referrals by a staff of trained women specialists who can assess the caller's needs and refer her to vocational/career resources, social service agencies, physicians, therapists, attorneys and self-help groups. The staff regularly researches and updates a resource bank to insure that current information is available.

The Road I Took to You: Stories of Women and Craziness, a documentary about women's mental health, has received an award at the American Film Festival. This documentary focuses on the treatment of women by the mental health establishment, with several women recalling their experiences leading to distress and others discussing being forced into treatment. The videotape is a production of the Elizabeth Stone House, an alternative feminist-run mental health program for women in Boston. Now available for rental. Please write Elizabeth Stone House. P.O. Box 15, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130, or call (617) 522-3417.

The producers of Before Stonewall, the public-television-funded documentary film on the history of lesbians and gay men in the United States prior to 1970, have been awarded two new grants: The New York Council for the Humanities has awarded $40,000, and the New York State Council on the Arts $15,000 to the project. A campaign has been launched to meet the challenge set by the major funding agencies to raise the remaining $25,000 needed to produce the film. Now, all tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations will be matched by the New York Council on the Humanities. The producers of the film are currently looking for photographs, home movies, journals and diaries, tape recordings. art work, letters and other materials for possible inclusion in the film. Anyone who has ever saved a snapshot of a lover, relative or friend, or anyone who remembers the one lesbian or gay bar that existed in their hometown before the birth of "gay liberation." is urged to contact the filmmakers. Do not send original material. Please write and tell us what you have. All responses will be kept strictly confidential. For more information concerning tax-deductible donations or the submission of materials to the film, please contact "Before Stonewall," 630 Ninth Avenue, Suite 908, New York, NY 10036.

In early September Marge Grevat went to Duluth, Minnesota for the Federal Court hearing in her sex discrimination claim against the University of Minnesota. The ruling in the trial will probably not be announced until early 1983. The trial was expensive: Marge's costs at this time are $5,000 with bills still coming. Since returning to Cleveland she has en. countered several other unanticipated major expenses that are making it difficult to pay trial costs on schedule. Marge has changed her mind and will accept contributions, but only on the following condition: if/when sha wins her case she will match our contributions with her own gift toward another (Cleveland-based) person's trial costs. If you are able to help, please make checks payable to Betsey Miklethun and send them to 14118 Ashwood Road, Shaker Heights, OH 44120. They will ge to a special fund for Marge's trial costs.

The Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign office need's volunteers to help with a variety of projects, as well as with staffing the Freeze office. If you : can contribute your time and energy, as well as any kind of skill, call Eleanor or Polly at 631-2210, M-F, 9-5.

PUAR (People United Against Repression) has an ongoing Legal Defense Fund to provide victims of police brutality with monetary assistance for both criminal and civil lawsuits. Eligibility is determined on a case by case basis. Presently, PUAR is handling the legal expenses involved in the class action suit stemming from the "suicides" by hanging in local area jails. We are requesting donations from all concerned individuals and organizations to help us maintain the Legal Defense Fund, so that we may continue to help others. Please send your donations to PUAR, P.O. Box 05034, Cleveland, OH 44105. For more information about our Legal Defense Fund, please contact our Hotline, 851-9842.

Hotlines & Support Groups

Hope for the gay alcoholic. Call the Gay Hotline at 621-3380, Alcoholism Services of Cleveland at 391-2300, or Alcoholics Anonymous, 241-7387.

The Gay Holling in Lake County is now under new management with new telephone numbers, 257-5503 (24 hours) and 257-7488 (after 6:00 p.m.). Please call any time for information, referrals, support and counseling-all calls are confidential! We are a referral service, not a dating service. We will have lawyers, doctors, AA, Parents of Gays, mental health and chemical abuse people at your disposal. If you wish to apply for membership in the Lake County League of Gays (LOG), receive our newsletter and/or be placed on our mailing list, just call the Hotline for information.

People United Against Repression (PUAR) operates a Hotline to receive complaints of police brutality. The Hotline operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you have a complaint, dial 851-9842 and leave your name and telephone number. Your call will be returned within 24 hours and an appointment for follow-up will be made at that time. The identity of callers to the Hotline is completely confidential.

The National Gay Task Force has opened a new Toll Free Crisisline, staffed by trained volunteers to provide referrals and to compile statistics on homophobic violence nationwide. Call (800) 221-7044.

North Coast Lesbian Alftance has been formed for social activities. port, and good times. Call Peg at 631-2415 for more information.

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Women for Sobriety is a organization which helps women overcome drinking problems by sharing feelings and setting goals in a supportive group setting. The Cleveland chapter meets every Monday, 7:30 p.m., at 1323 West Blvd., Cleveland. For more information, call Paulette or Barb at 696-0758 or Belty at 2B1-B22B.

Lesbian/Women AA and Al-Anon (Alcoholics Anonymous and women who are affected by alcoholics in their lives) group meetings are held every Wednesday from 8-9 p.m. at the Women's Wholistic Center at The Civic, 3130 Mayfield Road, Cleveland Heights. Open to all women.

if anyone is interested in a support group for women who have been fired or laid off, call Marie Durica, 779-1582. Central location to be announced.

ADS & BARTER

$.25/word classified ad $.20/word barter

The New Women's Design Center is looking for darkroom equipment. We especially need enlargers and timers. If you have anything you would like to donate or sell cheaply, call Louise or Cheryl at 321-6323, day or eve.

Seeking information on resorts, inns, and any other type of year-round or seasonal recreation or retreat areas catering especially or only to women anywhere in U.S. Comments from personal experiences also welcome. Send to Linda, 80 Eastland Rd., Berea 44017.

What She Wants needs a woman to distribute the newspaper to our outlets in the Greater Cleveland area. Requires own car and takes 1-2 days every six weeks. Salary based on percent of sales. Call 321-3054 (10-5 weekdays) and leave message.

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