VolunteerCONNECTION - November 2022

- Tweet0
- 0
- Pin It 0
- 0
- Subscribe to RSS
Subscribe

Subject: VolunteerCONNECTION - November 2022

View Online

SMART Apparel Sale!

New Looks. New Styles. New Choices.

Back by popular demand is the SMART Apparel Sale.

Check out the whole collection: https://clevelandprintwearstores.com/smartrecovery

ADDED BONUS: we get a portion of each sale—so you’re helping us continue our important work and looking chic at the same time!

The store is open until Wednesday, November 23rd

Order Today!

Orders will ship approximately three weeks after the store closes.

Announcements & Reminders

ICYMI - New BIPOC Audience Tag for SMART Meetings

We at SMART Recovery are committed to putting our organizational values into action every day. In that spirit, we are introducing the new BIPOC meeting audience tag in SMARTfinder. BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. This new audience tag will be used in the same way as our other specialized tags – enabling volunteers who wish to create intentional spaces for participants with specific lived experiences to do so.

The BIPOC audience tag is a direct result of our commitment to be more inclusive. We strive to provide access to the SMART Recovery community in unique ways for all who want to connect with us and our resources. BIPOC and other meeting tags like LGBTQIA+ and Veterans & First Responders exist in recognition that we all come from different walks of life and have different lived experiences.

Our hope is that this improvement eliminates a barrier for some individuals seeking recovery to come together in SMART community with one another. As leaders in the field of recovery, we consider it extremely important to hold ourselves accountable for making positive impactful changes that will better serve BIPOC individuals in our country.

We see you; we support you, and we care about you!

Find a Meeting

New Volunteer Opportunities Page

If you are looking for new ways to get involved with SMART Recovery, please check out our new Volunteers Opportunities page in VolunteerHQ.

Find a Volunteer Opportunity

New Year's Eve Around the World (NYEATW)

There is the unique opportunity to volunteer an hour of your time on New Year's Eve for NYEATW - our day-long event that rings in 2023 in every time zone. We encourage our volunteers to plan something fun and different to celebrate during NYEATW, like a recovery game.

This event starts December 31^st at 5:30 a.m. ET and ends January 1^st at 3:30 a.m. ET. You don't want to miss out on this fun day of community, celebration, and cheer.

Learn More

Upcoming Continuing
Educational Opportunities

Facilitating a Teen Meeting

Do you run teen SMART Recovery meetings or are you wanting to start one? The SMART Recovery tools work great with teens, with just a little knowledge of how teens think. The next Teen Add-on Training will be held December 3rd from 11:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET.

Topics will include:

Focus on working with this age group
How to keep them coming back
Prerequisites: Completion of 201, 203 or 301
Cost: $40 per person

Registration will open November 19th and close November 26th

Registration Information: https://smartrecoverytraining.org/register/start/

Training ID number OST20221203-TTOH

Payment needs to be made here:

https://smartrecoverytraining.org/register/payment-form

This multi-purpose form has three sections to complete:

About you, where you'll enter your name, email address and phone number
About this payment, providing:
1. Payment Type, "Select Other Payment"
2. Additional details, use the Training ID number from above
Pay here, where you'll enter your payment information.

Helpful Hints

Cameras on During Meetings

As a facilitator it is important to be mindful that participants in your meeting can represent various personality types, life experiences, and living situations that might make them reluctant to turn their camera on in a meeting. While you may personally feel that people participate most fully when their webcams are on, please bear in mind that this is subjective and might not ring true for all.

For example, someone with social anxiety disorder might feel and focus their best, and therefore get the most out of a meeting, when not forced to stress about appearing on camera. Another participant might have a living situation that could be distracting or embarrassing and therefore would prefer not to broadcast it to those in their meeting. Requiring participants to keep their cameras on incorrectly assumes that everyone shares your own comfort level and privileges, potentially acting as a barrier to their participation in SMART.

While some facilitators of specialized meetings such as teens or women’s only might feel more comfortable enforcing a cameras on policy, please note that this should be the exception rather than the rule.

Fillable .PDFs

Have you heard of our fillable .pdfs? We have made our tools fillable so you can screenshare the .pdf and complete it with the group. These tools can be found in VOLUNTEERHQ under Volunteer Resources then FACILITATORS' TOOLBOX. A full TOOLBOX can also be found on our site.

Volunteer Recognition

We would love your help with sharing our Volunteer Recognition Program! This is how participants can nominate a volunteer who impacted their journey to Life Beyond Addiction. These responses are very inspiring and remind us all why we do the work that we do.

You can also share this slide so participants can complete the form.

Share Slide

Meetings of Interest for Volunteers

To see a full list of meetings and supports available for our volunteers, please check out the Facilitators Training and Support page.

Facilitators Training & Support

Volunteer Recognition

Bill Stearns - Facilitator, Board of Directors, Ohio

This person should be recognized and I don’t think they have ever been given the recognition that they deserve. This man goes above and beyond for many people who struggle and battle with addictions. I was introduced to Bill when I was court ordered to juvenile drug court almost 20 years ago and he was the magistrate/ judge who I met through this program. He is a retired judge as well as a lawyer who has been there for me and many others through the good times and the bad. He is also a SMART Recovery facilitator and has taken me and others to these meetings.

He’s never looked down or gave up on me or many others and is supportive and caring and really truly cares about a lot of us who struggle and battle with addictions. He is a very humble, caring, and helping man who deserves to be recognized!

Jean C. - Facilitator, Maryland

I got out of the Caron Rehabilitation Center in Pennsylvania in May 2022 after drinking daily for almost 20 years. The moment I got out I was scared and sought out a SMART meeting which I had learned about while in Rehab. Jean welcomed me with open arms to her group that she hosts each Thursday night and also to a second group she cohosts on Monday's. She was patient and kind, warm and witty and has made my continuing recovery bearable and even enjoyable.

Her insight into recovery and her willingness to open up her heart and her head to a complete stranger has kept me sober and committed to a life of sobriety. Perhaps most importantly, she has empowered me to want to share the message of SMART to others in need and to want to be the kind of resource to strangers that she has become to me. She deserves to be recognized as a true ambassador of the SMART program and an all around wonderful person.

Submit Your Group Donations
to SMART Recovery

Your group donations to SMART Recovery help empower millions worldwide with tools to recover from any substance or activity addiction.

SMART Recovery is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Submit Your Group Donation

SMART Recovery is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Subscribe

Subject: VolunteerCONNECTION - November 2022