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Service Matters • June 2017

GSA in Slovakia hosts its first roundup
During the last weekend of May, the Slovak Greysheeters made history. They put a lot of time, effort and hard work into organizing their first ever Round-up which was a great success! 20 beautiful, joyful and radiant Greysheeters and newcomers from Slovakia, England, Slovenia and Poland gathered in the capital city, Bratislava. They shared their stories about what it was like being in the food, what helped them to save their lives and what is it like now.
 
Members were blessed with lovely weather and sunshine. They ate their abstinent meals together in the presidential garden, chatted over tea in cosy tea rooms, shared delicious recipes, explored the city and local products and made new friendships. 3 days full of powerful qualifications from committed speakers; profound messages of abstinence; a workshop with a topic “How to stay abstinent in school, work, family, social events and how to assertive”.
 
This miraculous weekend was finished with Public Information service in nearby alcohol and drug treatment centre. As a result of the Round-up there are two new members already weighing and measuring their food with a qualified sponsor! Because service to Higher Power, our fellows and bringing the solution to other suffering compulsive eaters is what matters.

A member shares her history about the 2017 Conneticut Retreat at beautiful Incarnation Center, Ivoryton, CT 
Thanks to the strong Connecticut GSA community for another fun filled abstinent weekend at this year’s annual retreat in Ivoryton, CT during May.  This year 73 participants attended from around the USA and Ireland, with abstinence ranging from one day to several decades.   For some members, their adventure began earlier with a stopover in NY or nearby destination, warmly welcomed by another GSer.  Thanks everyone for your service and commitment to GSA, for transporting folks to and from retreat, preparing, follow-up and staying abstinent NMW.

Awesome leaders, breakout sessions, meditation, nature walks, and arts projects.  The Retreat Leaders start each session with their experience strength and hope as it related to the Step being focused on in that session. By the end we got real sense of the connection between NMW and Stepping into Solution through the 12 Steps while remembering bottom line is the focus on the food, the food, the food!!!

During the weekend I enjoyed media blackout (not a requirement), shared meals, laughter, recovery and steps with my GSA sisters and brothers.  I enjoyed connecting with folks I’ve known over the years, seeing them grow and blossom, and deal with life’s ups and downs.  Similarly, I enjoyed connecting with folks I didn’t know well and reaching out to new folks.   Others expressed similar sentiments and enjoyed our sacred time together.  As addicts in recovery, we share a common language and have an immediate bond.

The weekend ended with a delicious GS lunch (one of my 3 favourite meals), followed by the famous raffle where everyone ooo’ed and ahed to see what items folks donated and who won them.  More important than anything won, was sharing the strong GS program and fellowship.  The support we give one another is priceless. 
 
Together, WE weigh and measure 3 meals a day from the GS food plan NMW. 

GSA in Israel celebrates 20 years 
The Israeli GSA community was founded by three Israeli ladies who used to be a part of the GSA community in NYC, in GSA abstinence. They all moved back to Israel in 1997, and began to meet in private homes.  A few months later, they found a room in the special house for women in distress, in Tel-Aviv, and began to meet weekly, every Sunday night. Until the end of that year there were 5 women counting over 90 days of abstinence, and with this group - the first AWOL workshop in Israel started.
 
The groups grew bigger and spread rapidly around the country. People were thrilled, and the message caught on like fire through thorns. In 2000, the Tel-Aviv GSA groups had more than 100 active members, more groups were active in other cities, and the sound of “no matter what” was heard crystal clear.
 
Today, there are more than 36 GSA face-to-face weekly meetings around the country, 5 weekly meetings conducted over the phone, and AWOL workshops frequently opening all around.
The Israeli GSA community celebrated the 20 years' event in a mini-Roundup that had been held in Tel Aviv in March 2017 with more than 100 participants. Another mini-roundup is planned to take place in Jerusalem during the month of June.

Update your meeting contact information 
Please check your meeting information is up-to-date on our website. If there are any changed to this information, please let us know. If you are listed as a GSR or contact person for a meeting and are no longer the GSR for this meeting, please send us this information.  If you do not let us know, then we cannot keep this information up to date.  If you volunteered to be a sponsor on the Sponsors list and are no longer available to sponsor, please email the webservant@greysheet.org to let us know, so your information can be removed.  If we do not hear from you, we cannot keep this information up to date. 

Your News 
If you have any news you would like to share with the fellowship about your group’s activities and public information events, please reply to sharonleighterry@gmail.com with your stories and the Communications Committee will include these in the next edition of Service Matters.  Thank you all for you service in helping to carry the message to the still suffering compulsive eater.
  
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Service Matters • May 2017

GSA YouTube attracts new members 
The brainchild of Kathy P, the South West Intergroup's (SWIG) YouTube channel is having an amazing run. Kathy's expertise in her working life prompted a suggestion that SWIG post a steady stream of GSA qualifications on YouTube.  Included with these qualifications are answers to questions as part of an outreach to those still sick and suffering compulsive eaters. The results have been more than rewarding.  Now we have over 400 subscribers to the channel. Last month alone, the channel had 1500 views of the videos -- which are sound only!
 
The SWIG YouTube screen is entirely recognizable with the GSA logo and Can't Stop Eating? highlighted in bold yellow.  We have text running on the screen with a list of twenty questions for the viewer as to whether or not they might qualify as one of us. The greysheet.org website address is always prominently displayed.
 
By group conscience, SWIG made decisions to monitor what is shared or not, to maintain the integrity of GSA and our precious weigh of life. The biggest reward has been reading shares on the Greynet or on private GSA-related groups on Facebook, where members talk about finding out about GSA through listening to these YouTube qualifications.  Members have said that they were able to identify with the shares and get help to start from the GSA website, greysheet.org. SWIG are proud to be living their primary purpose, to stay abstinent and help other compulsive eaters to achieve abstinence.

GSA Europe is growing from strength to strength
The GSA Europe Intergroup is growing from strength to strength! Group Service Representatives (GSRs), Intergroup officers and GSA members from France, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, England, Ireland and Belgium gathered together face-to-face and on Skype for the latest GSA Europe Intergroup meeting held on  Sunday, 26 March at the London Roundup.  The agenda was full with updates from officers and GSRs. Highlights included reports that Slovenian group meeting bi-monthly in Ljubljana; GSA Europe English-speaking Skype meeting on Thursdays at 8pm GMT well attended; weekly Slovakian Skype meeting on Thursdays at 630pm GMT well attended; Slovakian group planning 1st Roundup 26 to 28 May in Bratislava. Further details available on greysheet.org under Events.  Slovakian group inviting professionals from eating disorder treatment communities to attend; new Polish-speaking men’s phone meeting started on Saturdays at 8am Polish time. Contact gsaeurope@gmail.com for further information about the Polish men’s meeting. Polish group working on translating the Greysheet into Polish;  Bulgarian group meeting weekly in Sofia on Tuesdays at 7pm local time. Bulgarian group advertising GSA to local eating disorder treatment centres and hospitals.  New meeting started in Brighton, England on Thursday evenings at 6pm GMT – with 8 new members! New French speaking Skype meeting held on Monday’s at 10pm Paris time. French speaking meeting working with the recently translated French version of GSA Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions.  Next GSA Europe Intergroup Retreat being held in Newmarket, England from 27 to 29 October.  Spaces filling up fast. Email gsaeurope@gmail.com for further information and booking details. £100 for 2 nights’ accommodation and 6 enormous, delicious weighed and measured Greysheet meals (Friday supper to Sunday lunch). GSA Europe Intergroup agreed to send £300 to GSA World Services. 

A Greysheeter travels to the Malibu Retreat – her story
“What a wonderful way to meet Greysheeters - at the Malibu Retreat! Yay!
 
I attended the Malibu Retreat in 2017 and 2016.  The reason that I decided to go both times was to meet other Greysheeters far and wide. This is a "WE"  program and I wanted to jump in and do what was suggested to me, and that is to get in the middle of the herd, and one of those ways is by going. My trip to Malibu,California in April 2017 was amazing! I travelled with two other Greysheeters from Houston, Texas. We arrived on the Friday and were welcomed with open arms and smiles all around.
 
We then had a weekend of yummy food that was prepared for us. No dishes to clean. That was the best part! We attended meetings, breakout sessions with specific topics to share on. People were opening up and sharing from the heart and for me this allowed me to open up as well.  I felt that I was in a safe place to share my truth.
 
We had a blast. We did a morning walk to the beach, took pictures with lots of smiles.  There was a talent show, with comedy, acting, singing and dancing.  We were entertained, that was my favourite part. The trip was worth every penny.  I got to meet other Greysheeters, exchange phone numbers to stay connected, learn from them and most of all have fun.
 
We are not a glum lot. Stephanie K, Houston, Texas.”

Update from your GSA World Service Board of Trustees
GSA World Services are working to gather suggestions from members for improvements to the greysheet.org website. if you have any suggestions, we want to hear from you by end May. Please email your suggestions for improvements to sharonleighterry@gmail.com

The Board of Trustees are continuing to ensure the maintenance of copyright and trademark of GSA both nationally and internationally.

The Board of Trustees are partnering with the Conference Committee in preparation for GSA's 2018 World Services Conference.

Your News
If you have any news you would like to share with the fellowship about your group’s activities and public information events, please reply to sharonleighterry@gmail.com with your stories and the Communications Committee will include these in the next edition of Service Matters.  Thank you all for you service in helping to carry the message to the still suffering compulsive eater.
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Service Matters • February 2017

An Update from GSA World Service Following our World Service Conference held in Boston in September 2016, the fellowship's World Service committees have been working hard on agenda items raised at the conference. Below are summaries provided by the committees; Contact webadmin@greysheet.org for any additional information:

Conference Committee
Working together to plan our next World Service Conference in 2018. A majority of Group Service Representatives and Intergroup Service Representatives who attended the World Service Conference in September 2016 voted for San Francisco as the next location for our World Service Conference. Chicago came a close second. Watch this space for updates on how this planning process progresses. You can also contact the Conference Committee for further information: Cindy S, email solofreesail@gmail.com, phone (PST) 510-499-6955 and Marjorie M, email marjorie.mayerson@gmail.com, phone EST 917-864-0032.

Their next meeting is planned for this month, date to be confirmed, where they will be working to develop content, structure, scheduling, and theme. They will be discussing preliminary research into possible venue, considering costs, timing, access to city centres, etc. The committee will be looking for what is the most cost efficient and accessible for the majority of delegates. In shaping the conference schedule, the committee will be taking on-board all the suggestions made by September's delegates for improvements – particularly to improve advance communications with delegates so that they can better prepare for the conference, and clearer communications while at the conference.

Structure Committee
Currently working on creating GSA's Service Manual, based on the original draft prepared by members of previous structure committees. A Service Manual is a description of the policies and procedures that guide every aspect of the GSA program.

The committee is looking at developing the motion for secret ballot voting at the conference as opposed to a show of hands. It is also developing proposals for a more streamlined process for approving all GSA literature. All literature which is currently noted as being Conference Approved, such as the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions of GSA, will be brought to the next World Service Conference to be voted on by delegates. If you would like further updates from the Structure Committee you can contact Gary G on gguttman@compuserve.com or call EST 917 721 8269.

Literature Committee
inviting the fellowship to be involved with GSA's first book of stories. They are looking for your submissions; they need your vital energy to be a part of this and make it happen. They are looking for stories that tell the history of GSA, either globally, or in your area: who, what, where, when, why, how? Anonymity will, of course, be respected. Examples of possible stories include how the Greysheet spread from Cambridge, to all four corners of the world? We want to devote a chapter to stories from young people; a chapter of stories about "the family afterwards," and what we did to rectify and affirm the family unit, work place, friendships etc, after abstinence. We want to present the Twelve Concepts, as they play out in our fellowship, and how they work in our lives as individuals - and how they intersect with the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. Please send your submissions to Richard Oliver, richardso285@gmail.com or contact him on EST 424 208 4813.

Public Information Committee
If you are aware of opportunities in your community to do some public information, get in touch with this committee who will be happy to guide you in the best way to do this type of outreach. If you have any public information stories, news articles that have been generated about GSA since last year in your area, please let the public information committee know, so that they can write about your progress.

The Slovakian GSA group is holding an event from 2 – 4 June 2017. They have invited health professionals to attend this event to learn more about GSA and our programme of recovery. Details of this event can be found at www.greysheet.org/events/no-matter-what-slovakia.

Archives Committee
Working with our web page administrator and web designer to introduce new web pages sharing the vital service role of Archives. Archives will become a main link from the Home page and will be structured into nested pages by the committee. These nested pages will list any minutes produced by the committees and the World Service Board. Watch this space for updates of these changes as they happen.

Communications Committee
Working to get pages set up on the website for each Committee, listing its contact information, together with a list of dates and times of their planned meetings. If you are working on a committee, please email sharonleighterry@gmail.com with your most up-to-date committee list and meeting schedule. This will help members of our fellowship know who is representing them at this level for this term and be able to contact the committees directly for updates.

Orientation for new GSRs: members of the fellowship contacted the Communications Committee to find out if there was a simple document outlining the basic role of the Group Service Representative. While GSA's Service Manual is still being developed, the following document: http://greysheet.org/images/pdf/GSA_Introduction_to_Service_for_new_GSRs.pdf
for new GSRs has been produced and is a great read. If you have anything you would like to add to this that you think would be helpful for a new GSR to know, please contact sharonleighterry@gmail.com with your suggestions and the Communications Committee will look at including it. Pass it on. You can also find it on the website, under Literature/Public Information Literature.

Summary of World Service Conference Minutes: for your ease of reference the Communications Committee has produced a brief summary of the main motions and processes that were voted on and passed by your GSRs and ISRs. If you want further information, you can read the full Minutes from the September 2016 World Service Conference here.  

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Service Matters • November 2016

What has been happening since the World Service Committee in September?

As you will have read from the list of motions and recommendations put forward by the service committees at the 2016 World Service Conference in September, each service committee has their 'plates full' of jobs that need to be done between now and the next World Service Conference in 2 years time.

These service committees are made up of members like you and me - members of this fellowship with 90 days or more of back-to-back abstinence, who are working with a sponsor who has a sponsor - and who have volunteered their time to help GSA carry the message to the compulsive eater.

An Update from the Literature Committee

The literature committee is the committee who are working on pieces of GSA literature which the fellowship is using to communicate our program of recovery to our members and to those who are still suffering and who may be searching for a solution.

If you have editing, writing, organisation skills and experience, please contact the chair of this committee, Richard O, richardso285@gmail.com, +1 (424) 208-4813. This service committee needs your support. Our literature cannot write itself.

The committee are currently working to finalize the pamphlets "To Professionals" and "A Solution for Compulsive Eating". An announcement will be made when they are available for download from the Literature section on our website. Remember to visit this link to order your copy of GSA's Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions.

The Literature committee are also collecting stories from members for the next GSA book to include a chapter on the History of GSA, the Family Afterwards, the Potential 18-34 year old Compulsive Eater, the Traditions and Concepts at Work. Please email your stories to richardso285@gmail.com, or call to chat on +1 (424) 208-4813. The literature committee meets via phone every Sunday at 3:30pm EST. You're welcome to join. Contact Richard O for phone meeting number.

An Update from the Communication Committee

Please contact sharonleighterry@gmail.com with any ideas for topics of service you would like to read about in this newsletter; email us with any service-related questions you would like answers to – and these will be published in the next edition of Service Matters.

If you have 90 days or more of back-to-back Greysheet abstinence, are social media-savvy, understand privacy settings on Facebook - the communications committee needs your help to finalize GSA's "Using Social Media Safely Guidelines". Please email sharonleighterry@gmail.com if you can help.

GSA Events

Check the website for the latest GSA Events coming up. A February Queens NY Roundup is being planned. Dates to be confirmed.

Register Your Group/Change Group Information

If you have not done so already, please make sure you register your group on our website at Face-to-Face Meetings/Group Registration Form.

If you have registered your group, take a moment to check your group information. It is your responsibility to make sure your information is correct. This is to ensure that newcomers and regular members get the correct information they need to attend your groups – and that your group service representative gets updates from GSA World Services to bring to your group. Please email any changes to your group information to webservant@greysheet.org.

International Phone List

Members that elect to be added to the list may email phonelist@greysheet.org. If you want to unsubscribe from this list or your information has changed, you need to email phonelist@greysheet.org in order to do this. It is your responsibility to ensure that information is correct for subscribers. For example, if you are no longer available to sponsor, please make sure you email phonelist@greysheet.org to let them know – so that your record can be updated. This list is as up-to-date as the information it receives. When you as a sponsor are directing newcomers to these resources, please let them know that not all this information will be perfectly up-to-date and that when they come across numbers that are no longer working or members who tell them they are no longer members of GSA – to please email phonelist@greysheet.org with these updates. This is the only way this list can be kept current.

Sponsors List

If you volunteered to put your name down as a sponsor on the sponsor list on the website, please check that your information is still up-to-date. If you are no longer available to sponsor and want your name removed from this list, please email webservant@greysheet.org with this information and your name will be removed. It is your responsibility to let us know when this information changes, so that we can make sure this information is as up-to-date for the newcomer as possible.

International Contacts List

If you submitted your email address as a contact person in your country for international visitors to reach when they are travelling, please check your information is still up-to-date. If you are no longer the contact person in your country for visitors, then please email webservant@greysheet.org with these updates. Step up to service – this is your time to make history too! 

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Grasp My Abstinence A Lot Harder Than My Day Count

Hi Greysheeters I am abstinent and grateful.  I commit my food to my sponsor - I weigh and measure each meal without exception and abstinence is the most important thing I do no matter what today. I was talking to a friend in AA yesterday.  In a cafe she had a soda with flavouring added that contained the stuff she is addicted too.  It slipped past her radar because she can normally purchase it without 'the stuff' at the corner store.  She was rebelling against her sponsor's suggestion she go back to day one.  The lesson I learnt from her, that had not sort of hit me before is that I need to grasp my abstinence a lot harder than I grasp my day count.  Clean abstinence is infinitely more important and useful to me than a long day count.  Goodness knows I've had my share of technical stuff ups (and not so technical also :-}) and each time struggled with the head talk that goes - "it's not a big enough deal to go back to day one with".  Today my abstinence is clean because 309 days ago I fessed up and let go of my day count to stay rigorously honest with this program - and I haven't stuffed up since - Thank you HP and sponsor and GS family!! Anyway, I am stoked to be abstinent as I head towards Christmas, the traditional time of physical, emotional and familial binges! Yay only 12 days to Boxing Day!!!!

IDCGSNMW
Anonymous, NZ
December 13, 2005

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DENMW: What does it mean? Ring the chime of abstinence.

Hi, I'm [Anonymous] and I'm a compulsive overeater.  My abstinence is 3 weighed and measured meals a day off of the Greysheet and I write my food out, call my sponsor, commit my food and weigh and measure without exception.  As a result of these actions I've been abstinent from compulsive overeating since Feb. 15, 1990, and abstinence is the most important practice that I do in my life today, one day at a time. What does DENMW mean?  *I* can't not eat compulsively.  Left to my own power I eat no matter what.  So why do I say DENMW! This familiar phrase is a reminder of the priority that I must place on the actions which I take to support my abstinence.  Truly, if *I* could "not eat NMW", if I could do this truly by myself alone, by my determination and will power, born from the desire to eat in a fashion which would leave my life free from ill effects, then I would not have to be here to address this problem of compulsive overeating.  But alone I cannot do this. I can, however take action which make it possible for me to accept God's grace and abstain from the behavior of compulsively overeating.

First, however, it is essential that I admit that don't have the power to abstain from this behavior.  Next, I am able to look else where for the power to abstain.  I'll not elaborate on Step 2 here, but it too is essential so that I'm able to act with conviction on Step 3.  Having admitted that I have a problem which is insolvable by myself, and believing that there is a power which can help me then I'm able to decide to avail myself of the power of that assistance to address this problem. At this point I have attained abstinence, but though my actions have not confirmed this to myself yet.  Like preparing to strike a chime which I may have heard before, I know what it has sounded like in the past when others or myself have struck it.  The sound may ring in my mind, but the true sound current of abstinence does not yet actually vibrate in my body.  Now I must strike the chime.  Without striking the chime with the hammer of action, abstinence is theoretical, without cause and without effect.  And the paradox is that I alone have the power to swing the hammer. Swinging the hammer is essential to feeling the true sound of abstinence.  No one can strike the chime for me.   It is necessary for me to strike the chime every day so that this sound actually vibrates and I can truly feel it rather than only hearing it in my mind.  The sound must vibrate every day. There is more than one way to swing the hammer.  How I hold it, the direction and power of the stroke can vary and that may affect the sound of the chime. How do I swing the hammer?

I swing the hammer every time I call my sponsor.
I swing the hammer every time I commit my food.
I swing the hammer every time I weigh and measure my food.
I swing the hammer every time I plan time in my day for meals and food prep.
I swing the hammer every time I attend a meeting.
I swing the hammer every time I make an outreach call.
I swing the hammer every time I stand to sponsor.
I swing the hammer every time I take a food call.
I swing the hammer every time I read about a Step.
I swing the hammer every time I pray.
I swing the hammer every time I meditate.
I swing the hammer every time I speak to the positive picture of abstinence.
I swing the hammer every time I take the time to help another CO.

These are only a few ways, there are others. None of these actions comprise abstinence in and of themselves, but I must do enough of them so that I keep the sound of abstinence vibrating in my heart not just in my mind.  Thinking of abstinence will not do it, I must think of how I swing the hammer. I must swing the hammer no matter what.  NMW is the priority that I must place on the actions which I take to support my abstinence.  If I don't swing the hammer, I don't feel the sound of abstinence. Thus, "Don't Eat No Matter What" is an affirmation of how I have come to live because of swinging the hammer, it is a statement which urges others to do the same, and it is a reminder to keep the sound of abstinence vibrating in every part of my life. DENMW
Anonymous, July 3, 2005

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