Wilson Gluten Free R.O.C.K. (raising our celiac kids)

Last Saturday (May 12, 2012) our support group had our first "R.O.C.K. Party." If you aren't familiar with  R.O.C.K , it's a coalition of celiac/gluten free support groups that was started in 1991 by Danna Korn after her son Tyler was diagnosed with celiac disease. Our group became a member of  R.O.C.K. this May.

I'm thrilled that our local support group is now a part of this national coalition of groups! The three main reasons I chose for us to be affiliated with  R.O.C.K  are:

1. Keeping a positive attitude! The primary principal behind R.O.C.K. is keeping a positive attitude for kids and adults alike! Being gluten free is hard! It's even harder if we have a negative attitude about changing our diet and our lifestyles... instead let's celebrate how much better we feel and how awesome life can be gluten free!
2. Gluten Free FUN for all ages! While R.O.C.K. is geared towards parents and kids, this group is really a support group for ALL ages. R.O.C.K. can remind us how we really need to have fun, despite the challenges of being gluten free. Kids just want to have fun and enjoy life and we need to do that too! As adults we can really forget how fun life can be! Our bi-monthly ROCK parties, will help remind you! 
3. A FREE Support Group! Cost shouldn't stop you from being a part of a support group. While we may ask you to bring supplies in, make a homemade snack, purchase drinks or paper plates... you will never have to pay a yearly or monthly fee to be a part of our group! We want you to come, enjoy yourselves, and have no worries while you learn all about being gluten free! 

If you'd like to read some resources that share about the principles behind what ROCK stands for, please check out Danna Korn's books: 

Gluten Free Kids: 

Raising Happy, Healthy Children with Celiac Disease, Autism, and other Conditions

Kids with Celiac Disease: 

A Family Guide to Raising Happy Healthy Gluten Free Children

Wheat-Free, Worry-Free:

The Art of Happy, Healthy, Gluten Free Living

Living Gluten Free For Dummies

March 2012 Wilson GF Support Group Updates & Meetings

Hello Fellow Wilson Gluten Free Folks!

I hope you are all doing well and have had a wonderful winter (well, if you can call it a "winter"!) I have finally finished the gluten free slow cooker cookbook and it will be available next Fall in bookstores nationwide along with Amazon and Books A Million! I plan to start having bi-monthly meetings again in May 2012. I think this will be easier to plan for than monthly meetings and I think it will also encourage more attendance to only have them every other month. I also want to have planning meetings with those of you who are interested in helping to plan future meetings. We will talk about how we can better the meetings and we we can split up duties of preparing for the meetings!!

A few things we all need to keep in mind for future meetings:

• -- We will be speaking with a renowned registered dietitian, who specializes in gluten free and allergen free diets: Mrs. Cheryl Harris of Harris Whole Health and GFGoodness.com 
• -- we need to decide WHEN we want to speak with her and how we can advertise this to have as many people attend as possible. 
• -- Creating an online gluten free guidebook for the Wilson/Rocky Mount/Greenville/Goldsboro area -- How can we add more members to our group? I know we have MORE and more people in our area who are starting to follow a GF diet, I've heard about them and run into people in public. 
• -- How can we raise money for our group to create things like official banners, work on an official website, etc... who will be volunteer to be the group's financial officer, etc... I will need other people to take over leadership roles like this, if we choose to have them. 
• -- Do we want our support group to join a national organization such as the Gluten Intolerance Group or the Celiac Sprue Association. Remember that joining a group like this would mean we would not be a "free" support group anymore, we would have to have membership dues, follow the guidelines for the national groups, meaning we wouldn't have quite as much freedom to decide how to run our own group, etc... 

Please check out our real-time calendar to see dates for upcoming coffee breaks and ROCK parties!

March-September 2012 Meeting and Coffee Break Schedule

Here is a list of the times, dates, and meeting places for the Wilson Gluten Free Support Group for the remainder of 2012.

Coffee Breaks: 

• Planning Meeting/Coffee Break: Tuesday March 20th 7-8pm, Wilson Target Starbucks 
• Planning Meeting/Coffee Break: Tuesday April 10th 7-8pm, Chick Fil A 
• Planning Meeting/Coffee Break: Tuesday May 1st 7-8pm, Wilson Target Starbucks 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday May 22nd, 7-8pm Chick Fil A 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday June 5th, 7-8pm Wilson Target Starbucks 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday July 24th, 7-8pm Chick Fil A 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday August 14th, 7-8pm, Wilson Target Starbucks 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday September 25th, 7-8pm Chick Fil A 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday October 16th, 7-8pm Wilson Target Starbucks 
• Coffee Break: Tuesday November 27th, 7-8pm Chick Fil A 

Bi-Monthly Meetings

• MAY MEETING: Saturday May 12, 3-5pm Winstead UMC 
• JULY MEETING: Saturday July 14, 3-5pm Winstead UMC 
• SEPTEMBER MEETING: Saturday Sept.15th 3-5pm Winstead UMC 
• NOVEMBER MEETING: Saturday Nov. 10th 3-5pm, HOLIDAY POTLUCK -- Place to be announced 
• JANUARY 2013 MEETING: Saturday Jan 12, 3-5pm, Winstead UMC

For more information on our group, please email Carrie Forbes: gingerlemongirl at gmail dot com.