Antonette Rea reading 'Laid to Rest'. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.

Megaphone would like to thank all those who came out to our Voices of the Street launch event last Tuesday at the Waldorf Hotel and for supporting the readers and our community writing workshop program.  

The event was a great success and highlighted the incredible amount of talent that exists in the Downtown Eastside and our inner-city communities. 

Each of the readers did and amazing job in performing their pieces: whether it was about being homeless, a sex worker, having a mental illness or living with poverty. It was a great honour having them share their stories to us all. 

James Witwicki reading 'How Like Met'. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.

Many thanks to the City of Vancouver for sponsoring this issue and launch event with a 125th anniversary grant, to PHS Community Services for sponsoring the publication of Voices of the Street, and for Poetry is Dead, Pins and Needs, Hope in Shadows and all our volunteers and vendors for their support and help with the issue. 

The event helped Megaphone raise more than $1,000, which will go toward our community writing workshop program. This spring Megaphone needs to raise $5,000 to keep our writing workshops running. Please donate today! 

Melita Carlsen reading 'This is Where'. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.

The audience at Megaphone's Voices of the Street event at the Waldorf Hotel. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.

Henry Doyle reads 'Rooming House Blues'. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.

Megaphone executive director Sean Condon at Voices of the Street launch event. Photo by Matthew Zylstra Sawatzky.