SERENA ALBERTA BULLETIN
Volume 5, Issue 3
Serena Alberta
Fall 2012
President Couple Message
Friends,
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to one and all.
Any couples who have chosen to plan their family using the Sympto-Thermal method of
Natural Family Planning will always be our friends. Cathy and I used SERENA all our lives
and the blessings we have received far out weigh the challenges we faced.
We offer our gratitude to Cyndi Hofmann, our provincial coordinator, for all her work to
promote SERENA in Alberta and for keeping our board of directors on task. A huge
thanks to all teacher couples who volunteer their time to teach others how they can benefit from planning their family naturally.
It has been a real pleasure for us to welcome many young couples into our home to help
them understand their fertility and plan their family. We have had the pleasure of working
with many couples in Alberta and across Canada who share similar values. We encourage all NFP user couples to consider becoming teacher couples. You will find out what we
mean when we say it is a pleasure to be associated with so many wonderful, generous
friends.
God bless you during this Christmas Season and throughout the New Year.
David and Cathy Bouchard
President Couple
“The broadest, and maybe
the most meaningful definition of volunteering; Doing
more than you have to because you want to, in a cause
you consider good.”
Ivan Scheir
Serena Alberta Coordinators Message
Merry Christmas everyone! May you all have a blessed Christmas!
There have been a few changes to the contact information for Serena Alberta. The new mailing address for Serena
Alberta is Serena Alberta, c/o Cyndi Hofmann, RR 4, Rimbey AB, T0C 2J0. The new email address is
[email protected]. The phone number remains the same—780-488-5221.
Please let me know if there are any materials that you need or if I can assist you in any way. I look forward to hearing
from you.
Cyndi Hofmann
Serena Alberta Coordinator
Inside this issue:
Oral Contraceptives—The
Hazards
2
Board of Directors
2
Relief from PMS
3
Oral Contraceptives - The Hazards
Oral contraceptives pose many risks to the user. Some of which are relayed to the patient when the pill is prescribed but other risks are
often not mentioned.
Oral contraceptives disrupt the body’s chemistry in various ways and affect the action of medications such as insulin, some tranquilizers
and anticoagulants, as well as the concentration of many vitamins and minerals. This is why women on the pill seem to need more vitamin
C. Research shows conclusively that oral contraceptives increase the risk of blood clots, strokes and
NFP As Good as Pill
heart attacks.
“Long-term users of oral contraceptives were at a higher risk of breast cancer than never users...Current/
A recent study revealed that couples
recent use of oral contraceptives is associated with an increased breast cancer risk”
practicing NFP had unplanned
“according to multiple references throughout The Physician’s Desk Reference, which articulate the repregnancies as low as 0.4% - 0.6% every
search findings of all the birth control manufacturers, there are not one but three mechanisms of birth
year.
control pills:
The divorce rate of couples practicing NFP
1. Inhibiting ovulation (the primary mechanism),
is just 5%
2. Thickening the cervical mucus, thereby making it more difficult for sperm to travel to the egg, and
3. Thinning and shriveling the lining of the uterus to the point that it is unable or less able to facilitate the implantation of the newly fertilized egg.
The first two mechanisms are contraceptive. The third is abortive.
When a woman taking the pill discovers she is pregnant (according to The Physician’s Desk Reference’s efficacy rate tables, this is 3 percent of pill-takers each year), it means that all three of these mechanisms have failed. The third mechanism sometimes fails in its role as
backup, just as the first and second mechanisms sometimes fail. Each and every time the third mechanism succeeds, however, it causes
and abortion.”
Serena Alberta Board of Directors
President Couple: David & Cathy Bouchard
Treasurer: Chris Ashdown
Secretary: Camille Rudolf
Directors: Denis & Melissa Lacroix, Larry & Marcia Lehew, Chris Moore, Elaine & John Hitchinson
Provincial Coordinator: Cyndi Hofmann
Thank you so much to our volunteers, teacher couples and board members! Here are a few preliminary statistics for 2012 (I have not yet
received all the information yet.)
2012
Total number of Volunteer hours:
Total number of people taught::
Page 2
312
90
2011
Total number of Volunteer hours:
Total number of people taught:
198
167
Volume 5, Issue 3
Generation Gap
One evening a grandson was talking to his grandmother about current events. The grandson asked his grandmother what she thought
about the shootings at schools, the computer age and just things in general.
The grandmother replied, “Well, let me think a minute, I was born before: television, penicillin, polio shots and frozen foods. I was born
before: Xerox, contact lenses, Frisbees and the pill. When I was born there were no credit cards, laser beams or ball-point pens. Man
had not yet invented pantyhose, air conditioners, dishwashers or clothes dryers. Man had not yet walked on the moon. Your grandfather and I got married first, and then lived together. Every family had a father and a mother. Until I was 25, I called every man older
than me, “Sir” and after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, “Sir”. Our lives were governed by the Ten Commandments, good judgment and common sense. We were taught to know the difference between right & wrong and to stand up and
take responsibility for our actions. Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege. We thought fast
food was what people ate during lent. Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins. Time-sharing meant
time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends—not purchasing condominiums. We never heard of FM radios, tape
decks, CD’s, electric typewriters, yogurt or guys wearing earrings. We listened to Big Bands, Jack Benny and the President’s speeches
on our radios. If you saw anything with ‘Made in Japan’ on it, it was junk. The term ‘making out’ referred to how you did on your school
exam. Pizza Hut, McDonald’s and instant coffee were unheard of. We had 5 & 10 cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5
and 10 cents. Ice cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar and a Pepsi were all a nickel. And if you didn’t want to splurge, you
could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards. You could buy a new Ford Coupe for $600, but who could
afford one? Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon. In my day “grass” was mowed, “coke” was a cold drink, “pot” was something
your mother cooked in, “rock music” was your grandmother’s lullaby, “Aids” were helpers in the Principal’s office, “chip” meant a piece
of wood, “hardware” was found in a hardware store and “software” wasn’t even a word. And we were the last generation to actually
believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. No wonder people call us “old and confused” and say there is a generation gap.
How old do you think I am?”
This grandmother is 61 years old, she was born in 1951.
Relief for PMS
Here are some suggestions for relief of PMS:
Before: Extra-strength analgesics (Midol, Pamprin, Premsyn)
After: Calcium, pine bark, and Agnus castus (chaste-tree fruit)
Why: The extra-strength analgesics use additives such as caffeine, pyrilamine, maleate (an anesthetic),
and pamabrom (a diuretic), all highly artificial approaches to help alleviate PMS-related cramps, bloating,
backache and fatigue. More natural approaches like calcium (1,200 to 1,500 mg per day from food or
supplements) can help fend off aches.
Pine bark is also promising: A recent study in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine found that women
who took 60 mg of pycnogenol (pine bark) each day for three months reduced their cramps and breast
tenderness by up to 100 percent.
Similarly, 20 mg per day of Agnus castus (chaste tree fruit) extract has been shown to be more effective than widely prescribed fluoxitin
(Prozac) in treating the physical symptoms.
It was the day after Christmas at a church in San Francisco. Pastor Mike was looking at the nativity scene outside when he noticed the
baby Jesus was missing from the figures. Immediately, Pastor Mike turned towards the church to call the police. But as he was about
to do so, he saw little Jimmy with a red wagon, and in the wagon was the figure of the little infant Jesus.
Pastor Mike walked up to Jimmy and said, “Well, Jimmy, where did you get the little infant?” Jimmy replied, “I got him from the church.”
“And why did you take him?”
“With a sheepish smile, Jimmy said, “Well, about a week before Christmas I prayed to little Lord Jesus. I told him that if he would bring
me a red wagon for Christmas, I would give him a ride around the block in it.”
Serena Alberta Bulletin
Page 3
Serena (service for the regulation of natality) is a Canadian vol-
Serena Alberta
c/o Cyndi Hofmann
RR 4
Rimbey AB
T0C 2J0
Phone: 780-488-5221
or 1-866-488-5221
Fax: 403-843-3739
E-mail: [email protected]
www.serena-alberta.ca
unteer organization. It is an international leader in research and
instruction of the Sympto-Thermal method of natural family planning. Our volunteer teachers are nationally accredited couples that
are effectively and efficiently following the Sympto-Thermal
method. They teach and assist with chart interpretation and followup. Serena is dedicated to the promotion of married love and the
enrichment of family life, and it values life from conception.
Christmas Prayer
Just before Christmas, two brothers were spending the night at their
grandma’s house. At bed time, they knelt down to say their prayers.
As they closed their eyes, one boy said in a loud voice, “Dear Lord, please ask
Santa Claus to bring me a Wii, a telescope and a new bike.”
His older brother said, “Why are you shouting? God isn’t deaf.”
“I know,” said his brother, “but Grandma is.”
We’ve just received two new CD’s for our library—Sexual Honesty by Christopher West and Contraception: Why Not by Professor Janet E. Smith.
Please let us know if you would like to borrow one of these CD’s or anything
else from the library.
Spreading the S-T Message - Get Involved
There are many couples throughout Alberta who have yet to hear about
Serena but who are in search of what we promote. We are committed to
increasing the number of couples who know about and use NFP, but we
need your help!
There are many ways to promote and foster Serena and NFP in Alberta:
Promote NFP in your community (doctor’s office, health food store,
church), to friends and family - we have brochures as well as various
other materials available.
Become a certified Teacher-Couple.
Yes SERENA!!!
____We are interested in becoming a Teacher-Couple. Please send
us more information.
____We are interested in helping to promote Serena & NFP.
Please send us more information.
____Please use this donation to help Serena continue its services.
____Please add us to your email list.
____Please update our contact information.
Name:_____________________________________________
Support Serena with time and/or funds.
Join the Serena Alberta Board.
Serena will only grow and develop through the cumulative efforts of many
volunteers.
If you are interested in contributing in any way to Serena Alberta, please
complete the form to the right and send it in to Serena Alberta, c/o Cyndi
Hofmann, RR 4 Rimbey AB, T0C 2J0 or email us at [email protected].
Thank you for your consideration.
Discover why some of the richest people in the world are not millionaires,
they are volunteers.
Address:____________________________________________
City:_______________________________________________
Postal Code:_________________________________________
Telephone:__________________________________________
Email:______________________________________________
____Please delete us from your mailing list.
Forms can be mailed to Serena Alberta, c/o Cyndi Hofmann, RR 4
Rimbey AB, T0C 2J0,or emailed to [email protected].