Meet The Colour Project Team
/The past year has brought on so many changes and challenges. As the uncertainty continues in 2021, many people are experiencing anxiety and depression. There are many supports available and we encourage anyone who is struggling to make use of the resources.
One such support, The Colour Project, provides day-to-day, text-based peer support where help-seekers are connected to trained volunteers. TCP is not a counselling or crisis intervention service. Our volunteers cannot provide medical advice and are not licensed professionals. What you will get is a passionate individual dedicated to providing you support.
The Colour Project co-founders Amanda and Ian recently spoke to Young Women in Business Vancouver about the community they are helping to build and support.
Tell us about yourselves
We are currently students at UBC, studying medicine (Amanda) and dentistry (Ian). We have lived in Vancouver most (Ian) if not all (Amanda) of our lives, and love calling this city home!
What is the Colour Project?
The Colour Project provides anonymous, free, day-to-day and one-to-one emotional support via text to those struggling with anxiety and/or depression, with peer support volunteers.
What inspired the Colour Project?
We were inspired to create The Colour Project during the height of our own mental health struggles. We wanted to create a safe and non-judgmental space where individuals could easily access support if they would like to. Additionally, we saw access to mental health resources as a struggle for many, and so we are working to keep this service not only free but also easily accessible for anyone with a phone that can text.
How did COVID-19 impact the project?
COVID-19 fast-forwarded the timeline for us to launch a beta version of The Colour Project, so that we could offer this service to individuals who may be struggling with their mental health. It has been a difficult time for many and we hope that TCP can help bring some colour to those who are struggling even more so during this pandemic.
Who is this service for?
This service is for individuals who are struggling with their mental health and would like day-to-day emotional support from a peer support volunteer. We are not a crisis-line or a counselling service, and we do not provide professional advice, however our hope is that we can help by being there for each other, and listening.
What can I expect if I reach out to the service? How can I confirm I remain anonymous?
To be connected with a peer support volunteer, you will need to enter in your phone number on our website https://www.thecolourproject.ca/. You will then be sent a welcome message along with a confirmation code to text back to be connected to a peer support volunteer. Phone numbers are masked between volunteers and individuals seeking help by Twilio so everyone stays anonymous.
Who can be a volunteer?
Anyone who has an interest in providing peer support to someone struggling with their mental health can be a volunteer. Personal experiences with mental health, or helping someone else who has been struggling with their mental health can be helpful but is not required.
What do volunteers typically do?
Volunteers are paired one-to-one with those who reach out for support, and they stay with the same individual throughout the connection, unless a change is needed, or the person reaching out no longer wishes to chat (in which case they can text “STOPCHAT” to end the connection). We work with volunteers during our training to explore active listening and what it may mean through text, and that is at the core of what volunteers do - they are there to check in and to listen from day-to-day, providing a safe and non-judgmental space to connect and talk. Volunteers are asked to agree on a few set times with those they are paired with to connect each week, and anything outside of these times are great but not required. We’ve found that each volunteer also has their own unique style within the basic framework discussed in training, and we love that. All of our volunteers are also just all-around amazing human beings.
What have been your most valuable lessons from creating this project?
There are so many, but here are some:
If you have an idea for something you want to start or do, the hardest part is often starting; the next hardest part may be to keep going. If you can push through, you might surprise yourself and achieve more than you ever thought you could.
Things don’t have to be perfect right away (or ever), it just has to be good enough, and you can iterate on it! As much as you can - push through (if that is ultimately what you want)!
Nothing ever seems to go exactly as planned in a project, or within the timeline set without some hiccups along the way - know that this will happen, and know that you can work through it with some flexibility, deep breaths, and creativity.
You won’t have all the skills needed, and even if you did, you wouldn’t have the time to do everything - find good people to help and support you, and surround them with good help and support too.
Make sure to take care of yourself and the downtime that you need.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
We are also looking for technical leads to join our volunteer team! Volunteers are what make our shared community possible. Since our launch in January, there have been 8000+ messages exchanged between our one-to-one volunteers and help-seekers, representing 90+ one-to-one, day-to-day conversations. These numbers continue to grow, and we are consistently near or at capacity!
We are currently looking for crucial team members to join us on the tech side, to help us continue providing this service to individuals across Canada. Specifically, we are looking for mobile developers, backend developers, and/or full stack developers. You can find 1-page descriptions via our Volunteer page here.
Website: The Colour Project
Instagram: @colourproject.society
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecolourprojectsociety/
Blog post by Martha Fallon
Martha is a Social Media Coordinator for YWiB Vancouver. Martha hails from Ireland and is a keen traveler (when safe to do so) who enjoys exploring the vast landscapes of Canada.