News and Notes from Chalfont House
July 2004
What We've Been Up To This Quarter
Thank you so much for your prayers as requested in the
last newsletter: on June 12 we conducted a One-Day PAS
conference onboard Bolling Air Force Base at the
Chapel Center. What an incredible opportunity, and we
deeply thank the Bolling AFB Protestant Women of the
Chapel (who provided food and some publicity);
Chaplains Usherwood, Ray, Ailsworth, and Johnson; the
Chaplain Assistant staff; and Assist CPC volunteers
Jane Fuller and Allison Johnson. We learned a lot
about how to work with the military in publicizing
this "controversial" event. Here are just a few of
the evaluation comments that we received:
"The seminar put God at the forefront as our healer."
"I came not knowing what to expect. Thanks for the
gift of ministry that you gave to those who attended."
"The workshop was very effective. I appreciated the
variety of subjects covered, and enjoyed the breakout
sessions."
"The conference was moving and therapeutic. I
appreciate your compassion in approaching this subject
and that you are faithful to the Biblical process. A
powerful seminar so desperately needed."
Other brief comments mentioned that the day was
touching, emotional, informative, and helpful.
Allison Johnson also helped to conduct a One-Day PAS
conference at the Catherine Foundation in Maryland and
they, too, were impressed with the material.
If you have hosted a One-Day PAS Healing Conference
recently, would you drop us an email to tell of your
experiences? We would love to know what things went
well in addition to what suggestions for improvement
you can think of.
NEW: The supplemental CDROM for our One-Day PAS Healing
Conference newly contains a full-color Microsoft Power-Point
presentation
which can be used instead of the included hardcopy overhead
transparency slides. The price remains $5.00 for this this CDROM.
One-Day PAS Healing Conference Tips:
- To hold a conference onboard a military base: Talk
to the head of the "Protestant Women of the Chapel"
group or to one of the PWOC members to find an
"inside" champion. This person will help you decide
which Chaplain to approach with your proposal. Request
an appointment with the Chaplain, with the PWOC member
also attending. At this initial meeting, simply
present the need for PAS healing and how a conference
can help the chapel meet this need. Ask if they would
be willing to consider hosting a conference, and
provide some written materials (basically the
presentation you made). Agree on a date for followup.
When you have scheduled a conference, meet to
brainstorm how you will publicize the event on base.
The Chaplain staff will need to preview fliers and
possibly edit them so that they are acceptable in the
politically-correct atmosphere of a military base.
Allow plenty of time in advance, and keep reminding
yourself to be flexible.
- If holding general sessions in a sanctuary setting,
rope off pews so that participants sit together near
the front instead of scattered around the room. Being
close together will help them bond throughout the day
even if it may feel a little awkward at first. The
participants will also feel less isolated.
Additionally, the speaker may not have to project
their voice as much, which delays fatigue.
- Always attempt to hold the small-group breakout
sessions in separate rooms (from the general session
and from each other). Walking to the other room
provides time to stretch, chat, prepare mentally, and
is a clear transition. Meeting in separate rooms
provides more opportunity for small-group members to
hear each other sharing; provides a little more
confidentiality; and can help those who are present
for healing to feel comfortable as they are separate
from those who are attending for training. If you
must hold the conference in one room, separate small
groups as much as possible.
- When participants sit around tables in small groups,
round tables are best. Next best are rectangular
tables where participants sit all around the table.
Narrow tables ("conference style") where people sit on
only one side may be acceptable for general sessions
but are not suitable for small group sessions.
- When you have a large number of attendees, you might
decide to have their conference notebooks include the
"Note Taking Answer Sheets" instead of the
fill-in-the-blank version. In this way, you may have
fewer questions about "what was the answer to number
..." and the participants can still use the answer
sheets to take additional notes and to follow along as
an outline.
- If hosting lunch at a hotel, arrange for as much
food as possible to be pre-served: salad, bread,
dessert, water, and iced tea can all be set out in
advance. This makes for a quicker meal, and may even
be less expensive.
Did you see our article in CareNet's "Center of Tomorrow"
Journal, titled "Top Ten Reasons to Host a One-Day
Post-Abortion Healing Conference"? Check it out!
Brian Hedges, a pastor in Michigan and a Top 1000
Reviewer on Amazon.com, recently reviewed "How To
Survive Your Teen's Pregnancy". Here's what he said
about our book, "Practical and Biblical. This is a
wise book full of practical and biblical advice for
steering your family through the crisis of a teen
pregnancy. There is an emphasis on forgiveness and
restoration throughout as the author addresses issue
such as secondary virginity, adoption, marriage, etc.
Recommended Scripture reading, application questions,
guidance for prayer, and helpful checklists for
preparing for the baby are also included, as well as
personal stories from those who have walked through
this situation before."
Consider getting a copy for the library of a few of your key
local pastors or Christian counselors; we have big discounts on
multiple-copy orders. Several pregnancy ministries
we know of have presented a copy of this great book
to local pastors and promised to replace the copy when
the pastor hands it out to someone who needs it. Pray
about whether this idea would add to your ministry.
After a client gives
birth, do you lose contact with
her? To help prevent loss of contact, use our
Postpartum Depression pamphlet as an excuse to call
her and chat each month for the first year. Teen
mothers are more likely to suffer postpartum than
older mothers and all new moms deserve your loving
attention. Ask if she has had any symptoms of "the
baby blues", and see if she will return to talk and
view any video which educates her about parenting
skills. This is also another opportunity to invite her to
join your parenting support group.
New Shipping Price Policy
Please note that we have adopted a new shipping price policy
that is based on order-subtotal instead of weight. Here's the new
chart, which will also be posted on our website and included on
the order form of all newly printed catalogs.
Order Total S&H
$0-$6.99 add $2.00
$7.00 - $16.99 add $5.50
$17.00 - $29.99 add $6.50
$30.00 - $44.99 add $7.50
$45.00 - $59.99 add $8.50
$60.00 and up add 15%
Maximum postage is $45.00
Thank you for your patience and feedback over the last few months as
we moved to this new policy!
COMING SOON:
Stay tuned for details about our upcoming new workbook
for PAS Healing for Men!
Exhibits
I enjoyed meeting lots of co-laborers at our exhibit
table at the National Right To Life Convention in
Crystal City, VA, July 1-3.
We will have an exhibit table at the Heartbeat
Conference in North Carolina; and at Carenet in
Virginia. If you attend these conferences, please
stop by our table to talk to us!
Please email or call if there is anything we can do for you.
Please forward this newsletter to anyone you think would be interested.
May God bless you and keep you.
--Lynellen Perry
President, Chalfont House
