| Thirty-five
of us gathered in a lovely setting for a very important
weekend to address key tasks for FDS, plus gain enrichment
from the fellowship with other volunteers. At the end
of the weekend─exhausted but satisfied we left the
sanctuary of Winbourne with strategies, energy and a realisation
that FDS owns some amazing talent and lots of ideas. The
challenge now is to build on the efforts of the weekend
and to implement a number of the key suggestions.
The
weekend involved self-development work, brainstorming,
skills enhancement and strategic planning. Key tasks
for the participants involved addressing the following
issues:
a) How
can FDS effectively improve its fund raising capacity?
b) How
should FDS upgrade its `Guide to Coping Kit'?
c) What
family issues should FDS be getting involved in?
d) How
can FDS attract more members?
e) What
do we need to offer members that we do not already?
f) Developing
a set of standards for the FDS telephone line as well
as a policies and procedures manual for the organisation.
g) What
are the needs of FDS telephone volunteers? And how
can these needs be met?
Our
thanks to Alison Bell and Sonja Mahrs for their very
valuable professional input to the weekend.
Participants
filled out a questionnaire survey and some interesting
outcomes were noted as follows:
Ranking
drugs in order of harm:
1. Tobacco MOST
2. Alcohol
3. Heroin ¯
4. Speed ¯
5. Ecstasy
6. Cannabis LEAST
It
was overwhelmingly decided that if two of the above
should be decriminalised, it should be cannabis and
heroin.
In
terms of drug education, the ranking in terms of effectiveness
was:
1. Life
Skills Programs MOST
2. Safe
Using Practice
3. Factual
Information ¯
4. Ex-user
Sessions ¯
5. Life
Education
6. Just
Say `No' LEAST
Most
thought drug education should start in Year 3 or Year
5.
Parents
needed parenting skills and drug information prior to
drug use by their children. At times of experimentation,
they needed:
1. Drug
information
2. Parenting
skills
3. Support
In
problematic situations, they needed:
1. Support
2. Counselling
3. Crisis
Aid
People
ringing the FDS line needed:
1. To
be listened to (first priority)
2. Acknowledgment
of feelings
3. Drug
information
4. Crisis
help
5. Counselling
6. Referral
to services
7. Respite
care
8. Advice
FDS
should be:
1. Offering
help, support and a listening ear
2. Providing
information and education
3. Influencing
community and political attitudes
4. Referring
people to appropriate services
5. Advocating
prevention projects
6. Supporting
and educating members and volunteers
7. Promoting
harm minimisation
Calls
which were most likely to trigger volunteers' own emotions
were those that involved:
1. Children
2. Death
3. Violence
As
a result of this weekend's work, some key decisions
have already been taken, including the implementation
of regular meetings for volunteers and members.
Don
Matthews: Mulgoa seemed a long way from anywhere
when my wife Lyn and I finally made it to this small
hamlet, about 12 kilometres out of Penrith.
We
were to attend a weekend workshop for volunteers and
friends of FDS. Some training, some education and some
fun. We had all three, with spades as they say.
In
the night-light, the driveway, about a kilometre of
it, was eerie and very much evoked the bushland setting.
The buildings of the Christian Brothers' magnificent
property shone through the darkness. The following day,
I would spot a fox making his silhouetted way home in
the early fog and many, many birds, including very tame
ducks. I hoped they weren't on his menu!
The
accommodation was excellent: little cottages with eight
double rooms in each, every one with its own en-suite
and a common tea/coffee area with a television for those
stalwarts (the young 'uns, generally) who chose to sit
the night out watching Pat Rafter and Andre Agassi,
then the ladies' final the next night.
We
worked through Friday night until 10.30 by which time
we all knew what the weekend held. Or some of it anyway.
Things never go quite according to plan when you get
a group of ours together and sometimes, more important
issues cut across planned events. Tony was grand as
Glorious Leader, Musical Director and Saturday Night
Quizmaster (though not everyone agreed with all his
decisions as the FDS Olympics reached their final nail-biting
stages). Backstage, Sandra slaved away. But we did notice
and we did appreciate Sandra.
We
had visitors in the form of our Chairperson Anne, and
guest speakers Alison and Sonja. Alison developed her
earlier fascinating work with us regarding Dr Bill Miller's
motivational interviewing and its importance for our
telephone lines. Sonja gave us an inspiring example
of how to put our thoughts and attitudes together, persuading
us to deeply analyse our debriefing skills and to assess
our responsibilities to ourselves and our welfare, as
well as to our clients.
The
property is beautifully set in the farm-cum-bushland,
and we managed to persuade the boss to allow our small-group
work to take place in the open air. As we soaked up
the sunlight's warmth, we got to know each other very
quickly and very well. It is no exaggeration to suggest
that many firm friendships were established this weekend.
That is not surprising really given our common cause:
people found each other.
I
cannot emphasise too strongly the relevance of this
weekend to the work we are doing. Lyn and I feel stronger
for the experience (although on Sunday night we couldn't
have blown a candle out!). And we'll be back for the
next one. We hope to see you there too.
Louise
Tanner: Sincere appreciation goes to you and Sandra
for organising the FDS Volunteer weekend at Mulgoa.
As always, your devotion to FDS is unbelievable and
your thirst for knowledge our gain.
Even
though it is Wednesday I am still feeling the effects
of information overload, emotional weariness and the
humbleness of being with such a wonderful group of people
who shared their stories and showed their unlimited
devotion to help drug reform.
As
volunteers we often have a feeling of helplessness to
the caller: Are our listening skills good enough? Have
we helped defuse a violent situation or an overdose?
What, if any, information we have passed on has assisted
the drug user? And finally: What is happening to the
user and this family now? This weekend gave us the agenda
to discuss many of these issues, and also the encouragement
and support to continue with such a worthy course.
The
workshop on motivational interviewing, along with your
own workshops, Tony, were invaluable. To be continuously
kept abreast of health issues, political stances and
drug reform in general is a must if we are to make progress
in the saving of lives.
For
those of you who were unable to attend, you truly missed
out on an informative, but special weekend. The venue
was peaceful and very comfortable and fully catered
to everyone's needs. A haven well worth visiting.
For
those I spent the weekend with─ thank you all,
especially to the young volunteers who gave me inspiration
as to our young ones' futures. I cried many a tear this
weekend, had hugs from a number of strangers, smiled
and laughed many times, but best of all, I came home
with a fuller heart and a new group of friends.
A
Volunteer: Perfect winter weather complemented FDS's
first workshop held at semi-rural `Winbourne' a retreat
and conference centre near Penrith in Sydney's West.
Most
of this volunteer participant's previous contact with
FDS had only been with Tony and Sandra, so meeting other
volunteers was in itself a memorable experience. Our
organisation now comprises a much larger body corporate
who now know what their fellow volunteers look like,
where they come from literally and metaphorically and
what circumstance moved them to join FDS.
The
participants were able to share their experiences, sometimes
painfully similar, in an atmosphere of frankness and
trust, mutually developed and encouraged by facilitator
Tony.
The
workshop was introduced to `Stepping Stones to Coping'─a
new system to assist families now in the final stages
of development by Tony in conjunction with two WA workers.
The
latest research into young archetypes theory attracted
great interest and Alison Bell's presentation as usual
was well received. And much, much more was learned and
enjoyed. The participants obviously gained a great deal
from the workshop, but so did FDS.
Next
time we hold a workshop we hope even more volunteers
will attend, and that those who couldn't make it this
time will join us in the future to share in a great
experience, increase their telephone and coping skills
and enjoy themselves.
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