CEU's/ Set your Tivo/ Divorce Law/ Swap Meet/ Exemplary CHMI -

Fri Jul 14 16:15:05 EDT 2006

- CEUs 
- TRUETT CATHY STORY ON 700 CLUB - MONDAY JULY 17
- DIVORCE LAW CHANGE GAINING ATTENTION
- INGENIOUS: SMART MARRIAGES SHOW AND TEL
- EXEMPLARY CHMI NEWSLETTER
- JEFF FOXWORTHY

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- CEUs 
> Diane,
>   I attended the Smart Marriages seminar in Atlanta and I was wondering
> when we would receive the CEU's. Do you happen to know?
> 
> Thanks, Janet Page

They'll be mailed the first of next week and you should all have them by
July 26th. If you've thought of additional comments/suggestions for next
year's Smart Marriages Conference, you can email them to me at diane AT
smartmarriages.com or mail them to me at 5310 Belt Rd, NW, Washington DC
20015.   - diane 

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- TRUETT CATHY STORY ON 700 CLUB - MONDAY JULY 17
> Diane,
> The marriage-corporate business story will air Monday, July 17 on the 700
> Club/ABC Family Channel.  Your readers can find their local listing time by
> finding their local station at CBN.com.  Often stations will run the 700
> Club once in the morning (10 a.m.) and once at night (10 or 11 p.m.)  They can
> also read the story at CBN.com after it airs.

> The show will feature the Smart Marriages award to Truett Cathy, interviews
> with yourself, Mr. Cathy, Dr. Scott Stanley and couples who have benefited
> from marriage education.
>
> Heather at CBN

#########################
- DIVORCE LAW CHANGE GAINING ATTENTION
The Advocate 
Jul 14, 2006

Rep. Ernie Alexander¹s recent marriage-strengthening initiative is already
capturing national attention.

Hailed as the first uniformly applicable legislation since ³no-fault² was
introduced in 1969 that makes divorce harder to get, Act 743 doubles the
living-separate-and-apart waiting period from six months to one year when
minor children would be affected by a no-fault divorce. If it is
demonstrated that one spouse is guilty of child or spousal abuse, the
current waiting period remains unaffected.

Alexander justified his legislation on the basis that divorce hurts
children: ³We know that in one-parent families, a child is twice as likely
to drop out of school, three times as likely to become pregnant as a
teenager, six times more likely to be in poverty and 12 times more likely to
be incarcerated.² And he cited a study that said the change could cut the
divorce rate by 23 percent.

Sen. Bob Kostelka, a retired judge who led the fight for the law in
Louisiana¹s Senate, reasoned that divorces ³were often granted before the
couple had worked out issues of child custody and support. That removed the
option of reconciliation, because they would be divorced before they had
settled important issues² that might have prompted meaningful counseling.

Louisiana Family Forum Action supported this reform legislation that aligns
with recent polling data showing that 60 percent of Louisianians believe
³divorce should be more difficult to get for couples with minor children
than other couples.² A Time-CNN national poll has agreed with these
findings.

Moreover, a study by Dr. Linda Waite revealed that ³86 percent of unhappily
married people who stick it out, find that, five years later, their
marriages are happier.² Three-fifths who said their marriages were unhappy
in the late 1980s and who stayed married, said their marriages were either
³very happy² or ³happy² when reinterviewed in the early 1990s.

Act 743 becomes the first enactment in pursuance of a 2001 study by the
Louisiana Law Institute urging the Legislature to consider a number of
divorce reforms, including longer cooling-off periods.

Http://www.Smartmarriages.com reports that a new Web site,
http://www.Weddingbetting.com, allows Net surfers to view the wedding
announcements of complete strangers, then vote on whether the unions will
last one, five, eight or 15 years. Those who are particularly pessimistic
can vote ³barely past the altar,² while optimists can predict the couples
will live ³happily ever after.²

Since the site was launched earlier this year, thousands have weighed in on
the fates of lovebirds from around the world. On average, couples are given
roughly five years before their predicted splits. Louisiana¹s Act 743
encourages marriage rather than divorce, and will likely be viewed as a
breath of fresh air by decision-makers looking for hope on the horizon.

Judge Darrell White (retired)
consultant, Louisiana Family Forum
655 St. Ferdinand St.
Baton Rouge

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- INGENIOUS: SMART MARRIAGES SHOW AND TEL

What a great idea.  I've heard about local CHMIs using the DVDs of the
keynotes and Master Sessions as teaching/discussion points but this show and
tell, post-conference processing, "what did you learn?" and "what should we
import?" is a great way to swap and anchor the learning. Mary reports that
the Bluegrass Healthy Marriage Partnership had 15 attendees at Smart
Marriages.  - diane

> Smart Marriages Show and Tell
> July 14, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
> Quail Run ClubHouse
>  
> You are cordially invited to attend the Bluegrass Healthy Marriage
> Partnership: Smart Marriages Show and Tell designed to allow those who
> attended the recent Smart Marriages Conference to share their experiences and
> new knowledge with our group. We will include a potluck dinner, so please
> bring a favorite dish or two to share with the group.  Drinks, plates, and
> utensils will be provided.
> 
> For those who attended the recent conference, please be ready to spend a few
> minutes sharing the one most important thing you got from Smart Marriages that
> you would MOST like to see implemented here in Central Kentucky.  It might be
> a program you learned about--or purchased.  It might be a concept that a
> speaker at a plenary discussed.  It could be a speaker or training that you
> wish would come here or something you now feel inspired to do.  It might be
> something that people are doing in another community that you learned about.
> We will use what you gained as a basis for planning for the next year so your
> ideas are very important. If you have any handouts please try to bring a few
> copies to share with the group.
> 
> For those who did not have a chance to attend Smart Marriages, come with an
> open mind and willingness to learn about the new and innovative programs and
> ideas that are out there for those who wish to support and promote healthy
> marriages in their community.
> 
> If you have any questions please contact Mary Ortwein, president
> Mary AT skillswork.org
> Www.bluegrassmarriages.org

###################################

- EXEMPLARY CHMI NEWSLETTER

I share the current Sacrament CHMI newsletter to spur you on.....to help you
dream great dreams for your own CHMI as you lie there on the beach.  - diane

>  
> July, 2006
>  
> The Healthy Marriage Project is growing by leaps.  New volunteers continue to
> join our ranks and spread the word for Marriage Education.  More organizations
> are deciding to provide marriage education services and expand the use of 10
> Great Dates.  Look below and see what we have been doing!!  Continue to let us
> know what you are doing to support marriages and we will feature it in our
> newsletter.  Let¹s learn from each other.
>  
> ACCOMPLISHMENTS:  14,000 people attend MARRIAGE DAY AT THE BALLPARK presented
> by the Healthy Marriage Project, Greater Sacramento Region. The first three
> thousand couples received a ball and chain (guys got a ball, girls got a key
> chain).  The HMP handed out Hershey¹s kisses, saying, ³Give your partner a
> kiss.²  It was great fun to watch what happened next.  Carolyn Curtis,
> Executive Director, threw out the first pitch. Much to her surprise she threw
> a strike.  Before the game, a couple was married on the ball field.
> Television cameras, newspaper photos, and this week in Sac Bee¹s Business
> section featured Marriage Day at the ball park. A special thanks to the River
> Cats for honoring marriage. Make sure you are there next year!!
>  
> The Black Marriage Coalition hosted the first preview of 10 Great Dates for
> Black Couples, the first in the nation. The coalition served as mentors to
> other churches to facilitate the beginning of marriage programs for local
> congregations. It was a great beginning. Thanks to this dynamic team:  Ron &
> Linda Sharp, Quennon and Mary Ann Coleman, Alton & Pamela Ackerson, Ron &
> Alicia Cross for making this happen.  The Coalition will be planning another
> preview soon and making preparations for Black Marriage Celebration Weekend,
> March 3 & 4,  2007. Save the date.
>  
> The Smart Marriages Conference featured HMP as one of the preeminent community
> marriage initiatives in the nation.  Carolyn Curtis delivered a plenary speech
> with the California Healthy Marriages Coalition and a couple of workshops on
> how to build marriage coalitions throughout a state.
>  
> UP COMING PROGRAMS:  (www.sacramentohealthymarriage.org
> <http://www.sacramentohealthymarriage.org/>  for dates and times)
> PICK a Partner will be available bi-monthly in Sacramento.  Here are the tools
> you needed to help choose a life partner.  These tools will help you decide if
> the person you are interested in dating, or are already dating, is a good
> candidate for marriage. A workshop also helps you to identify the things you
> need to work on to be a good partner. How great would it be if the workshop
> could teach you how to give your heart without losing your mind in the
> process? You would be excited to attend, right?
> Do you know someone who is getting married?  Do they have their ring? The
> date? The dress? The pre-marriage education class?  HMP is sponsoring a
> preview of a PREPARE and ENRICH marriage education class.  Take an inventory
> and discover if you are really right for each other.
>  
> HMP is sponsoring a reception for Bill Coffin, Special Assistant for Marriage
> Education, Department of Families and Children on September 28, 2006 .  Find
> out why government thinks marriage is their business and why it is everyone¹s
> business.
>  
> Dave and Claudia Arp, authors of 10 Great Dates will be here to help everyone
> launch their 10 Great Dates January 27, 2007.  Come join us for this fun
> filled afternoon to find out how to bring marriage education to your
> organization in this light and effective program.
>  
> COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTIONS:  Oscar and Claudia Sanchez translated the 10 Great
> Dates into Spanish and are working with Dave and Claudia Arp to bring their
> marriage education program to the Hispanic Community.  Jim Richardson, Trinity
> Cathedral, held a party to celebrate the marriages of the couples he married
> to do his part of the marriage movement. Steve Arnold is beginning the Healthy
> Marriages Coalition of Elk Grove contact him at 683-8386.
>  
>  Contact:  Carolyn Rich Curtis, Ph.D. Executive Director 916-972-9227
> www.sacramentohealthymarriage.org <http://www.sacramentohealthymarriage.org>
> 
############################
- JEFF FOXWORTHY

OK, I've heard from dozens of you who 1) agree it would be great to get
Foxworthy for the conference and 2) can't believe I've never heard of him
and 3) think he'd be too expensive for us.  I guess I must live on some
other planet.....  If anyone knows anyone that knows anyone that knows
him....let me know.  - diane

>  Dear Diane,
> As the resident "redneck" on your Advisory Board, I'd like to share some
> information about Jeff Foxworthy. (I've read his stuff and listened to him for
> the past 15 years. And being from Mississippi, I fully appreciate the humor.
> But you don't have to be from the South to "get it.")
> 
> He first gained national attention in 1989 with the publication of a book
> titled: ³You might be a redneck ifŠ²  which has been re-issued in recent
> years. Since that time, he's written many more books.
> 
> He had a TV show for several years, and last year did a series of TV specials
> called ³The Blue Collar Tour² (with 3 other ³redneck² comedians), and it's
> been made into a movie.
> 
> Everything I've heard about him as a ³person² indicates he would be a worthy
> presenter at Smart Marriages. He is married with 3 children. He liberally
> talks about his family in his act - with humor, of course, but with ³love²
> underneath.
> 
> Here¹s a little more about him:
> 
> Jeff Foxworthy is the largest-selling comedy artist of all time, a multiple
> Grammy Award-nominee and best-selling author of 11 books. Widely known for his
> redneck jokes, his act goes well beyond that to explore the humor in everyday
> family interactions and human nature, in a style that director CB Harding
> compares to legendary charmer Mark Twain. Considering how much information he
> shares about his parents, his wife and in-laws, it¹s a miracle that anyone in
> the family is still talking to him.
> 
> Foxworthy, who cites Bill Cosby as an early influence, was well into his
> stand-up career when he hit upon the catch-phrase ("You might be a redneck
> if...") that has become such a part of the national culture that it has
> generated a cottage industry of calendars and greeting cards. He has said of
> his routine, ³Man, this isn't a southern thing; it¹s everywhere.²
> 
> So, Diane, I'd love to see you get him for the Conference next year. But with
> his huge success and big following, he might be pretty expensive. He certainly
> wouldn't need to do it for the "exposure" - as you can see from his track
> record of national success - "the largest-selling comedy artist of all time."
> (There are a LOT of rednecks out there in the world.)
> 
> Sincerely,
> Peggy Vaughan 
> dearpeggy.com

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10th Annual Smart Marriages Conference, Atlanta Marriott Marquis Hotel,
June 22-25, 2006
Download the brochure and registration form at
http://www.smartmarriages.com/Brochure.06.pdf

List your program in the Directory of Classes at
http://www.smartmarriages.com

Order conference audio & videos/CD/DVD/MP3s: 800-241-7785 or at
http://www.iPlaybackSmartMarriages.com

Coalition for Marriage, Family and Couples Education, LLC (CMFCE)
Diane Sollee, Director
5310 Belt Rd NW
Washington, DC 20015-1961
http://www.smartmarriages.com
202-362-3332 
diane at smartmarriages.com