GROWW E-Mail Newsletter
January 15, 2003	Volume 1, Number 3
Editor · Pat Sirni GROWW Officers · Anne D’Ambrosio, Executive Director · Ted A. Modjeski Jr. Deputy Director GROWW Staff · Libby Morningstar, Director of Branches · Pat Sirni, Grief Recovery Room Manager · Rachel Frank, Message Board Manager · Phil D’Ambrosio, Director of Security	Message from the Executive Director - Anne D’Ambrosio Well, we all survived the holiday, some of us for the first time, some have succeeding in surviving more than one, now everyone BREATHE, take a deep breath and pat yourself on the back. You survived; it doesn’t matter how, just that you did! Be proud of yourself, I am so proud of all of you. Now on to my topic for this month, The FIRST Annual GROWW Fundraiser. Why, you ask? We have to pay for the server that the chatrooms are on, I will keep this simple. Every time we go to www.groww.org there is a server somewhere in California that maintains the hardware. We are charged a monthly fee of about $300.00 per month for that only, if we can pay it annually we can save about $500.00 a year. We pay a monthly maintenance fee for our message boards and host boards; this is about $40.00 a month. We have to pay a fee whenever someone uses a credit card to make a donation or purchase GROWW items. We have a P.O. box that is about $100.00 a year. We have a checking account that thinks they need to receive a fee every month also. Right now, we work on a shoe string budget. All of our staff pay for their own supplies, Internet service etc. None of us receive any salary from GROWW; we all do this as volunteers. Our main concern is keeping the chat rooms prepaid to save money. We have dreams too, we would love to print brochures and do mailings to hospice and funeral homes to let them know we are here and how we can help after someone loses a loved one. We will never charge a membership fee; Judy always said we paid the highest price there is to get here. What I am asking is IF you have $5.00, $10 or $100. to spare and think that this is a worthwhile cause, we sure would appreciate it. You can make a donation by going to the helpgroww site and printing out a form and mailing it in with a check or make a donation with a credit card. We are a non-profit organization and your donation is tax deductible. If you can help us to keep Judy’s dream alive, we would so much appreciate it, if you cannot, that’s ok too, and you did pay the highest price to belong here. Thank you to each and every one of you. I see so many of you fresh in your grief reach out and touch someone who is newer than you and you extend the olive branch and make them feel welcomed. I am so proud to be a part of this organization and to meet as many of you as possible in our chat rooms. Meet Your Host HAHostMaggie This month we would like to introduce you to HAHostMaggie.  We are very pleased to announce that Maggie has agreed to be Room Manager for our Heavenly Angels branch.  In fact, Maggie has been acting room manager for quite some time now and was quietly doing such a great job that  Staff didn't realize that she was never officially asked to become manager. For those of you who are not familiar with all of the branches, Heavenly Angels is for those who have lost a child.  Sadly, Maggie has lost her three adult children, Judy, at the age of 43, Jim, who was only 34, and Ed, age 47.  Despite these devastating losses, Maggie has managed to survive and thrive, bringing great comfort to all of those who enter the Heavenly Angels chatroom.  Maggie, who lives in New England, is a retired nurse.  She has been coming to GROWW since May of 1999 and began hosting at the end of that year.  Coming into Heavenly Angels, she finds "hope and strength to walk this journey".  She publishes a weekly Heavenly Angels newsletter and also makes "Heartprint" pages to honor the loved ones' special days. When asked what advice she would give to others just starting to walk this path of grief, Maggie says that journaling was good therapy for her.  She found that she could see herself better through her writings and that her emotions "came alive on paper". Like so many others,  Maggie has so much gratitude for Judy Divers.  She says Judy "was the instrument of helping me walk this journey". Message from the Director of Branches - Libby Morningstar What does GROWW have to offer you?  Funny you should ask.  I would like to take a few minutes to share with you about GROWW and our many facets.  You search the internet looking for someone who can feel your pain.  To understand what others in your life cannot.  As we like to say, "you have had to been there to really understand".  We have many branches of GROWW.  You can first discover that by selecting  GROWW's Site Navigation Menu, but my favorite way to check out GROWW is by clicking on the Chat Index and Site Map,  (both found on the main page as you enter www.GROWW.org).  Through this you can in outline form see all that GROWW has to offer, all the individual chat rooms available, the message boards and meet the specific hosts.  Let's take for example "Grief Recovery".  You will see that it is number VI of the Branch Map outline.  By clicking on the words "Grief Recovery" you will get a brief outline of what the room is all about, and you can see the meeting times of that chat room.  You will also see that there are subheadings A., B., and C.   By selecting A you will get access to the chat room itself, B will get you directly to the message board relating to Grief Recovery and then C allows you to meet the men and women who give of their time freely to host that particular chat room.    So take some time and get familiar with the different chat rooms and message boards GROWW has to offer.  Visit our chat rooms, read the message boards or even post to them .......it really does help I promise.  People tell us all the time that they get great comfort from our site and that pleases us.  We are people helping people.  We understand early grief and the pain it causes.  We want your experience at GROWW to be one that is peaceful not stressful.    One that we hope someday you can share with someone else in need of comfort.
GROWW, INC.© Judy Divers 11877 Douglas Rd - #102-PMB101 - Alpharetta GA 30005 501(c)(3) Non-Profit EIN: 59-3445877	Guest Columnist – Rachel Frank Message Board Etiquette Not everyone is comfortable with chat rooms or sometimes members need another forum to express their feelings. Our message boards provide this forum for sharing and expressing feelings and ideas and giving others the opportunity to provide feedback and support. The written language can often be misunderstood as there are no facial expressions or body language to help convey what the member is saying. We would never want a member to be criticized or hurt by another’s posting. Each of our losses is different and unique. What might appear to you to be a simple statement might be hurtful to another. We ask that you keep this in mind as you post. Our message boards do not require a password or have an age limit. All members are allowed to read or post on any of our boards. Always be careful of the language or the details you use. When using the anonymous feature ask yourself why are you using it. We are happy to provide this forum for you and look forward to seeing your postings on the message boards. If you would like to submit an article for publication in this newsletter, please send your submission to newsletter@groww.org New each month. GROWW Message Boards – Ted Modjeski We have recently upgraded our message boards. Although they appear to look the same the inner workings are quite different. Our old boards required a lot of maintenance and would often crash. Our new boards have been installed for 2 months now and are working flawlessly. We also have added security features which are a big help in eliminating harassing guests. We currently have 33 different message boards and average 20 postings a day. We clean our message boards by removing messages when they have been posted for 90 days. This helps us to keep our boards current as well as maintaining their functionality. Our message boards compliment our chatrooms and are a valuable resource for those members not comfortable in a chatroom setting. Phil’s Fix It Corner - Phil D’Ambrosio I’d like to bring to your attention this month one of the greatest discoveries of our time. A miracle potion, that stands for Water Displacement, 40th attempt. That's right WD-40, that’s the name right out of the lab book used by the chemist who developed WD-40 back in 1953. The chemist, Norm Larsen, was attempting to concoct a formula to prevent corrosion -- a task which is done by displacing water. Norm's persistence paid off when he perfected the formula on his 40th try. Over the years, thousands of WD-40 users have written testimonial letters to the company sharing their often unique, if sometimes just plain weird, uses for the product. Some of the most interesting stories include the bus driver in Asia who used WD-40 to remove a python snake which had coiled itself around the undercarriage of his bus, Or, when police officers used WD-40 to remove a naked burglar trapped in an air conditioning vent. I think the $1.69 investment will pay for it self over and over again. Since I’m limited for space I’ve only listed a few that may be useful; ü Keeps snow from sticking to snow shovels and snow blowers ü Lubricates moving parts on lawn sprinklers ü Cleans and protects metal and brass items ü Cleans grease and gum off car floor mats ü Cleans and protects metal blades ü Protects fish hooks and lures from corrosion ü Protects saw blades from rust and makes cutting easier ü Lubricates and cleans casters and rollers ü Lubricates, cleans and prevents corrosion on guns ü Prevents concrete from sticking to the inside of mixers and tools ü Cleans and lubricates guitar strings ü Removes crayon marks from tile, linoleum and wood floors ü Removes hard water deposits ü Lubricates shears and pruners ü Removes sap and splattered bugs from cars ü Lubricates and removes dirt and grime on sliding glass door tracks ü Quiets squeaky hinges ü Removes tar, sap and gum from carpets ü Removes road tar from cars ü Removes stickers and decals from cars and bikes ü Cleans and softens paint brushes ü Helps prevent rust and road salt corrosion on cars and trucks ü Prevents car locks from freezing up in winter ü Cleans stainless steel sinks ü Loosens spikes on golf shoes ü Lubricates dirty or stuck locks and latches HelpGROWW – Ted Modjeski GROWW and our volunteers provide services at no charge to those who come to us for aid and comfort. We rely solely on our donors and sponsors to cover our costs. Your donation, no matter how small is so very valuable to us in ensuring we can continue to serve the growing number of people who seek our help. Here are some of the ways you can contribute directly to our efforts. Give a little bit each month You can help GROWW every month with a donation charged to your credit card. Partner with us in sharing the gift of compassion on the Internet. Donate By Credit Card You can make a donation to us securely and quickly using your credit card. Donate By Mail You may send a personal check donation. GROWW is a 503c corporation and donations to GROWW are tax deductable. If you click on the HelpGROWW logo you will be taken to the HelpGROWW website and learn more about how you can support the work we do. No matter how you choose to contribute to Grief Recovery Online - We Thank You! Recipes From Members This months submission Chicken Soup for the bereaved soul is from Angee D: 1/2 pound skinned chicken breast 1/2 teaspoon marjoram 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning 1 Tablespoon garlic powder 8 cubes of chicken bouilon Put above in a crock pot.  Add enough water to cover the chicken.  Cook until the meat is falling off the bone (~12 hrs on medium).  Remove the chicken and pick the meat off the bones.  Add the meat back into the pot.  Add 4 stalks chopped celery, 8 chopped carrots, 6 more bouilon cubes, a packet of frozen egg noodles, a pinch of pepper, and water to fill pot.  Cook 6 - 8 more hours on medium. If you would like to submit a recipe for publication in this newsletter, please send your submission to newsletter@groww.org New each month. To unsubscribe to this email click reply with UNSUBSCRIBE in the Subject Line. For questions about this Newsletter or to submit an article, email newsletter@groww.org