On Saturday night, February 21, 2015, five amateur performers stood in front of the room at the Tantra Lounge in the west end of Toronto to share their stories through story, music, poetry and song.
All the performers were survivors of sexual abuse. The event, a project of Landmark Worldwide, was organized by Kristine Verendia, founder of Soul Speak. Kristine founded Soul Speak in 2010 for all ages and is a non-gender specific group for sexual abuse survivors. It is a safe space for healing through discussion, friendship and unconditional support in safe and confidential space.
According to the indomitable Kristine Verendia, “My story is a testament to the human soul’s strength when they realize the truth that they have always been carried and guided all along in this journey called life. It is one of compassion, forgiveness, and love at the most darkest times. I believe that this strength is within all of us, and for those who have been at the unfortunate end to have experienced the depths of human flaw, the opportunity for freedom and greater self discovery is literally a step within.”
Soul Speak which started with a member of one, now encompasses 181 “Beautiful Souls” and frequently fields inquiries from far away as New Brunswick. In order to make this groups work available in every community and city across Canada, Kristine recently launched a crowd funding campaign (www.gofundme.com/soulspeak) to formalize Soul Speak as a not-for-profit, create a website and pay for a regular meeting space.
As Heather, writer and Soul Speak member, very eloquently articulated in her story, Life as a House, “I feel that the love & support we receive here at Soul Speak enables us to uncover what we have hidden for so long; we help each other remove all the buried items one by one; and let us finally complete our own foundations. I am no longer the ‘candle in the wind’.”