Home > Weekends of Recovery > 2012 Weekends of Recovery: Sequoia Retreat Weekend of Recovery
MaleSurvivor Level I Weekend of Recovery
"Dare to Dream"
Join us for a beautiful spring weekend at
Center for New Beginnings, Dahlonega, Georgia
May 18-20, 2012
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN--CLICK HERE
Save $50 by registering early!
MaleSurvivor Weekends of Recovery are open to any man, 18 or older, who has been sexually victimized as a child and/or as an adult. We have selected a very special place to host this weekend experience, the Center for New Beginnings, in Dahlonega, GA, a little less than 2 hours north of Atlanta Airport. The Center for New Beginnings is located in one of the most beautiful and peaceful spots in the nation - the unspoiled North Georgia mountains. The splendor of the Blue Ridge Mountains - Cedar Mountain, in particular, to the west and the Horseshoe Appalachians to the north - provides a year-round backdrop for respite and renewal, and is especially beautiful in the spring.
Enjoy the Outdoors
Explore nature trails winding through old hardwoods and towering pines, walk beside small, trickling streams, sit beside spring-fed reflection pools or in quiet coves where the loudest sound is the caw of a blackbird. The Center's 45 acres, surrounded by thousands of acres of old-styled pastures and woodlands, are "the mountains" at their best.
Goals of the Weekend of Recovery:
The facilitator team invites you to:
Dare to dream you can leave your isolation behind you at this weekend;
Dare to dream you can make real connections with the participants and facilitators at the weekend;
Dare to dream you can co-create and experience a sense of real safety and mindfulness;
Dare to dream you can claim your right to use your voice to become a powerful male survivor who is sensitive to his own feelings and experiences and those of other survivors here;
Dare to dream you can tell your story this time and be understood, believed and supported like you have always deserved;
Dare to dream you can experiment with being more creative, more vulnerable and letting go and still feel safe enough;
Dare to dream you can connect with the boy inside you so both of you can learn to play safely and enjoy the experience;
Dare to dream you will be able to leave Dahlonega a freer, less burdened, and even a happier man, taking the connections you make here with you to utilize as you continue to heal and recover!
Facilitator Team:
Weekends of Recovery are facilitated by trained psychotherapists, utilizing the same clinical boundaries and code of ethics as adopted by the American Psychological Association. The weekends are adjuncts to participants' ongoing recovery work with individual and/or group psychotherapy, twelve step programs, and individual spiritual work, and are not meant to substitute for the participants' local support systems that are consistent with their own recovery. Dr. Howard Fradkin, a Psychologist and Jim Struve, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, both with over 30 years of experience working with male survivors, co-chair the facilitator team. The team of facilitators includes other Psychologists, Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Mental Health Counselors. The rest of the team for this Center for New Beginnings Weekend of Recovery includes: Michael Castellana, Joanna Colrain, Andy Dishman, Rob Hawkings, Mic Hunter, and Mikele Rauch.
One of the valuable resources at a Weekend of Recovery is the presence of women facilitators who bring a wealth of therapeutic experience with men who have had a history of sexual abuse. Women facilitators can offer the benefit of witness and exchange that may differ from what men have experienced. During the weekends, they share fully in the responsibilities and work of the team. The inclusion of women on the team offers men an opportunity to examine their reactions to women in a safe setting.
MaleSurvivor reserves the right to make changes to the staff depending on enrollment. Biographies of all staff members for this weekend can be found on the MaleSurvivor website at www.malesurvivor.org
Is This For Me? How Can I Prepare for the Weekend?
For those working with professionals, we recommend you discuss your planned participation in this weekend to get their feedback and suggestions for how you can benefit as much as possible from the experience while keeping yourself as safe as you need to be. All participants must be able to safely and appropriately engage in structured group activities. When we receive your completed registration form, we will also send you a form for your therapist to complete and return to us. You can also download the form on our website as well. If you have an already established support system of friends/family members/significant others, we also encourage you to talk with them about your participation so they can be available both before and after the weekend as needed to help you prepare and process your experiences.
If you are not in therapy, and/or do not yet have a support network, we encourage you to consider setting up an appointment with a therapist either before you come to the retreat, or after your return, and/or encourage you to explore what types of self-help groups and resources are available in your community or near by. This way you can follow up on some of the experiences and skills you learn that will help the weekend's learning stay fresh in your mind and help you apply what skills and awareness would most help your continuing recovery.
One of our staff members will be contacting you by phone within two weeks of when we receive your application to talk with you about your needs for the weekend and your readiness to participate. All participants must be able to safely and appropriately engage in structured group activities. If we have any concerns about you participating, we may suggest some steps you can take to enhance your readiness for this weekend or we may ask you to wait for a future weekend while you take some additional steps we believe would be important for you to benefit from the experience. Please do not schedule your travel arrangements until after your interview is completed and you have been told you have been accepted as a participant. The facilitator team will make every effort to complete that process as quickly as possible. The earlier you register, the more possible that will be (which of course could help you save money on transportation and by getting an early registration discount).
You can read comments from other participants on our web page, by clicking on the tab for the Weekends of Recovery, and then clicking on "testimonials". Many participants have told us that the weekend is a very intense and rewarding experience, and at the same time sometimes it is quite uncomfortable. We recognize that one of the challenges male survivors have is feeling comfortable enough to ask for help, especially when they are feeling most in need of the help. For participants who are aware they have a problem with dissociation, this can be an especially difficult challenge. We would encourage you to practice asking for help before the weekend, perhaps with your own therapist, as well as with friends and significant others, and to assess for yourself what gets in your way of asking for the help you need so you can let us know when we contact you prior to the retreat. The facilitators are all very skilled therapists, and often times we can be sensitive and intuitive enough to know you need help even when you are not asking. However, we will clearly need your help and ask you to take the risk to articulate your needs during the retreat. To the extent you can help us know you are needing some extra help at any time during the weekend, this will help you to have an even safer and hopefully more beneficial experience.
During the weekend, we'll invite you to participate in a number of different types of activities. We'll spend some time helping each of you to feel as safe as possible. We'll take our time getting to know each other by sharing a little at a time. Frequently during the weekend we will meet in small groups, where you can have more individual time to talk and share your feelings and observations.
Everyone will be given some opportunities to choose how to tell your story - through words, through art, through movement, and/or through music. We'll also introduce you to some different types of relaxation and visualization exercises you may choose to do at home to increase your abilities to cope and manage life stresses. We'll also give you time to wander the beautiful retreat grounds alone or with some of your fellow participants.
Survivors With Perpetration History:
Any person who has been convicted of sexual perpetration and/or has been placed on a sexual offender registry as an adult is ineligible for participation in the regularly scheduled Weekends of Recovery. If this is true for you, we recommend you do not register now, and instead, review the last paragraph in this section to learn how you may be able to attend a specially designed weekend in the future.
In instances of adjudication on sexual perpetration charges as a youth, individuals will be considered for eligibility and readiness for the Weekends of Recovery on a case-by-case basis through an interview with one of the Co-Chairpersons. MaleSurvivor understands that some survivors have sexually acted out in childhood, adolescence, or even adulthood, and we do not wish to automatically exclude them from a Weekend of Recovery. Therefore, all applicants to the Weekends of Recovery must complete an interview, and during that interview they will be screened for any instances of sexual perpetration in their history. When a history of sexual perpetration is disclosed, an interview with one of the Weekends of Recovery Co-Chairpersons will be required along with a consultation with their current psychotherapist to determine if they will be accepted based on consideration of their best interest and the best interest of all participants. We have an expectation that all potential participants will be honest in their screening interview and will disclose any such history or incidents in their past because some participants may experience safety concerns with people with such histories.
The MaleSurvivor Facilitator team believes that ALL survivors have a right and an ability to heal. To facilitate that goal, we will maintain a waiting list for men who are deemed inappropriate to attend one of our regularly scheduled Weekends because they have been convicted of sexual perpetration and/or have been placed on a sexual offender registry as an adult or as a youth. When we have gathered a sufficient number of names and the ability to facilitate such a weekend, it is our intention to offer a special weekend for these men to assist them to further their healing as survivors. To be placed on this waiting list, contact Howard Fradkin, PhD, Co-Chairperson, at hfradkin@malesurvivor.org and include a brief description of why you are requesting to be placed on this waiting list.
Registration Costs
Registration includes the costs of the facilitated Weekend of Recovery program, with our 8 skilled facilitators from the MaleSurvivor Weekend of Recovery Facilitator Team, plus lodging, 7 meals, and snacks. Bottled water, juices, tea and coffee will be available throughout the weekend. We have a variety of accommodations at the center. If you are not a MaleSurvivor member, we encourage you to join the organization prior to registration both to secure a significant $75 discount and to help support the work of MaleSurvivor. Limited numbers of each type of accommodation are available, and will be distributed on a first come, first served basis. You can also save $50 more by registering early! The costs shown here are for EARLY REGISTRATION:
| ____ | CATEGORY A1 Single w/Private Bath-MaleSurvivor Member | $895 |
| ____ | CATEGORY A2 Single w/Private Bath-Non-Member | $970 |
| ____ | CATEGORY B1 Double w/private bath -MaleSurvivor Member | $795 |
| ____ | CATEGORY B2 Double w/private bath - Non-Member | $870 |
| ____ | CATEGORY C1 Triple w/Shared Bath-MaleSurvivor Member | $695 |
| ____ | CATEGORY C2 Triple w/shared bath--Non-member | $770 |
All prices quoted above are for Early Registration (by March 15th)
Registration after March 15: Add $50
To register for the weekend, we ask that you complete an online registration at www.malesurvivor.org and/or mail in a registration form. To hold your spot for the weekend, we are requesting at least $150 deposit with your registration. You will have the choice on the registration form to either prepay your registration in full at the time of registration or opt for a payment plan. If you want to take advantage of the early registration discount, your total registration must be paid by March 15. Your balance will automatically charged to your credit card on March 15, and you will still receive the early registration discount. You may also forgo the early registration discount, and make payments between the time you register and one month prior to the weekend, when all payments are due (April 15th). Choosing the 2 payment option, you will owe an additional $50 for regular registration, and we will bill your credit card for half of the balance of the total of the registration due based on your accepted accommodation type on March 15, 2012, and the second half on April 15, 2012. You may also mail in checks to be received on these dates. Holding your registration will be contingent on receipt of your additional registration fees on these dates. Any registration which is not paid in full by April 15, 2012 is subject to cancellation and a $50 cancellation fee. Any cancellation after April 15th will be subject to the loss of all monies paid, unless we can find a replacement for your space in the weekend.
SCHOLARSHIPS:
Dependent on MaleSurvivor's scholarship fund balance, a limited number of partial scholarships will be available for this weekend. If you have a need for a scholarship, please go to the MaleSurvivor website, click on Weekends of Recovery, and then click on Apply for a Scholarship. There, you will find a scholarship application form to complete and submit to Jim Struve, Weekend Co-Chairperson. If your scholarship request can be granted, Jim will email you back with authorization to register and directions about how to enter your scholarship into our payment system. We encourage those requesting scholarships to apply for partial scholarships and to commit to self-paying as much of the registration as possible (or ask others in your support system to assist you in your support group). This enables MaleSurvivor to make more scholarships available to more participants. We can only provide assistance with registration costs, and cannot at this time provide any assistance with transportation costs.
If you are in a position to make a financial contribution to our scholarship fund, you can make a donation through the MaleSurvivor website by contributing to the Memorial Fund at www.malesurvivor.org, or during the online registration process. Thanks for any help you can provide.
Dining: Lori Patton is our Chef for the weekend. Lori is a delightful native of Dahlonega who has owned and operated her own restaurant, and trained with world renowned chef Marva Pettis. Lori's recipes can be found in the newsletter of the Center for New Beginnings. Lori brings a loving energy to the food she prepares to meet your needs. The Center understands the importance of properly designed meals and for that reason, diet requests and requirements are honored, from vegetarian to vegan to the more traditional meat and potatoes. An expanded and fully-equipped kitchen allows Lori and her staff to prepare three tasty meals a day.
Guests are welcomed to the large decks just outside the dining room for lounging outdoors on Georgia's abundant warm spring days. All of your food and snacks will be included in the registration fees. Please indicate on your registration form if you have special food requests, and be sure to mention these to the facilitator who will be interviewing you.
Smoking Policy: Guests may not smoke inside any building at the Center - including guest rooms - out of consideration for other guests. Cigar and pipe smoking are also prohibited. Guests may smoke outside buildings in designated smoking areas only which will be indicated to you when you arrive.
Internet Access: The Center has wireless internet access in several buildings and a computer. However, we request that you only access the internet during break times and not during any regularly scheduled activities.
For Your Comfort While Visiting Dahlonega and the Center:
The average temperature for May is 64.7; the average high is 77.1; the average low temperature is 52.3; which should make for a very comfortable stay for us. Average precipitation for the month of May is 5.7 inches.
Getting To Dahlonega and The Center:
| By air: | Atlanta International Airport is serviced by most major airlines. For a complete listing of available airlines check: www.slcairport.com/flights/airlines |
| By Train: | Atlanta is serviced by Amtrak. www.amtrak.com/destinations/index.html |
| By Bus: | Atlanta is serviced by Greyhound Bus. For a complete route map and reservations information call 1-800-739-5020 or check www.greyhound.com The Greyhound Bus Depot is located in downtown Atlanta. Information about this bus terminal is also available at the Greyhound website. |
| By Car: | Directions are below if you are driving. |
Transportation To The Center:
The Center is easily accessed by car, however it is roughly a 2 hour drive north of the airport. Most major car rental companies are available at the Atlanta International Airport.
Ground transportation is also available via Fuller Transportation, 404-349-7006.
Transportation Coordination
After you have registered and been accepted for the weekend, your name and email address will be provided confidentially to our webmaster, who will provide you access to the MaleSurvivor Bulletin Board. On the board, you will then have access once you sign in to talk with others who are planning on attending the Dahlonega Weekend so you can offer to share or give rides to those needing help in getting from the airport to the Center. To protect your confidentiality, this part of the bulletin board will only be able to be accessed by those registered for the Dahlonega Weekend, and by the Weekend Co-Chairs. If you share a ride, please be respectful and offer assistance with paying for gas.
OTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE CENTER: The Center has asked that we take our shoes off before entering all meeting spaces. So we'd suggest you bring shoes that are easy to slip on and off. You're welcome to bring indoor slippers or shoes. Most cell phones do work here. There are plenty of walking trails through the woods, so bring socks, long pants, long sleeve shirts, bug protection and shoes that support you on rough terrain and are waterproof. Please bring your own flashlights. All bedding and towels are provided.
No alcohol or un-prescribed drugs may be brought to the weekend.
WHEN TO ARRIVE AND DEPART-MAKING PLANE RESERVATIONS
Please do not schedule your travel arrangements until after your interview is completed and you have been told you have been accepted as a participant. The facilitator team will make every effort to complete that process as quickly as possible. The earlier you register, the more possible that will be (which of course could help you save money on transportation and by getting an early registration discount).
The weekend begins at 12 noon on Friday, and ends Sunday at 3 pm. Please pay particular attention to the arrival policy below before making your travel plans. Given travel time, we recommend all participants plan to arrive in Atlanta on Friday no later than 10 am; and plan to depart on Sunday no earlier than 6 pm . If you cannot accommodate your schedule to arrive and depart at these times, please be considerate and do not register. Late arrivals would miss important orientation information, and we ask that all participants plan to stay until the end of the weekend on Sunday to allow you sufficient time for closure. If you find that the only airline reservations you can find will require an overnight stay on either Thursday or Sunday, we are sorry, but we cannot provide overnight accommodations on Thursday or Sunday evening at the Center. If you need information about accommodations near either airport, please indicate this on your transportation form.
Arrival Policy
Safety for all participants is our utmost concern. Therefore, it is a requirement that in order to participate in the weekend, participants must arrive at the beginning of the weekend, by 12 noon on Friday. In planning your trip, you are expected to take into consideration the unpredictable delays that may accompany your travel. While we understand you may encounter delays for many reasons, we are unable to allow anyone to begin the weekend if your delay is greater than 2 hours. In other words, you cannot expect to be admitted to the weekend after 2 pm for any reason. If you are experiencing a delay, we request you to call us to inform us of your arrival status. It is important to understand that in the event of your inability to attend due to late arrival, you will forfeit all monies paid for your registration. One strategy to avoid this situation is to arrive in the city of the weekend the night before, or a city near the airport. MaleSurvivor will provide you with information about budget hotels near the facility to help facilitate your stay. Your consideration of this policy will help strengthen the feeling of safety for all participants and help us to build a community.
Therapist Recommendation Letter:
When you register online, you will notice a link to a therapist recommendation letter when you click the tab Weekends of Recovery on the home page; be sure to click on the Level I letter. If you register by mail, we will mail you the letter. We ask that all participants who are currently in therapy bring this letter to your therapist prior to the weekend, and ask them to complete it with you and send it back to us by May 12th. The information in this letter will help us to provide for any additional needs you may have for safety. It is our intention to use this letter to help ensure your safety, and in no way is it intended to disempower you or cast doubt on your own judgment about your readiness to participate in the weekend.
Consent Form
There is also a tab on the website under Weekends of Recovery which contains our Participant Consent Form-please download the Level I Consent Form. We suggest you download this form and review it before you are interviewed. We ask that you bring your copy to the weekend, where we will provide you another opportunity to ask any questions you have. All participants must sign a consent form in order to participate in the weekend.
SCHEDULE: Below is the tentative schedule for the weekend:
Male Survivor Weekend of Recovery Tentative Schedule
May 18-20, 2012
FRIDAY, MAY 18, 2012
| 10-12 | Registration And Check In to Rooms |
| 12-1 | Lunch |
| 1-1:45 | Welcome and Guidelines for Participation |
| 1:45-2:30 | Co-creating Safety Guidelines |
| 2:30-3 | Introduction to Mind-Body Awareness |
| 3-3:15 | Break |
| 3:15-4:15 | Introducing Ourselves |
| 4:15-4:30 | Break |
| 4:30-6 | First Small Groups |
| 6-6:30 | Break/Journaling/Reflecting/Networking |
| 6:30-7:30 | Dinner |
| 7:30-8:00 | Break/Survivor T-shirts |
| 8-9:30 | Grounding and Centering |
| 9:30- | Journaling/Reflecting/Networking/Bedtime |
SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2012
| 7-8 | Optional Walking Meditation |
| 8-9 | Breakfast |
| 9-9:15 | Check-In |
| 9:15-10 | Preparing to Tell My Story |
| 10-12 | Telling My Story-Small Groups |
| 12-12:30 | Break/Reflecting/Art |
| 12:30-1:30 | Lunch |
| 1:30-3 | Optional Hike/Survivor T-Shirts |
| 3-5 | Sculpting |
| 5:15-6:15 | Small Groups |
| 6:15-6:30 | Break |
| 6:30-7:30 | Dinner |
| 7:30-8 | Break/Journaling/Reflecting/Networking/T-shirts |
| 8-10 | Shame Busting |
| 10- | Optional Drumming Circle/Campfire |
SUNDAY, MAY 20, 2012
| 7-8 | Optional Walking Meditation |
| 8-8:45 | Breakfast |
| 9-9:15 | Check-In |
| 9:15-11 | Community Building |
| 11-11:15 | Break |
| 11:15-12:45 | Brief evaluation; last small group |
| 12:45-1 | Break |
| 1-1:45 | Lunch |
| 1:45-2 | Break |
| 2-3 | Closing/Group pictures |
ANY QUESTIONS:
Questions can be directed to Howard Fradkin at 614-445-8277, ext. 11, or emailed to hfradkin@malesurvivor.org; or to Trisha Massa, Community Outreach Director at email ytamassa@aol.com
