Report from the Service Center

Hi everybody, my name is Robert Stump, and If you haven’t heard, I am the new office administrator at the LifeRing Service Center. I have scheduled myself to be in the office Monday through Thursday in the afternoons from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM and on Fridays from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM. Craig Whalley, my partner in crime,  is usually at the Service Center for a couple of hours every morning, except on Wednesdays, shipping book orders and doing office stuff. If you’re planning to come down to visit please call first to make sure one of us will be in.

Here is a list of some of the things I been doing here at the Service Center in the first month of the new year:

• The LifeRing Meeting page at LifeRing.org
  • The on-line PDF Meeting Lists are being updated more frequently
  • Meeting locations have been fixed and updated.
  • I have listed the local LifeRing web site when available.
  • The Google meeting map has been fixed and updated to reflect these changes.
  • A new California Meeting Brochure has been created (thanks to Lynn C.) and will be updated and published twice a month.
•   LifeRing Brochures
  • Lynn C. has redesigned the “Welcome to LifeRing” and “Recovery by Choice” brochures. They are both published on white paper stock.
  • All our other brochures have had a minor update to change the web site wording from unhooked.com to lifering.org but otherwise will be left as is.
  • These brochures are scheduled to have major rewrites done to them over the next couple of years (again to be done by Lynn C.).
• Convenor and Meeting updates
  • I am in the process of updating the meetings and convenors information in the POL database.
  • There are currently some meetings where I have outdated contact information and in some cases no contact information at all.
  • I’m not even sure if some meetings that are listed on our web site are in existence anymore.
  • Because of this, I would like all currently active and past convenors, to email the LifeRing Service Center at service@lifering.org, call our toll free number 800-811-4142, or write to the Service Center (address is below). Please give me your current contact information including name, email, phone number, and address and the meeting you are currently convening if any (please include the meeting location with a meeting room if needed, time and day of your meeting). This information will be kept private in an encrypted database that only three people have access to.
  • I would also like to encourage individuals who are thinking about convening a meeting or who would like to learn more about running a meeting to send your contact info in to the service center. Even just a name and email/phone number will work. Someone will contact you to see what help or additional information you might need.
• Improved communication
  • Speaking of the 800 number, in the past it has taken a number of rings to get through to the service center. Most people, I suspect, gave up before getting through. I am changing this and upgrading to AT&T Unified Messaging. The 800 number will be set up to answer in three rings or less by either a representative in the Service Center or the answering service (which we will be checking when we are not in the office). Service should be a lot faster.

One takeaway? As counselor B.J. Davis mentioned at a Lifering Congress a few years ago … enjoying life early in sobriety is important in general. It has to be at the college lifestyle level, as a counselor at Rutgers points out on page 2. The story mentions specific ways to do that sober fun in college.

Having started my own sober life in AA, I can testify to this. My original AA group had people stay late on either Friday night, Saturday night, or both, almost every weekend. People would order a pizza or two and play cards or dominoes. Fun and camaraderie both got promoted.

Second takeaway? As younger Americans in general are more open-minded to new ideas and less religious than older Americans, they’re going to be more open to alternatives to 12-Step programs. How an organization like Lifering, in its size at this time, gets its foot in the door, I don’t know, but an opening is there, clearly.

Anyway, there’s plenty of food for thought here.

All who dealt with her will miss Rachaell Castro, the departing administrator. Rachaell gave some two years of service and brought much sparkle and intelligence to the job. She’ll be missed.

With Robert on board, the office hours will change. The new hours are 12-3 p.m., PST, Monday through Thursday, and 9-3:30 on Fridays. As always, visitors to the office should call ahead rather than just dropping by. In addition, LifeRing board chair Craig Whalley is in the habit of working at the office for an hour or two starting at 9 a.m. each weekday except Wednesday.

The framework and a related document, a Rationale, are available to read HERE. You can also sign up there to be involved in the planning process. It is hoped, though not certain, that the final plan will be ready to present to the membership at the 2012 Annual Meeting.

Kathleen wrote a brief introduction of herself for those who don’t know her:

“After every LifeRing Annual Meeting, I feel delighted and relaxed because I get to spend time with my secularly sober “peeps”, (though as a former teacher I believe the correct spelling should be “peops”). This year’s meeting was just as exhilarating, fun and fattening as all the others, with excellent speakers, a full day of workshops, attendance of LifeRingers from far and wide (notably Maggie Ryan from Dublin, Ireland!), plenty of donuts and a delicious dinner in Jack London Square.

“This year’s meeting was even more meaningful than usual for me, however, since I assumed the role of LifeRing’s  Executive Director. The position of Executive Anything is one that I never, in my low profile life, expected to occupy, so I step into this space with a bit of trepidation. I do so despite the apprehension because it is so important to me that we not live in a world where, as far as most people know, there is only One Way to get and stay clean and sober. I’m willing to go to some trouble for the cause, and have even become somewhat “zealoty” on the topic of choice of recovery paths since I retired from teaching in 2003.

“I got sober in AA in 1981, and over the years, I  grew to appreciate the wisdom of the 12 steps and 12 traditions. I made many wonderful friends and learned valuable skills for living as a sober person. However, throughout the same years, I had ideas and questions about the meaning of addiction and sobriety that seemed out of place, and felt unwelcome in the “rooms”.  My experience led me to seek a less parochial understanding of recovery, and in 1999, I found LifeRing.

“In 2003, Kirk D, who is still happily sober, started a LifeRIng meeting in my hometown of Denver, Colorado. At that point, I made it my priority to grow LifeRing in Colorado, and today, we have eight LifeRing meetings and a great community of sober friends.  I was elected to LifeRing’s Board of Directors in 2007, and again in 2010, and this spring decided to see if I could imperfectly help Craig take on some of the stresses of LifeRing’s executive position.

“I have two goals for the coming year. First, I would like to support, and grow, our “outlying” face to face meetings. We have single meetings in four or five locations throughout the country that could really use our support. For this project, I’ll be looking for volunteers for tasks like calling treatment professionals who don’t know that LifeRing meetings exist in their area and helping local convenors keep up their craigslist and local newspaper notices. My other goal is to have our brochures, and other basic information, translated into Spanish. In our Denver LifeRing community, we are fortunate to have Filberto A., a professional translator, who has generously offered his services.

“I love meeting LifeRing people. This gives me energy and always puts a smile on my face, so please write or call me if you would like, either via the LifeRing Service Center or via liferingcolorado@gmail.com.”

Craig has made clear that he is not pulling back from his commitment to LifeRing: “I love LifeRing and want to do anything I can to strengthen it,” he said, “but at the same time, like all of us with a history of addiction, I have to be careful to protect myself from becoming overwhelmed. I’m very much looking forward to dividing the work with Kathleen, who brings great intelligence and experience with her to the position.”

Here is a photo of Craig Whalley, outgoing Executive Director, and Kathleen Gargan, his successor, at the 2011 LifeRing Annual Meeting:

As mentioned previously, the 2011 LifeRing Annual Meeting was held on June 3, 4 and 5 in Oakland, CA. For a bare-bones recap click here. This report will be more comprehensive and will try to give the flavor of the event for those who weren’t there.

A LifeRing gathering of any kind is always as important for its unspoken emotional impact as for the information that flows freely. This is especially true for the Annual Meeting. The atmosphere is rich with an aura of freedom and a life re-gained that so many of us feel – that sense of liberation that comes from dealing once and for all (we hope) with addiction. Those present had anywhere from a few days to a few decades of clean and sober life, but they all shared a real appreciation for recovery and a strong desire to bring it to others.

I remember my first LifeRing Congress, as it was then called. It was in 2002 in Berkeley, CA. I was six months sober, shy and scared, and yet I felt the need to grow closer to the organization, to actually meet with others (all of my recovery work had been done online) who seemed so similar to me, unlike the people in my “real” life. I met people I knew from the LSRmail email group and many, many others. Being there greatly strengthened my commitment to sobriety and to LifeRing. Back then, just as happened last weekend, I breathed the air of freedom and hope, and saw clearly both the need and the opportunity for becoming involved in providing what we offer to others.

Friday Workshops

This year we expanded the event to three days, adding a full day of workshops on Friday, June 3, at a conference room down the hall from the LifeRing Service Center in downtown Oakland. Topics dealt with were a bit more ‘hard-core’ that our usual fare – planning issues and the like – and we were very excited by the turnout – not the half dozen we expected, but almost 30 people! The turnout, and the enthusiastic participation during the day, made clear that many, many LifeRingers are deeply interested in the group’s success. The day was organized and led by Lynn C. Here’s her report:

“Although we had originally expected that just a few people would attend Friday’s workshops, it was standing room only all day long!  More than 25 people participated in discussions about planning, resources, and outreach.  Presenters included Troy S, Bob A, Liz G, Mona H, Rodger H, Fred, Lauretta M, Kathleen G and Lynn C.  Highlights included Troy’s and Bob’s presentations about what it is like to try organizing for LifeRing’s initial outreach in a community, and Liz’s presentation on the potential for expanding LifeRing’s toolbox through better organization of our knowledge resources.

“This was the first time we’ve tried full day of workshops at our annual meeting.  We learned that if we try workshops again we should perhaps cover fewer topics and provide more time for discussion.  But it was certainly a lively time, and the day flew by!  It’s clear that there’s enough work ahead for LifeRing that we could develop several workshops related to organizational subjects each and every year.”

Friday Evening Reception

After the workshops concluded, tables of light snacks and beverages were set up (thank you Shauna and Njon!) and a reception was held for all LifeRing members to mingle a bit. Much of the mingling was in the hallway of the grand old building that houses the LifeRing office (LifeRing World Headquarters as we sometimes call the tiny 2 room suite). As always happens when LifeRingers gather, the talking came freely and easily, even between people who had never met before. There’s a warmth and intimacy that flows from knowing we each share experience with addiction – even people who became deeply isolated while drinking/using bloom like spring flowers when immersed in a group all of whom have this same condition.

The reception ended fairly early because the office building itself locks things up at 7 p.m. People had the evening free and visitors from outside the area could explore a bit.

Saturday – the main event!

Saturday’s activities started early at the home of Lauretta M., a Board member who happens to live practically next door to the Kaiser Hospital tower where the day’s events would take place. Lauretta offered coffee, pastry and a warm greeting to all.

The program was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., a later-than-normal start necessitated by the heavy use of the conference rooms at the hospital. As it happened, at 10 there was a meeting still going on in the room we expected to be available at 9:30 so it could be set up for our event. We milled in the hall, not knowing what to do, with visions of disaster flowing through a mind or two. But among most attendees, there was complete equanimity. This group truly didn’t sweat the small stuff! And rightly so – after a brief delay, the room was made available and we were able to make some quick emergency trims to the schedule (“welcoming remarks” cut to 30 seconds from 15 minutes, undoubtedly to the relief of the audience) and get back on track.

LifeRing’s Story

The first presentation was by founding CEO Martin Nicolaus and his successor (with a title change to Executive Director), Craig Whalley. Marty ran through the history of the formation of LifeRing and Craig tried to give a look at the future. Marty’s talk was fascinating in many ways. Only a few people are still active who were involved in the group’s ancient history (only 10 or 15 years ago!) so it was most enlightening to learn from whence we come. Craig spoke about his hope that LifeRing can become more professional and modern, and called for a year-long planning process to help set the course for the future. He freely admitted that he lacks Marty’s energy and experience and emphasized the need for all concerned members to contribute to the group’s efforts. He praised Marty for the way he handled the transition to new leadership. He also made clear that the role of Executive Director is a stressful one, despite the wholehearted support he had received from all involved for the past year. He’ll be taking a half-step back in the coming year and let someone else take the lead spot.

The Psychology of Decision Making

Our first guest speaker was John Monterosso, Ph.D. Dr. Monterosso is a neuropsychologist, who uses functional MRI imaging to elucidate brain function.  He talked to us about competing models of impulsivity and self-control, and argued against the notion that more primitive parts of the brain (like the limbic system) were vying for control with more recently evolved portions (like the neocortex).  One reason for believing this to be true, he pointed out, was that relapses often involve a great deal of higher-level thinking and planning.

Neurological Basis for Addiction

After a break for lunch, we heard from Timothy Durazzo, Ph.D., from the University of San Francisco. Dr. Durazzo shared with us an overview of the brain’s “reward system.”  He argues that this system is highly adaptive, and evolved in order to help humans survive; but that powerful, addictive substances can “rewire” the system and give rise to addictive behaviors.  The good news is that the system is also capable of recovery.  Dr. Durazzo shared with us some exciting preliminary research results suggesting that functional brain imaging can predict who will, and who will not relapse following a standard course of treatment. He did emphasize that the predictions are not determinative – nobody is doomed to relapse, even if there are brain-structure characteristics that seem to make it more likely.

Workshops

Simultaneous workshops in separate rooms were next on the agenda: one on Mindfulness in Relapse Prevention, and the other a Convenors’ Workshop: Inside a Dynamic LifeRing Meeting. The mindfulness session was offered by Lisa Dale Miller, MFT, from the San Francisco area. Ms. Miller trained with Dr. G. Alan Marlatt, Ph.D., a psychologist in Seattle, Washington who became known for developing a program called “Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention.”  Ms. Miller conducted a workshop for us in which she presented some of the core principles of mindfulness, explained their roles in preventing relapse, and gave us a couple of concrete examples of tools that we could share with others at our meetings.

The convenors workshop featured several veteran convenors interacting with the audience to cover various aspects of running a successful meeting. There was some interest among face-to-face convenors about the possibility of integrating some of the Internet tools already successfully employed online, such as an email group for members of a face-to-face meeting to enhance their contact and support.

LifeRing’s Growth Hotspots

The final panel of the day was from several representatives of places outside the Bay Area that have experienced rapid growth in the number of LifeRing meetings. These include Denver, CO; Greenwich, CT; Dublin, Ireland; and Modesto and Sacramento, CA. The central message was not surprising – it takes intensive and persistent effort to grow meetings in an area. Getting others involved not just in attending meetings but taking on other roles is extremely important, and this is much helped by adding a social dimension to LifeRing’s presence.

Banquet

Later Saturday evening, almost 40 people gathered at the Cocina Poblana Restaurant for a wonderful meal and some relaxed social interaction. Executive Director Craig Whalley handed out Pioneer Awards to several people, including one to Marty Nicolaus, in recognition of his many years of work for the organization.

Sunday: The LifeRing Congress

On Sunday morning, the delegates to the annual LifeRing Congress gathered to give reports about their meetings and carry out official business, including election of members to the Board of Directors and consideration of bylaw amendments. The reports, as always, were often deeply moving as triumphs and setbacks were touched on amidst the details of who, what and when.

There was one proposed change to the bylaws, an item that was tabled last year in Denver. It dealt with the question of compensation for LifeRing officers, which is now forbidden. No current officer is interested in being compensated and there’s no money for that anyway, but the thought was that we should perhaps be prepared for that possibility in the future, especially in terms of having a paid Executive Director. After considerable discussion, the motion was tabled again, available to be discussed at the next Congress in 2012.

Elections for the Board were held, with four seats up. Three terms end every year, plus any mid-term vacancies filled by the Board have to be ratified by the Congress. All four people currently holding the seats ran for re-election and nobody else was nominated, so the incumbants were elected by acclamation.

The election concluded the business of the Congress.

Board Meeting

The final event of the weekend was a meeting of the Board of Directors, it’s only opportunity to meet face-to-face all year, since a number of Directors live in various places around the country.

The Board unanimously elected Kathleen Gargan to succeed Craig Whalley as Executive Director for the next year. Craig had asked for a reduction in his responsibilities and Kathleen offered to step in. They plan to work closely together. Craig was elected Chairman of the Board. Robert S. was re-elected Treaurer and Tim R. was re-confirmed as Secretary.

The bulk of the meeting was spent discussing a Planning Framework offered by Lynn C. that creates a “plan for planning” – an outline of a year’s worth of discussions, meetings and (tentative) decision making intended to lead to an actual plan of action for the organization. The majority of the Board wanted more time to consider the Framework, so a final decision on adoption was put off for a month. It is hoped, though not certain, that a final plan will be ready for adoption by the 2012 Congress.

The Board adjourned its meeting at about 2 p.m. and the 2011 Annual Meeting came to a close.

There are always two events happening simultaneously at the Annual Meeting: there’s the array of speakers, panels and workshops aimed at increasing knowledge about the nature of addiction and how to treat it while sharpening the skills of convenors and members. And there’s the social aspect, with people gathering together to see one another and celebrate their personal and shared victories.

This year, we’re experimenting with adding a third day of events, with workshops scheduled all day on Friday at the LifeRing offices and a nearby conference room. Designed and led by Lynn C. from Sacramento, there will be sessions on Planning, Resources, Community Outreach and National Recovery Month. The Friday events are aimed at helping those with a real interest in strengthening the LifeRing Organization, including Board members and others wanting to know more about how LifeRing can grow and prosper in the future.

After the workshops conclude, there will be our traditional Friday evening reception at the LifeRing Service Center in Oakland, which will no doubt spill over into the marble halls of the office building at 1440 Broadway. This will be a purely social event, a chance to meet old friends, get a look at our headquarters and enjoy some light snacks.

On Saturday, at the Oakland Kaiser Hospital Tower, we’ll be presenting events geared to a wide range of interests, from a look at the latest research in how the brain works, to a session on mindfulness and its role in relapse prevention. There will also be panels aimed at convenors, potential convenors and those who want to move beyond the convenor role. That evening, a banquet will be held in a fine Oakland restaurant, Cocina Poblana, where we’ll also present awards to some of our volunteers for their efforts over the past year.

On Sunday, we’ll hold our annual LifeRing Congress, also at the Kaiser Hospital Tower. Delegates (each meeting is entitled to send a voting delegate) will briefly share their experiences over the past year and elections will be held for Bylaw changes and Board seats.

Different people attend the LifeRing Annual Meeting for different reasons – some to learn, some to become more involved, many to renew acquaintances – but all too have their own recovery strengthened by being around others so much like themselves. Even in early recovery, it can be a very affirming experience. If you’d like to be part of it, please visit the information and registration page.