We are celebrating 11 years of Peatix this May!
This joyous milestone is made possible by the continuous efforts of our homegrown organizers in Singapore, Malaysia and Japan. Their initiatives to unite the world inspire us at Peatix and we believe it may spark new ideas for you too!
In conjunction with our 11th anniversary, we would like to turn the spotlight on our organizers and the incredible experiences they create, both online and offline.
Here is our little interview with Oogachaga’s Leow Yangfa on the events they create.
Tell us about yourself and Oogachaga
My name is Leow Yangfa, executive director of Oogachaga. My pronouns are he, him, and I am a registered social worker by profession. I joined as a full time staff member in 2013, and took over from the outgoing executive director, Bryan Choong, in 2015. Bryan is one of the 3 appellants in the recent constitutional cases to challenge section 377A of the Penal Code.
Oogachaga was founded by a group of gay and bisexual men in 1999, in response to the lack of gay affirming social support at the time. The name “Oogachaga” comes from the chorus of the song “Hooked on a Feeling” by the Swedish band “Blue Swede”, and the opening lyric “I can’t stop this feeling, deep inside of me” was something that our founders felt would resonate with many in the LGBTQ community. Some readers may remember that the song was featured prominently in the American TV series “Ally McBeal”, which accompanied the appearance of the CGI dancing baby.
Oogachaga is Singapore’s most established, community based non-profit professional organisation supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and gender-diverse (LGBTQ+) individuals, couples and families since 1999. Our range of community services include counseling, community outreach, professional training and corporate engagement.
Do you remember the first event you created? What was one memorable moment from running it?
I don’t remember the details of the first ever event we organized with Peatix in 2014, but I do know that our most popular events are our film screenings, usually in collaboration with The Projector cinema. The registration details and payment function are very helpful for our event management.
One piece of advice you’d offer to new event organizers who are eager but a little nervous about running an online/offline event?
One important piece of advice when using Peatix: always communicate event information using the 3Cs, namely concisely (short sentences and bullet points), clearly (provide important details under headings), and creatively (use attractive images!)
How has Peatix benefited you the most in your event and/or community management process?
Oogachaga has been using Peatix for organizing many of our community events in the past 8 years. These include film screenings, cocktail events, workshops and even a yoga session and a pole dancing class! In recent years, we’ve also used Peatix to organize online events such as webinars and a trivia quiz.
Follow the Oogachaga Peatix Group and be part of their wholesome community.
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