DIOPA Calendars
Recovery Day
Come and See! Learn to be an advocate for those in recovery.
Do you want to be an advocate for those living with addiction? Learn and be inspired with keynote speaker Susan Ford Bales on Saturday, September 22, 2018. Register online.
Attendees will learn how to connect needs with resources, and bring healing and hope to their congregations and communities, an empathic and compassionate approach response to substance addiction, and how all parishes can make a difference in the lives of their members and the recovery within their communities.
Full agenda at the bottom of this page.
The event is led by Rev. Richard Vinson, Rector of Trinity Church, Solebury.
8:45 am Registration
9:15 am Welcome, Rev. Elizabeth Colton
Greetings, Bishop Gutierrez, Bishop, Diocese of Pennsylvania
9:30 am The Panorama of Substance Use Disorders and Addiction
The Rev. Richard Vinson, Trinity Episcopal Church, New Hope – Solbury PA
For the faith community to truly play a significant role in the health and healing of others, it must also be open to the transforming spirit of recovery. Our capacities are limited, but our mandate “love one another” presents channels of grace to connect needs with resources, and bring healing and hope to our congregations and our communities.
9:50 am Call to Action: Come and See – Come and Be the Church in Recovery
The Rev. Christopher Bishop, Rector, St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Radnor PA
RAN seeks to grow within our Diocese an empathic and compassionate approach response to substance addiction for our clergy, families and congregations. We hope to build upon past experience and find new and relevant ways to embody the healing power of love and faith. Many parishes literally open their door to recovery groups (55 parishes host 147 AA meetings); others respond in concert with the wider recovery community; and, a few have developed qualified resources to directly intervene and assist individuals in the throes of addiction.
10:15 am Recovery Advocates Network Vision and Mission
The Rev. Richard Vinson
All parishes in the Diocese of Pennsylvania can make a difference in the lives of their parishioners and the recovery within their communities. Participants are invited to advocate for recovery, inviting others in their parish communities to learn, to respond and to serve.
10:40 am Break
10:50 am Introduction of Keynote Speaker, Susan Ford Bales, Former Chair of the Betty Ford Center, and Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation
- Exemplar of Recovery Advocate: Anyone who is affected by substance use disorders!
Do You Want To Advocate for Those Living with Addiction?
11:45 am Do You Want To Be a Recovery Advocate?
Marge Zieg, Tom, Recovery Advocates, Church of the Holy Spirit, Harleysville PA
The parish Recovery Advocate’s dynamic, multi-faceted role continuously adapts to the needs of the community, the urgency of the moment and the capacities of the individual. First, the RA serves as a node within the parish and across the DIOPA network. As such, the RA is a conduit of information, a gateway to resources, an educator and student, and an agent of healing grace.
12:00 pm Recovery Prayer Service
- Commissioning Prayer – Bishop Daniel
- Prayer and Group Witness – ““I am (name), a _____, and I am a recovery advocate!”
- Serenity Prayer
12:15 pm Adjourn