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Upcoming Programs
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BreakThrough
Dec 5 - 7
Feb 20 - 22
Apr 24 - 26
Jun 5 - 7
Mar 6 - 8
May 1 - 3
Shadow Weekend
Introduction to Victories
(general info session)
2015 Dates TBA
Wisdom Years Leadership Training
Jan 17, 2015
Facilitating Psychodrama
Jan 30-31, 2015
Facilitating Personal Growth Groups
Jan 31-Feb 1, 2015
2015 Date TBA
Weekend Celebrations BreakThrough Dec 11
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Support Victories & Help Us Reach More Men!
Dear Alumni & Friends, "One of our group members had a crisis over the weekend. The group responded with a flurry of emails and phone calls within minutes, and we had a special meeting within 24 hours... It's sort of a jaw-dropping thing, and a testament to the culture of Victories that the level of caring is so high."
Many of you tell us about your passion for Victories and your admiration for the culture of caring in Victories. Whether you participated only in a weekend or went on to participate in a group, the vast majority of you report being impressed at the quality of heart and time given by Victories volunteers. This pillar of Victories - giving from the heart to others - is strong and continues to grow. There were more new volunteers in 2014 for weekend and group staffing than ever before; volunteers supported men and their families to the tune of more than 15,000 hours this year alone. The second pillar of Victories, and the reason for this letter, is the culture of financial giving. As a non-profit organization, more than half of our budget must come from donations provided by alumni and friends. Victories needs financial support on par with volunteer time, if it is to solidify and expand its circle of support, find a physical place to call home, and continue to offer an ever-increasing amount of scholarship assistance to men in need. Here are a few Victories highlights from 2014:
- A Day of Victories. On November 8, 2014, Victories held the 2nd Annual Day of Victories, with record attendance of over 200. While past annual events attracted mostly alumni and some spouses, this year over a third of the attendees were women, friends, therapists, and others new to Victories.
- 12 Weekends were held, with no weekend cancellations; 100 men staffed weekends and 20 men staffed personal growth groups; 5 trainings were offered.
- New programs included BreakThrough II: Discover Your Best Self and The Transition Years Workshop.
- 25% of participants received scholarship assistance.
- Victories began a new long term research partnership with the Chicago School of Professional Psychology.
- Outreach was provided to ongoing Personal Growth Groups (PGGs). Dozens of PGGs were visited in 2014, with the PGG leadership group providing support, guidance, and re-invigorating groups.
- Victories Open Circle drop-in group for all men (not just weekend alumni) has taken off and now regularly sees 8-12 men attend each Monday. Based on this model, Victories plans to offer Open Circle meetings in other areas of metro Chicago to provide support for men. Mental health professionals have enthusiastically endorsed this new program.
Last year, we announced The Victories Vision campaign to raise a total of $400,000 by the end of 2016. To date, we have raised $150,000 toward that goal through single and multi-year commitments. Our hope is that by supplementing our professional staff, attaining office and meeting space, and increasing our capacities, Victories will be able to extend and broaden our weekend, group, training, and workshop programs, along with other services and referrals to more men-for both their benefit and those of their loved ones. Our mission is to serve not only as a source of powerful programs for men, but also as something with broader and deeper impact: A Resource for Men And Their Families.
We invite you to support the Victories Vision through a three-year pledge or one-time gift to either or both of our two fundraising entities. Through the Buddy Portugal Fund to Assure the Future of Victories, you will help us reach more men and families in additional ways for years to come. Through your contribution to the Kurt Schultz Memorial Scholarship Fund, you will help us ensure that all men, regardless of their means, will be able to participate in our programs.
Please take a moment today to pledge your support. Match your passion and gratitude for Victories with a financial stretch.
Whether it's $1-$50/month in convenient and automatic contributions or larger pledges,
every contribution makes a difference.
We thank you for your past and future support. We hope that you will continue to be an active, committed member of the Victories Community.
If you have any questions about Victories programs, finances, and priorities, please do not hesitate to contact us. We want to send a message of transparency and inspire confidence in the organization, and we are happy to provide information and answer any question you might have. We send every good wish to you and your family during this holiday season and for the New Year. Sincerely, Tim Winkler
Executive Director
Rick Simon
Board President
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Support the Kurt Schultz Memorial Scholarship Fund
In November of 2012 in honor of Kurt Schultz, a long-time leader of the BreakThrough Weekend and president of the board, the Victories Board established the Kurt Schultz Memorial Scholarship Fund as a restricted account to be used exclusively for Victories scholarships. It is our hope that through this fund we will be able to provide a scholarship to every man who needs one for weekend programs, trainings, and events. As we enter 2015, many men will need our support to attend a weekend. In 2014, 25% of men who attended weekends needed scholarship assistance. Personal Growth Groups - Adopt-A-Scholarship Many Personal Growth Groups (PGG) have committed to making an annual donation to the scholarship fund. Download the PGG Adopt-A-Scholarship form here.
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Single Year Donation and Multi-Year Pledges
Whether you can make a single year donation or a multi-year pledge, your generosity supports the work we do here at Victories via the Buddy Portugal Fund to Assure the Future of Victories. We would welcome the chance to sit down with you one-on-one to discuss the Victories mission and to answer any questions you have about our programs and our fundraising efforts. We value these conversations that help us know our donors and involve you in our growth. Please contact Tim Winkler, the Victories Executive Director, at 312.604.5013 or tim.winkler@victoriesformen.org
Make your donation to Victories online here or download the 2014 pledge card here.
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One way to support Victories is to become a Sustaining Member for $200/year (option to pay $20/month for 10 months). This membership program will provide those who believe in our work with the opportunity to help us ensure its future. Your tax deductible membership will entitle you to many benefits, including:
- $100 off our weekends (BreakThrough, Wisdom Years, & Shadow Weekend)
- 20% off all Paths to Leadership training programs
- Option to be included in the Sustaining Members Directory - an online listing designed to promote personal and professional networking within our community.
Even with all the tangible benefits of membership, the most satisfying will be one that is intangible: the knowledge that you are helping us help others to experience the transformative programs that so often help men realize their dreams, become better partners and parents, and achieve greater peace of mind.
Find out more details about becoming a Sustaining Member here.
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Social Gatherings
The Victories community is rich in talent, passions, and experiences, and there are never enough opportunities to share them with each other. We hope to change this with Victories Social Gatherings, which we hope will foster meaningful experiences within the community while raising money for the organization.
Four Social Gatherings are currently open for registration and make excellent holiday gifts for you and your loved ones. More details about each Social Gathering, the hosts, and the dates, are available here. - Celebrate Storytelling Through Poetry: only 2 spaces available
- Victories Spa & Social Evening: only 12 spaces available
- Movie & Discussion: Five Friends: only 5 spaces available
- Greek Village Fare': only 8 spaces available
Registration for each Social Gathering is $50 per person, and you can register online or contact the Victories Office at 312.604.5013. Host a Gathering! Victories is looking for Alumni and their Significant Others and friends to host Social Gatherings and to share their talents, passions, and experiences with the community. Further information on how to host a Gathering, including examples, can be found here. |
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Other Ways to Support Victories
Supporting Victories is more than just a financial commitment. We value an engaged and involved community. Here are some additional ways you can support Victories and volunteer. You can download the Volunteer Survey Form here to let us know how you'd like to be more involved. - Attend a training. Victories offers three main trainings to help men learn new skills that they can share with their groups and carry over into their personal lives. There are three upcoming trainings in January 2015!
- Attend a weekend. If you haven't experienced all of our weekend offerings, we encourage you to consider doing so. The dates of the upcoming weekends are on our website and in this enews.
- Staff a weekend. Alumni interested in staffing a weekend are eligible to staff once they have completed the staff training for that weekend. These trainings are being offered in January 2015, and you can register now.
- Assist with the facilitation of a Personal Growth Group. Attend the Facilitating Personal Growth Group training and begin the process of assisting the PGGs offered after the BreakThrough and Wisdom Years weekends. The next training is January 31 - February 1, 2015.
- Refer a man / men. One of the greatest gifts you can give is to keep referring men to Victories. Through your referrals, our weekends fill and our community continues to grow. If you have a prospective man, pass along our brochure and encourage him to attend one of our free Introduction to Victories sessions.
- Attend A Day of Victories and bring friends & family. This annual event is a wonderful way to reconnect with the Victories community through inspiring workshops, a town hall, and a reception. This event is open to men and women, Victories Alumni and those new to Victories.
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Back to the Heart: A Poetic Odyssey Home with Paul Kachoris, M.D. Monday, December 8, 2014 at 7pm at the Zero Balance Wellness Center, 809 Ridge Rd, Wilmette, IL 60091. Registration is $30 and can be made by calling 847-920-9292. See more information here: www.zbwellness.com
Embracing Self-Compassion: A Woman's Journey to Wholeness. A retreat in Nosara, Costa Rica from February 28-March 7, 2015. More information at thewomenscircle.com/retreat.htm
Renewal In The Wilderness. Renewal in the Wilderness offers spiritual retreats in nature mostly for adults. They take people from all faith traditions (or none) out of their normal environments for a week (or weekend) of wilderness living. For more information visit
www.renewalinthewilderness.orgWoman Within Training Weekend. The next Midwest retreat is April 24-26, 2015 in Racine, WI. Learn more about the weekend here: www.womanwithin.org/woman-within-training-weekendNOTE: Victories announces these program(s) as a service to our community. The presenters are known to us as professionals or volunteers with expertise in the subject matter of their workshops. However, their programs are neither sponsored by nor affiliated with Victories.
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Victories transforms the lives of men through weekend and group programs which lead them to deeper self-awareness, greater self-confidence, and stronger relationships. Our weekends are designed by professionals, supervised by licensed practitioners, and based on widely accepted clinical principles.
The BreakThrough Weekend is a decisive and vital step towards removing the barriers that stand between the lives we lead and the lives we seek.
Wisdom Years Weekend
The Wisdom Years Weekend helps men over the age of 50 begin to answer a challenging and profound question: How do I want to live the rest of my life?
Shadow Weekend: Discovery, Acceptance & Empowerment
The Shadow Weekend helps men achieve greater wholeness, increased power, and improved relationships by guiding them to discover and own unacknowledged parts of themselves.
BreakThrough Weekend II: The Best Self |
The BreakThrough II weekend offers and advanced opportunity for BreakThroug alumni to continue their personal work, reconnect with their initial weekend, and discover and celebrate their best selves.
Personal Growth Groups
Victories Personal Growth Groups offer weekend participants a place to continue their growth with the support of their peers and the larger Victories community.
For Mental Health Professionals
Victories programs accelerate men's progress in therapy by helping them build an increased capacity to engage openly and effectively in the therapeutic process.
Our organization and its founders, Bob Mark and the late Buddy Portugal, have been honored by The American Family Therapy Academy with its Innovative Contribution to Family Therapy award. Bob and Buddy also received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Family Institute at Northwestern University.
Victories of the Heart, NFP is an Illinois not-for-profit organization exempt from federal income tax under Sec. 501 of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations (but not weekend registrations) are deductible under IRS rules. Victories of the Heart, NFP does not offer professional services that require its regulation or registration by any state or professional licensing body.
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