VolunteerCONNECTION - August 2022

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Subject: VolunteerCONNECTION - August 2022

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A Story of Connection

Hope for the Future in Washington

The motto for the state of Washington is Al-ki, which is Native American (Chinook). An English translation of this means “Hope for the Future” which seems fitting considering the great things being done by the Regional Coordinator, Haley Iselin, and the volunteers there. The connections they are making with each other and their community exemplifies their hope for a future where people can recover from their addictive behaviors by making SMART Recovery an available option.

This amazing group of volunteers recognizes the importance of connection in recovery, not just for participants, but for themselves as well. Because of the connections and sense of community this group has fostered, they have been successful at supporting participants through their recovery and helping them to transition into SMART Recovery volunteers. Shawn, one of the local volunteers, stated “it’s a low-key group of folks knit together by a common desire to help SMART reach those in need, while ensuring we ourselves maintain a healthy and balanced life.” This is a win-win situation! More people recover, more SMART meetings are available and, as volunteers, they can lean on each other for support and backup.

Each month, the group meets on Zoom to discuss current challenges and triumphs. During these meetings they share ideas, discuss opportunities for growth, and brainstorm ways they can support each other. Quarterly, they meet in person at one volunteer’s home to share a meal and build an even stronger sense of community. When asked about what these get-togethers mean to them, local volunteers Omar and Jason stated “Not only did they welcome us as facilitators but also gave us some much needed advice we were seeking. All the little details about starting and growing our own group.” In response to the same question, Haley told us she is “proud and honored to be part of a team that is so positive and passionate about the work they are doing for our community and are eager to offer their time and energy to help SMART Recovery thrive.” The way this group of dedicated volunteers connect for the greater good is not only appreciated, but inspiring.

Announcements & Reminders

Become or Request a Mentor

We are proud to announce the launch of our newest volunteer support method: the Mentoring Program. This program will pair existing and potential volunteers with a mentor who will work closely with them to help further their skills.

Learn More About Requesting a Mentor

Seasoned volunteers can further their volunteer journey at SMART Recovery by applying their knowledge to guide and support volunteers in starting and maintaining meetings. The support that you offer will not only directly benefit your mentee, it will ripple across a pool of people who are looking for help from that person.

Learn More About Becoming a Mentor

What's Happening in the Recovery World?

The Department of Justice announced that it has published guidance on how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with opioid use disorder (OUD) who are in treatment or recovery, including those who take medication to treat their OUD. The publication, “The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Opioid Crisis: Combating Discrimination Against People in Treatment or Recovery,” is intended to help people with OUD who are in treatment or recovery understand their rights under federal law and to provide guidance to entities covered by the ADA about how to comply with the law.

Your Opinion Matters

We’d love your opinion about why participants are attracted to SMART Recovery, based on your experience. Please take a moment and answer this one question survey. It will help us communicate effectively when we are trying to connect people to the help they can get from SMART.

Take the Survey

Local Community Events of Interest

Many organizations across the country host local recovery events that bring information about SMART to a wider audience. Because we want to show support for those making a SMART difference in their communities, we’re providing information about them.

Check Them Out!

SROL Volunteers Only

SROL Volunteer Quarterly Meeting

Our next SROL Volunteer Quarterly Meeting is September 13th from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. ET. You can expect to meet with the different members of the Leadership Team and be given important updates/ information to support you. We hope you find these meetings as beneficial as we do. We will have more specific details coming soon.

Please mark your calendar and remember, registration and attendance is a part of your volunteer position requirements. We thank you for taking the time to meet with us and look forward to seeing you then.

Helpful Hints

Personal Information on Meeting Finder

When adding a SMART Recovery Meeting, we ask that our volunteers provide a way for participants to contact them. This can be a phone number or an email address, it can be both but must be one or the other. Your public name can be your first and last name, first name and initial of your last name, or even a nickname. Please note that whatever information you provide for us to list for your meeting will be shown the same way on every meeting you facilitate.

To protect their privacy, some facilitators choose to use an email address that is not their primary personal email address, but one specifically for all things SMART. An example would be smartrecoverytim@gmail.com. Many of our facilitators create Gmail accounts as they are easy to set up at google.com.

Google also provides the ability to have a phone number through their service for free, which is a great option if you do not want to list your personal number on the meeting list. You can check that out at https://www.lifewire.com/get-a-google-phone-number-5211558 .

If you have any questions about this or any other issue with meeting listings, please reach out to the Volunteer Support Department by calling the National Office at 440-951-5357, email volunteerhq@smartrecovery.org, or use the contact us form in VolunteerHQ.

Meetings of Interest for Volunteers

SMART 4 Volunteers (S4V)

SMART 4 VOLUNTEERS (S4V) is a private SMART Recovery meeting for our volunteers. While volunteering, people need to take time to focus on themselves. We offer a place where you can focus on your own wellbeing and recovery, with the security of being supported by your peers. This meeting has a different purpose than the SMART Meeting Management (SMM) meetings. This group meets on Wednesdays from 5:00 p.m. till 6:00 p.m. ET. and is facilitated by Jasper2016.

SMART Meeting Management (SMM) Meetings

If you are interested in furthering your meeting management skills or more smoothly handling challenges you might encounter while facilitating your meeting, this is the meeting for you!

The SMART Meeting Management (SMM) meetings are every:

Monday: 10:00 p.m. ET
Wednesday: 8:00 p.m. ET
Friday: 6:00 p.m. ET

(NOTE: Zoom links for these meetings are behind the VHQ login.)

Q&A with Volunteer Support Staff

Please join us on the 4th Wednesday of each month at 12:00 p.m. ET, to meet with Volunteer Support Department members: Melina Gilbert, Volunteer Support Manager, Molly Princic, SROL Support Manager, and Tim Burton, Volunteer Support Specialist.

These Q&A sessions are a way for you to meet members of SMART Recovery’s Volunteer Support Department to ask questions and share feedback about all things SMART.

No registration required. You can access the meeting at its scheduled time by clicking here.

Training Roleplay Meetings

This meeting is divided into two parts, starting out with "SMART Recovery in Action", being an interactive role-play where a scenario is presented for discussion and the application of the SMART Recovery tools. The focus of the role-play is on how you'll utilize the SMART tools and apply what you're learning to help and support the person presenting the issue.

After the role-play exercise, the remaining portion of the meeting will focus on "Leading an Authoritative SMART Recovery Meeting", being an open discussion and Q&A session where we'll discuss and address any questions and concerns you may have in moving forward with your SMART meeting plans.

NOTE: To gain the most benefit from your attendance at the "Get SMART FAST" meeting, it is suggested that you've completed Segments 1 - 8 of the Facilitator training prior to joining us.

Each "Get SMART FAST" meeting is scheduled for 60-minutes, taking place on the 1^st Tuesday of every month at 2:00 p.m. ET and again on the 3^rd Thursday of every month at 8:00 p.m. ET. We hope to see you there

Click the link, to join us in a meeting, https://smartrecovery.zoom.us/j/763627333

Volunteer Recognition

SMART knows that it's our volunteers that create the biggest impact in the lives of those we serve, and we wanted a way to recognize the work you do. Started during Volunteer Month, we will continue to feature several of the volunteers you recognized through the Volunteer Recognition Program.

AnnabelleW (Anne) - SROL Facilitator

Anne contributes her time and her talents facilitating meetings and developing visual aids for the Family & Friends SROL meetings. Her contributions to the SROL F&F Facilitator team and the F&F community are unmatched. She regularly "works" in 3 SROL F&F meetings per week (2 as a Meeting Helper and she facilitates a Tool Time meeting). She's also usually the first person to volunteer if a F&F facilitator can't run a meeting due to a conflict.

Anne's tool time meetings are well thought out and well balanced, with visual aids and examples to facilitate comprehension - and with time built in for questions and discussion. I doubt that anyone has ever left her meeting empty handed....instead they leave with knowledge they can use in their endeavors to help their loved ones and/or to make their own lives more manageable.

John Banks - Facilitator, Canada

I want to share my gratitude to an inspirational individual who has served SMART Recovery for many years. During this epidemic, John went above and beyond by running two SMART Recovery meetings a week... to serve his community on Vancouver Island. John is the Local Coordinator for the entire Vancouver Island region, helping and supporting other facilitators. I am so grateful to have John on the British Columbia SMART team.

Take 5 Spotlight

Get to Know the People Behind SMART

We’re always looking for ways to build and improve our relationship with you, our treasured volunteers. We’ve done a few things along those lines over the years that have helped, but this time we’ve decided to make it simple and quick by having team members answer a few questions (5, to be exact) about what they do. Maybe more importantly, why they do it. Read more about the Take 5 initiative.

Pete Rubinas

As of July 1, SMART welcomed a new staff member to fill a brand-new position in the organization. Pete Rubinas became SMART’s first Organizational Culture Change Facilitator, representing a major internal effort to help SMART evolve in positive ways. Pete says, “As we attempt to be more inclusive of all, it’s critical that we have systems in place that support true inclusion. That’s what I’m focused on.” He also advises Acting Executive Director Christi Alicea and the Board on human resource, financial, and Board governance matters.

Kenya Welch

It’s true that money can’t buy love, but foundations, government and corporate funders provide monetary resources that can buy organizations a whole lot of other things. And connecting with those sources of funding is now Kenya Welch’s job at SMART.

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.

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Subject: VolunteerCONNECTION - August 2022