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2025 at VSAC: A Year of New Spaces, Brave Conversations & Community Magic

  • evgeniak5
  • Dec 5
  • 3 min read

What a year.

At VSAC, 2025 felt like a year of opening doors—new workshops, new drop-in spaces, new voices at the table, and hundreds of moments where our community showed up for each other in powerful ways.

Here are some of the stories that shaped our year.


Creating Spaces Where Learning Feels Safe

Early in the year, our Prevention Education team launched Holding Space—a workshop built for real conversations about consent, relationships, boundaries, and safet

We weren’t sure how youth and adults would respond…But the feedback was clear:

“This is the first time I felt like I could ask questions without feeling judged.”

And that’s exactly what we hoped for. By the end of October, the team had brought Holding Space to 23 workshops, connecting with 250 youth and 150 adults across the region.


The BIE Project: Youth Leading the Way

One of the most inspiring moments of 2025 happened at our Table Talk event in October.

Imagine a room with:

BIPOC youth and educators at VSAC Table Talk event 2025

·         30+ educators and youth-serving professionals

·         10 brilliant, outspoken BIPOC youth

·         A table covered in tea, snacks, sticky notes, ideas, laughter, and truth-telling

The Black and Indigenous Empowerment (BIE) Project has always been youth-led, but that day reminded us how powerful it is when adults make space, listen, and learn.

The youth didn’t just help shape the program—they created the name, the logo, and the direction. You can see their work HERE.


New Drop-In Groups: 2025’s Biggest Milestone

This year, we opened not one but two brand-new drop-in groups—and the response has been incredible.

Youth Circle at VSAC Victoria

Youth Circle

For girls, women, trans, nonbinary, two-spirit, and gender-diverse youth (16–19). Every 4th Tuesday of the month. A space where someone always says, “Me too,” and everyone nods.

Queer & Trans Circle at VSAC Victoria

Queer & Trans Circle

Every 2nd Tuesday. Warm. Affirming. Zero pressure. The kind of circle many of us wish we had earlier.

These join our long-standing groups:


·         Comfort & Tea

·         Mindfulness with Metta

Together, these four programs ran 102 group sessions this year—102 times community members sat together and breathed a little easier.


Volunteer Magic: Honouring the Heart of VSAC

If you’ve ever wondered what community care looks like, meet our Galactic Gratitude Award recipients:

  • Devon – Community Educator & Advocate. Champion of connection, always lifting up marginalized survivors.

  • Arshis – Safety Advocate & Community Leader. Courageous, grounded, and endlessly supportive.

These two (and all our volunteers) are the reason so many people feel supported when they reach out to us.


SART: Support When It Matters Most

This year we prepared for a major milestone: SART (Sexual Assault Response Team) will begin welcoming new volunteers on January 1, 2026.

When someone arrives at the hospital after a sexual assault, SART is there.

Soft voices. Warm blankets. No judgment. Choice every step of the way.

This work saves people from going through their hardest moment alone.


How You Can Be Part of This Work

Triathlon of Compassion 20-26

There are so many ways to support survivors and contribute to this community:

  • Join one of our events We host powerful gatherings throughout the year—community conversations, fundraisers, awareness events, and more, including our annual Triathlon of Compassion.

  • Host your own event A dinner party, yoga class, art night, workplace fundraiser—your idea can create real impact. Want to host a fundraising event for VSAC? Get in touch with us at [email protected] and let’s chat!

  • Volunteer From SART to workshops to drop-ins, volunteers are truly part of the heartbeat of VSAC. Learn more HERE.

  • Donate Your contribution helps fund survivor-centered programs, drop-in groups, and essential community services.


Looking Forward to 2026


This year we supported 476 people through counselling, SART, the Access Line, and Victim Services. But beyond the number, it’s the small moments that stay with us: A youth speaking up for the first time. A volunteer holding space for a survivor. A drop-in participant saying, “I feel safe here.”


Thank you to everyone who helped make 2025 a year of connection, courage, and care. Here’s to building even more healing spaces in 2026.

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