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REPORTS TO THE 175TH DIOCESAN CONVENTION THE ADDICTIONS RECOVERY MINISTRY OF THE DIOCESE OF LOUISIANA ANNUAL REPORT 2011 The Addictions Recovery Ministry is a specialized ministry of this diocese and a local affiliate of the Recovery Ministries of the National Episcopal Church. This ministry welcomes recovering people into the Episcopal community and also helps recovering Episcopalians find a home within the organized church. Within the diocese, the Addictions Recovery Ministry provides education, guidance, and support for families and parishes struggling with, or wishing to learn more about, addiction. In this context, the term “addiction” means a relationship with any activity or substance that interferes with healthy functioning including but not limited to alcohol, drugs, relationships, sex, work, gambling, or food. The Commission met quarterly in 2011 and conducted Celebrations of Life in Recovery which include a pot luck lunch, an open 12 Step meeting, and a 12 Step worship service open to all. We would like to hear from any parish interested in hosting a Celebration of Life in Recovery or sending a representative to a Commission meeting. During the year our chaplain Fr. Bill Terry announced that he would be stepping down from the Commission, and we would like to express our gratitude for his years of service and ongoing support. We would also like to welcome our new chaplain, Mtr. Dee Dee Estes. We are grateful for her willingness to serve with this ministry and look forward to working with her. The Commission has also supported efforts to provide monthly Eucharists incorporating the 12 Steps of Recovery around the diocese. We would like to thank the following for their participation in this program: - Fr. Bill Terry for hosting the Eucharists at St. Anna’s in New Orleans with outreach to residents at the Bridge House treatment center - Fr. Mark Holland for hosting the Eucharists at St. James in Baton Rouge with outreach to the residents of the O’Brien House treatment center - St. John’s in Kenner for celebrating a Eucharist incorporating the 12 Steps on the third Sunday of each month - Trinity in New Orleans for celebrating a Eucharist incorporating the 12 Steps on the third Wednesday of each month. The 2011 Diocesan Convention passed Resolution R-2 promoting awareness of addiction and recovery issues in the Diocese of Louisiana. This resolution read as follows: Resolved, that the 174th Convention of the Diocese of Louisiana instructs the clergy in charge of each congregation to designate a Sunday in Eastertide as “Recovery Sunday” in this and in each ensuing liturgical year until terminated by like resolution of this Convention; and that at every service held that day in the several parishes, missions, preaching stations and faith communities within The Diocese of the Episcopal Church of Louisiana there be an educational program addressing addiction and recovery through special presentations, personal testimonies, Sunday school classes, services based on the 12 Steps of Recovery, or other appropriate Recovery Sunday activities. In June 2011, the Diocesan Addictions Recovery Ministry (ARM) sent a packet of materials to each parish that provided ideas for Recovery Sunday activities plus information regarding our ministry, and offering our support to the parish efforts. Additional copies of this information are available upon request. The Addictions Recovery Ministry is ready and willing to assist the clergy of the diocese with the implementation of this initiative. The members of this ministry will make themselves available to the congregations in the diocese as a resource for those dealing with addiction in any form. We are able to participate in educational programs at parishes and at clergy events whether through special presentations, personal testimonies, Sunday school classes, or Recovery Sunday events. We have materials and resources available that would free the parish clergy from the necessity of developing their own Recovery Sunday programs. If a parish or group would like to host a recovery-related event, please contact Lance Armstrong in Baton Rouge at 225-216-9083. The Addictions Recovery Ministry held our two annual retreat weekends for people in, or interested in, recovery - a Women’s Weekend in January and a co-ed Mixed Weekend in August. The Women's Weekend on January 6-8, 2011 was a great success with 56 attendees. The theme for the weekend was “What shapes our actions is our spirituality.” Sr. Helen Schmidt facilitated the weekend. She has been a member of the Congregation of the Infant Jesus for 54 years and involved in recovery retreat work since 1984. Sr. Helen is a retired RN with a BA in Physical Therapy and an MA in Motor Learning. In addition, she has an MA in Theology plus certificates in spiritual direction and addictions counseling. Underlying the theme of this retreat was Sr. Helen’s interest in the mind/ body/spirit connection which has grown from her work with neurologically involved children and adults, addiction counseling and her dedication to spiritual development through recovery and her commitment to live a Christian life. The retreat schedule included the following: - Time for spiritual direction and reconciliation - A Eucharist incorporating the 12 Steps celebrated by Mtr. Dee Dee Estes to open the retreat - A Taizé service of healing with anointing and music on Saturday evening - A Dream Workshop led by Martha Tennison - Crafts provided by Barbara Prosser - Bible Study - 12 Step meetings - Opportunities for meditation while walking the labyrinth - A Morning Prayer service incorporating the 12 Steps to close the retreat We are very grateful for all those who made the Weekend possible, from Solomon Center staff to our facilitator and chaplain. As always, we are also grateful for the fellowship of the amazing women in Recovery who attended. The Mixed Weekend for men and women took place on August 5-7, 2011, at the Solomon Episcopal Conference Center with 36 attendees. The theme of the weekend was “The Promises Of Recovery As A Result Of Living The Twelve Steps”. Our facilitator was Sr. Linda Fischer, a professed member of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ. A teacher by profession, Sr. Linda left the classroom in 2005. Since then she has been involved in full-time 12-Step retreat ministry. Sr. Linda has been a grateful recovering alcoholic for the past 20 years and says she loves facilitating recovery retreats because “she receives every bit as much as she gives.” She calls her own journey in recovery one of the greatest blessings in her life. The retreat schedule included the following: - Time for spiritual direction and reconciliation - A Compline service to end the day on Friday evening - A Taizé service of healing with anointing and music on Saturday evening - A Dream Workshop led by Martha Tennison - Bible Study - 12 Step meetings - Opportunities for meditation while walking the labyrinth - A Eucharist incorporating the 12 Steps to close the retreat Should you have any questions concerning the Addictions Recovery Ministry for yourself or your parish, please contact Lance Armstrong in Baton Rouge at 225-216-9083. Archives Annual Report 2011 Whether it is helping someone search for a marriage date knowing nothing but the birth date of a first child and the neighborhood in which the family lived or in researching facts for an article for Churchwork, our diocesan archives can be very helpful. More often than we want, we have to tell that caller that the information being sought would be only in congregational records but if we are able to rule out dead end searches we consider that the caller has been helped. For the Churchwork articles, the thanks has to be directed toward those individuals who were “good story tellers back when” who provided the facts found in the many volumes in our collection. Sometimes providing information leads to learning more. The article about the long time city missioner, Dr Weed prompted his granddaughter to send us a copy The Rev. Dr. Caleb B. L. K. Weed, A Biography that she wrote. The monograph has been added to the collection. The “we” to which I refer is Audrey Threefoot and me. Audrey has celebrated her tenth anniversary as the partner in the Archives and our collection is the beneficiary of her loving attention. An ongoing project for her now is to compile a list for Bishop Thompson of the missions started by diocesan congregations. The list is most interesting and includes several twentieth century missions that are now diocesan congregational leaders. We are pleased by the number of congregations who are expressing an interest in upgrading their archives and we are interested in helping in any way we can. Respectfully submitted, Harriet H. Murrell CHANCELLOR’S REPORT FOR 2012 It has been a great privilege and an honor to work with Bishop Thompson and Canon Stevenson, and to continue to serve our Diocese. This has been my eleventh year as either a Vice Chancellor or the Chancellor. Among the maters the our Vice Chancellors handled in the past year included: •Mary Tharp has handled a number of property matters for the Diocese, which include the sale of property in Hammond and the leases of two properties; •Mary Tharp has advised regarding the donation to the Diocese of property acquired by Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge, and an amendment of its lease, adding this property to the lease to Episcopal High School; •Mary Tharp advised with respect to donation of land for the Church of the Nativity in Rosedale, Louisiana; •Mary Tharp reviewed