Resources for the 2SLGBTQPIA+ Community

Online Dating Safety 101 - The 519

Online Dating Safety

We have compiled some resources with tips for staying safe with online dating.

8 Ways to Make Your Grindr Hookups Safer - Men's Health

15 ways you can stay safe on Grindr and other dating apps - PinkNews

Kamloops Pride Community Grant

This grant period is now closed. Stay tuned to see what was funded!

We are excited to announce the Kamloops Pride Community Grant Program which will distribute grants of $200 to $5,000 to individuals, groups, and registered non-profit organizations to realize projects that directly benefit the 2SLGBTQPIA+ community in Kamloops.

The application process is easy! Simply fill out the google form (you can go back and edit before submitting) create a budget based on the template we provide (we even filled in some example values) and submit!

For questions and support, please contact Teresa at info@kamloopspride.com.

Application Period: September 30 to November 15, 2025
Review Period: time when applications are reviewed, ending with amounts being awarded. Time permitting, suggesting alterations for projects to better meet the criteria. November 15 to November 30, 2025
Payment: awarded in full upon application approval via e-transfer on December 5, 2025
Project Period: projects must take place on or before October 31, 2026
Reporting Period: recipients will report on where the funds were used by November 30, 2026

Eligibility:

Applicants may be individuals 19+, groups, and non-profits. Priority given to individuals for projects that benefit the greater community.
Applicants must not have current or history of demonstrated discrimination against minority groups including homophobia, transphobia, racism, etc.
Project must directly benefit the 2SLGBTQPIA+ community in Kamloops, BC
Grant amount must be between $200-$5000

Ineligible:

Fundraiser events (such as galas or ticketed events)
- Ticketed events may be supported if tickets are made more accessible due to grant
Paying off debts
Donations to individuals and groups

Examples of Eligible Community Projects:

Drag or other performances by and for the 2SLGBTQPIA+ community with free admission (or reduced price tickets)
Voice therapy workshops for trans community members
Skill development for individuals whose work or skill benefits the community (such as comedians taking a class to improve their show hosting skills)
Host a community event such as clothing swap or networking event
Host a workshop or class for 2SLGBTQPIA+ community members

Rainbow Reads Library

Rainbow Reads Library is our project designed to increase accessibility of 2SLGBTQPIA+ stories to the community. We currently have 3 community locations who are hosting bookshelves for us - head over to check out our book selection and borrow them free of charge!

The employees at any location will help you check out the books, all you need to do is provide your contact information and you're set!

Take a look here at our current book inventory.

Current locations:

Haus of Misfit (275 Tranquille Road)

TRU Wellness Centre (OM 1479)

Kamloops Art Gallery (101-465 Victoria St, inside Admissions Area)

Your Health, Your Rules Guide

A Guide for navigating the healthcare system as a 2SLGBTQPIA+ person.

Know Your Rights is a collaborative project between the Kamloops Pride Society and the Thompson Rivers University (TRU) School of Nursing.

Knowing Your Rights Guide

A Toolkit for 2SLGBTQPIA+ Folks in Navigating Criminal Justice, Health Care, and Youth Issues

Know Your Rights is a collaborative project between the Kamloops Pride Society and Pro Bono Students Canada, Thompson Rivers University Law School chapter

Stay-in-Your-Lane Guide

A guide to set safe boundaries for relationships, social media, and sexual health.

There are some tips for how it feels when boundaries are crossed, how you can keep yourself safe online, and some sexual health tips for queer folks.

Normalize-It! Guide

A Guide on Increasing Allyship and the Acceptability and Safety for the 2SLGBTQIA+ Community

This guide includes some "Queer-101", and has some tips and recommendations on how to be an ally and create safe spaces for the 2SLGBTQPIA+ Community

Trans and Gender Diverse Mental Health, Wellness and Suicide Prevention Toolkit

SPECTRUM, Waterloo Region’s Rainbow Community Space, developed this toolkit on trans mental wellness and suicide prevention in response to trans community needs and priorities

View Toolkit

The Hatchery: Specialty Medical Services Co-Operative

The Hatchery is a gender-affirming care clinic which offers transition-related medical care for those who have a medical aspect to their transition (primarily those seeking or considering hormone replacement therapy or surgical assessment and referral). We take referrals from other physicians and also accept self-referral for those who don't have a family doctor or aren't comfortable asking them for a referral.

Email: patients@hatcherybc.com

Phone: 778-538-8558

Fax: 833-333-1711

Email The Hatchery

Safe Spaces

A Safe place for LGBTQIAP2S+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, pansexual and Two Spirit) youth (ages 12-26) & their allies to meet and receive education and supports.

(250) 371-3086

Foxy Box Laser + Wax Bar

Welcome to Foxy Box! Your #1 destination for the quickest and most effective gender neutral hair removal services on the market! Our mission is to leave you feeling energized and powerful, so you can celebrate your uniqueness and embrace your inner fox! To go along with our mission, we offer all our clients a standing 20% discount on all single service gender affirming laser hair removal sessions. To access this discount, all you have to do is book in and use the code: FOXYAFFIRM.

Ways to Book:

Call Us: 778-471-FOXY (3699) Book in for laser and let us know it is gender affirming.

DM Us: kamloopsbc_foxybox Book in for laser and let us know it is gender affirming.

Book Online: Use the link HERE and enter the code FOXYAFFIRM at checkout.

QMUNITY

QMUNITY is a non-profit organization based in Vancouver, BC that works to improve queer, trans, and Two-Spirit lives. We provide a safer space for 2SLGBTQPIA+ people and their allies to fully self-express while feeling welcome and included. Our building serves as a catalyst for community initiatives and collective strength.

1170 Bute Street,
Vancouver, BC V6E 1Z6
1-800-566-1170

Our Landing Place

We are a collective of LGBTQ2S+ identified counsellors offering sex-positive, affirming and competent online and phone counselling across Canada. We also provide diversity and inclusivity consulting and training services to individuals and organizations worldwide.

(250) 806-0455

Wade R. Alexander Counselling

Wade R. Alexander MN, MA, RCC, CCC, RMFT is a queer, gender-affirming and certified trauma-informed counselling therapist who provides online telehealth services that include e-therapy of individual clients, couples and other relationships, and families in Kamloops, BC, and the surrounding areas.

(778) 472-0388

Wellmind Counselling

WellMind Counselling offers anti-oppressive, trauma informed counselling both in-person in Kamloops or online. We are a team of sex-positive, gender affirming and inclusive counsellors who work to make sure you always have the power in the counselling room. We offer individual counselling and relationship (couples) counselling for a variety of concerns including: anxiety, depression, PTSD, CPTSD, trauma, gender identity, grief, stress and daily life struggles. Our goal is always to work with you to determine what you need.

Amanda Neystrong (Lighthouse Therapy)

Amanda Neystrong (she/her) is a Master of Counselling student at City University (Vancouver), currently working and residing in Kamloops. With nearly 20 years of experience as a social worker and counsellor, Amanda brings warmth, insight, and dedication to her practice. Clients often describe her as approachable, grounded, and deeply empathetic. She prioritizes creating a space where you feel safe, seen, and understood—a space where your story matters and healing can unfold at your pace. She is currently working with Lighthouse Therapy and providing low-cost counselling supports. She is looking to work with the 2SLGBTQPIA+ and neurodivergent community.

Billie Sankey (Mindwise Counselling)

Billie Sankey (she/her) is a queer identified Registered Clinical Counsellor located in Kamloops, BC who provides both in-person and virtual therapy services to individual teens and adults, partners, and families. No matter what you're bringing to the session, she offers a safe, non-judgemental, and informed space where you can be your authentic self or to discover who that is. Billie is passionate about expanding upon safe-spaces for 2SLGBTQ+ people in Kamloops and surrounding areas and is honoured to be a stop in your journey.

TherapyWorks Neurodiversity Services & Counselling Associates

Counselling services, Executive Functioning Supports, Neurodivergence affirming personal and mental health supports, tutoring, social programs, ADHD diagnostic assessments and short term medical followup, Occupational Therapy. Children, youth and adults with mental health, relationship, self esteem, developmental, learning and functioning concerns. Services are available to assist individuals exploring sexual and gender identity, as well as for family members and others who care for them. We support with 2SLGBTQPIA+ and many intersecting communities. We are an interprofessional practice that includes members and allies of the 2SLGBTQPIA+ community and affirming practices for these communities is a requirement for all team members.

Safe Spaces

A Safe place for LGBTQIAP2S+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, pansexual and Two Spirit) youth (ages 12-26) & their allies to meet and receive education and supports.

(250) 371-3086

admin@awayhomekamloops.com

Okanagan Thompson Legal Clinic (Free Clinic)

We provide advocacy services for family law matters including child support, spousal support, and separation agreements, property and debt, and support through family court. Other services include poverty law matters including residential tenancy issues, disability benefits, debt and consumer law, and employment law. The clinic DOES NOT help with criminal law, personal injury, real estate, or estate documents.

We offer in-person services Monday – Friday, 9am-4pm (except stats). Prospective clients and community partners can reach us by phone at 236-425-9121 or by email at info@bclegalclinic.com.

Send Us an Email

A Way Home Kamloops

A Way Home Kamloops Society is a grassroots charitable non-profit that provides housing and wraparound support services to youth at risk of, or experiencing homelessness

653 Victoria Street

(250) 828-0446

Lizzy's Closet (Kamloops Elizabeth Fry Society)

Lizzy's Closet offers FREE clothing for women in need within the Kamloops community. Lizzy's Closet will be open every Monday from 10 AM to 2 PM. It provides a dedicated space equipped with volunteers to assist women, a fitting room, a diverse range of seasonal wear, business attire, as well as essential items such as period products and various accessories including jewelry, purses, and scarves.

827 Seymour Street

(250) 320-3809

nicoleg@kamloopsefry.com

Kamloops Immigrant Services

Kamloops Immigrant Services is here to help you meet the challenges of immigration by offering a bridge of support along the way to establishing in our community.

(778) 470-6101

448 Tranquile Road

Monday-Friday 8:30-4:30

The Kamloops Self Advocate

Our goal is to spread awareness about what we can do, not what we can’t do. We highlight different themes in the newsletter and include ideas about different topics every month. Recreation and leisure are important to us, as well as social issues that affect our diverse communities, including Indigenous people as well as the LGBTQ2+ community. We also promote different causes and things happening in the disability field.

Interior Health: My Health Is Sexy

Public Health Centres are responsible for delivering core programs for public health that broadly cover the areas of health improvement, prevention of disease, disability and injury, health emergency management, and environmental health.

For Interior Health Locations, Click Here

Interior Health: (250) 851-7300

519 Columbia Street

My Health Is Sexy: 1 (866) 778-7736

Men's Health Initiative (MHI)

The Men’s Health Initiative’s main goal is to increase supportive, community-based networks for guys-who-like-guys within Interior BC while raising attention to their health care needs and concerns. This includes, but not limited to: asexual, bisexual, cis, curious, gay, male, non-binary, queer, questioning, straight, trans, two-spirit, and all other guys-who-like-guys.

255 Lawrence Ave, Kelowna BC

(778) 753-5830

menshealthinbc@gmail.com

Health Initiative for Men (HIM)

HIM is a nonprofit society that aims to strengthen the health and well-being in communities of self-identified GBQ men and gender diverse people in BC. We offer a full spectrum of health-based programming and services to meet the sexual, mental, physical and social health needs of communities of self-identified GBQ men and gender diverse people in BC.

HIM, the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), and Interior Health are running a pilot program to help eligible individuals in the Interior access PrEP without a local doctor/prescriber.

Click Here to learn more

Get Checked Online

GetCheckedOnline is a new and easy way to test for sexually transmitted infections (STI) in British Columbia, Canada. In a few steps, you can print a lab form, then go to a participating LifeLabs site to give your samples and get your results online or over the phone.

Clinic Line (604) 707-5603

tru.pride.on.campus@gmail.com

TRUSU Pride

Thompson Rivers University Student Union (TRUSU) Pride Collective was created in recognizing the need for advocacy and representation of LGBTQ2S+ students.

For more info, visit the Members’ Services Desk in the Students’ Union Building or contact pride@trusu.ca.

Follow TRUSU Pride Club on Facebook

TRU Diversity and Equity

Safety, inclusion and accessibility is a priority for all students. TRU is working towards advocacy and anti-discrimination efforts for the LGBTQ2S+ community on campus and beyond.

The Faculty of Student Development has resources for 2SLGBTQPIA+ Students.

Kamloops Pride TRU Bursary

Provides two awards annually to students who demonstrate financial need. Preference will be given to a member of the 2SLGBTQPIA+ community, who has performed at least three hours of volunteer work with an 2SLGBTQPIA+ organization (Kamloops Pride, TRUSU Pride, etc) within the last year.