A warm welcome to all of our subscribers! If you’re a new subscriber, we’re delighted to welcome you to the GAB Gazette, a highlight reel from the world of Guided Autobiography for November 2024.
Jumping for Joy!
Helle Brisson (on the grass, lower right) is a Danish author, writers’ course leader, and life coach, who divides her time between the mountains of Idyllwild, California, and the beautiful island of Fanoe in Denmark. She led a four-day GAB retreat at the ParaVita retreat center in Rangeley, Maine, in the fall of 2018. Helle is also the author of Gently Touched by Angels. Helle’s website is www.hellebrisson.com
In This Issue of the GAB Gazette
Message from Cheryl Svensson, Director, the Birren Center for Autobiographical Studies
Featured GABBERs: Meredith Stanton and Sheri Kohlman
Books, Blogs, and Podcasts: Cassandra Speaks; The ABC’s of Storytelling
Message from the Director
Enhancing Our GAB Community
This past month, the Birren Center has been hard at work on several exciting projects to strengthen our Guided Autobiography (GAB) community.
December GAB Summit Preview We’re thrilled to share details about the upcoming GAB Summit on December 11-13, from noon to 6 p.m. Eastern time. This FREE online event, Transformative Storytelling: How GAB Empowers Personal and Professional Growth, will feature current GAB instructors demonstrating their skills and innovative uses of life story writing. Topics include publishing memoirs, digital storytelling, marketing, organizing memories, Soul Collage, a profitable life story business model from Britain, and more. There will also be panels on affinity groups, GAB students as writers, and more. To learn more about the Summit, contact Elizabeth Johnson.
The Birren Center YouTube Channel We’re about to launch our own YouTube channel where we will share videos, blogs, and more. Have ideas for content? We’d love to hear from you. Contact Gord Deyell.
GAB Anthology Update The fourth GAB Anthology is underway and set for publication in 2025. The team is currently finalizing the theme, so get ready to polish your stories and invite your students to participate. Anyone certified to teach GAB, and any student who has taken a GAB class, is eligible to submit an essay for consideration. Contact Board member Sarah White for more information.
New Course Proposals Our board is developing a structured application process for GAB instructors interested in offering courses through the Birren Center. The courses will be organized in a semester-like framework and posted on our website and Community Hub.
Birren Certified Instructor Badge The official badge for certified GAB instructors is now available on the Community Hub Resources page. Download yours today! https://thebirrencenter.org/additional-resources
Join the Community Hub Forum Gord Deyell, our new GAB Community liaison, will be posting regularly in the GAB Forum to keep you updated. If you are a certified GAB instructor but haven’t yet joined the Forum, we encourage you to complete a quick, one-time setup. Use this link. The Forum replaces the GAB Google group and is open to all Community Hub members. Reach out to Gord if you have any questions or suggestions about the Community Hub or Forum.
Thank you for being part of this amazing community of Guided Autobiography instructors. Together, we’re building a vibrant network and expanding the reach of life story writing!
Best,
Cheryl and Board Members of The Birren Center for Autobiographical Studies
Featured GABBERs: Sheri Kohlman and Meredith Stanton
Sheri Kohlman (left) and Meredith Stanton
A Legacy of Storytelling: Mother-Daughter Instructors
We’re delighted to highlight the journey of mother-daughter duo Sheri Kohlman and Meredith Stanton, both Certified GAB instructors who have brought transformative storytelling to their communities for years. Sheri and Meredith share their experiences with GAB, the ways they’ve seen it change lives, and the special bond that teaching together has created.
Finding GAB: A Family Affair Sheri discovered GAB in 2010 through the Association of Personal Historians. Already trained in Ethical Wills and other personal history techniques, she found GAB to be the perfect addition to her repertoire for helping people capture and share their life stories. Inspired by Sheri’s dedication, Meredith, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), joined the GAB community five years ago, intrigued by the therapeutic potential of deep story work.
The GAB Connection in Practice For Sheri, GAB has opened doors in communities throughout Southern California, allowing her to connect with residents in retirement communities, independent living facilities, and beyond. She also trains new GAB instructors, sharing her passion with others. Meredith brings GAB themes and techniques into her therapy practice, finding that the program’s structured storytelling allows participants to process life experiences deeply and feel validated.
Teaching Together: A Bond Beyond Words Both instructors agree that teaching together has been one of the most meaningful aspects of their GAB journeys. About working alongside her mother, Meredith shares, “I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for her leadership and teaching abilities, which are truly impressive. We’ve bonded over our love of writing and connection with others, and GAB provides the perfect platform for both.” Sheri echoes this sentiment, noting that her daughter’s skills as a therapist and facilitator are invaluable assets to the groups they lead.
Impacting Lives Through Stories Through GAB, Meredith and Sheri have seen participants gain self-confidence, forge friendships, and build insight. Meredith observes, “The experience of sharing and writing stories with others fosters a profound sense of connection. GAB has the power to help people feel known and loved.” Sheri, meanwhile, has watched people find renewed purpose in their “third act” of life, using stories to make sense of past experiences, mend family relationships, and inspire new beginnings, even remarriage.
Challenges and Triumphs While teaching GAB is rewarding, both instructors face challenges. For Meredith, it’s balancing time with participant enthusiasm to keep sessions on track. Sheri, on the other hand, tackles the administrative side of organizing classes. But both agree that the magic of GAB makes it all worth it. “By the third or fourth week, participants are open, authentic, and connected in ways that last long beyond the class,” says Sheri.
Connect with Sheri and Meredith
Sheri Kohlmann: www.morethanwordsinc.com, LinkedIn, and The Birren Center website.
As the founder of More Than Words, Inc., an independent LifeSAGEr® and a Legacy Coach, Sheri assists individuals, families, communities, churches, and nonprofits in getting to the “heart of the matter.” Her classes and individual coaching encourage people of all ages and from all walks of life to define and share the things that matter most.
Sheri and her husband, Gene, live in Southern California. They have four sons, one daughter, all married, and 12 perfect grandchildren.
Meredith Stanton: stantontherapy@gmail.com
Meredith lives in Southern California with her husband, two kids, and crazy dog. She has been an LMFT for almost six years. About five years ago, she started bringing GAB into her life and work, inspired by her mom’s involvement with it. Meredith loves helping people own their stories, process what they’ve experienced, and look ahead to what’s possible as they build insight, confidence, and connections with others.
Based in Orange County, California, Meredith and Sheri look forward to welcoming new storytellers into their GAB family and continuing to foster deep connections, one story at a time.
Books, Blogs, and Podcasts
Cassandra Speaks by Elizabeth Lesser
(From Roselyn O’Connell)
“History isn’t what happened. It’s who tells the story.” (Sally Roesch Wagner)
Cassandra Speaks begins with the importance of story. And, who tells the story. Guided Autobiography instructors know that one thing above all others is true. We must tell our own stories. If we don’t, someone else gets to tell them. GAB provides the tools and the space for people in our classes to write their stories. For many, it is the first time they get to tell their story in their own words just the way they want to. Their singular truth may never be known otherwise.
Elizabeth Lesser turns to some well-known and ancient stories to illustrate the importance of telling our stories before someone else gets to proclaim the storyline. She starts in the Garden of Eden. Who tells Eve’s story? Not Eve! We don’t know what Eve would write. I, for one, would love to know the story from her perspective. As written on the book’s cover, “when women are the storytellers, the human story changes.” Lesser explores how the story might be told from differing viewpoints.
Maybe you remember Greek mythology and the story of Cassandra? Lesser imagines writing a “brave new” ending for Cassandra inspired by this Brené Brown quote; “When we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write a brave new ending.”
GAB opens the door. We writers take out our pen, paper, or computer and walk through that door to write our “brave new endings.”
Elizabeth Lesser is the cofounder of Omega Institute and the author of Marrow: The Seeker’s Guide and the New York Times bestseller Broken Open. She has given two popular TED talks and is one of Oprah Winfrey’s Super Soul 100, a collection of 100 leaders who are using their voices and talents to elevate humanity.
The ABC’s of Storytelling by Michael Williams
An update on the September featured GABBER, Michael Williams. His new book The ABC’s of Storytelling has just been released. Easy to read and chock full of practical advice, it invites us to explore the power of “eye to eye, mind to mind, heart to heart” storytelling.
Editor’s Note: If you have an idea for a feature for the GAB Gazette please email Stephen Dolainski at steve91604@gmail.com. Please use the subject line GAB Gazette Idea.