International Abduction: Chasing the Cyclone by Peter THOMAS

Peter Thomas Senese went through the terrifying experience of having his son abducted by his ex-spouse and taken via Canada to New Zealand. In the process of winning his son back, he decided to write about his experience for the benefit of others. His book was entitled "Chasing the Cyclone" and he has now created a documentary.

Chasing Parents: Racing Into the Storms of International Parental Child Abduction' - What The World Needs To Know About International Parental Child Abduction.

(To find out more got to www.chasingthecyclone.com)

Lucy WARNER - A true story of parental separation and a lost childhood

Lucy WARNER contacted Real Fathers 4 Justice UK to offer her support to their campaign after years of alienation by her mum. After her mother passed away Lucy was eventually reconciled with her father, however they cannot replace the precious years that have been lost forever.

It is a touching story and again puts a personal face on the fallout from PAS.

Below is a brief excerpt of the intro, but to read the whole story you must go to the Real Fathers 4 Justice UK Blog.

www.realfathersforjustice.org

26 January 2010: A true story of parental separation and a lost childhood

From as far back as I can remember, family meant the world to me. I had an older half brother (from my mother), a twin sister, a baby brother and the two most important people in my world, my mum and dad.

I was as normal as any excitable little girl. As I grew up I realized not all mums and dads lived together. I was lucky mine did, not that it seemed to make much difference to my friends because many saw both parents despite being separated or divorced.

When I turned 12 my life changed, not because I was suddenly a teenager but because my mother had been diagnosed with terminal breast cancer.

Harsh as the situation was we tried to push through as a family.

Six months later my father left the family home.

He later said, “It was one of the worst times to leave”.

continued...

DIVORCE

Tough love from Texas

February 9, 2010Susan Pigg - LIVING REPORTER

When Richard Warshak whisked into Toronto last week from his native Texas, he brought along some tough-love advice for both divorcing parents and family court judges.

"Love your kids more than you hate your ex-spouse," the renowned expert on parental alienation said.

Be firm and fast at pushing toxic custody cases through the clogged courts, he advised judges attending a day-long seminar at the Four Seasons Hotel.

[continuted... ]

• Runs a PAS deprogramming service called "Family Bridges".
• Of the 23 kids he's personally helped reconnect with an alienated parent since 2005, 18 still maintain a relationship with both parents. Eight of those 23 children came from Canada.
• This spring he's coming out with a new, self-help DVD (Welcome Back Pluto, which he hopes to sell on his website www.warshak.com for $19.95 U.S.) for parents struggling to reconnect with kids who've been poisoned against them.
• Warshak has been training two Ontario psychologists to run the program in Canada and says a third is due to join him soon.
• "We find that most children under the age of 8 don't really need this kind of program to make the transition."

PAAD 2010 Volunteers Needed - Sat April 24

It is that time of year again.

2010 PAAD in Alberta will be Saturday April 24, 2010

I am hoping to organize the 3rd Parental Alienation Awareness Day (PAAD) Event in Edmonton and if volunteers flock to help me,coordinate other Events elsewhere in the province.

We are looking for volunteers to initiate a PAAD Event in Alberta community's or join one nearby. An event can be as simple or as complicated as you want (and your budget allows - as we have no funding, but we accept contributions). Our objective is to educate the general public about PA but how you do that is up to you.

Last year wasn't fancy. We set-up a display table with a PAAO Banner, various PAS reference, books, had some DVD's on the laptop and began handing out (b&w photocopied) PAAO pamphlets at Edmonton's Old Strathcona Farmers Market near Whyte Ave. Alot of people welcomed the opportunity to learn about PAS. It is an issue that many struggle to understand.

Since that event we have soldiered on gathering supporters across the province. They include many targeted parents, some "stranded" grandparents, adult "survivors" of PAS, Second Wives and others. Let's take advantage of recent Parliamentary action on C422 to focus attention on PAS and PA behaviours.

By concentrating our message about PAS for ONE DAY GLOBALLY we hope to breach the wall of official indifference about such child abuse.

To volunteer, please sign-in using this form. Our success depends on having "slack" resources as not every community can support an Event. Since your candour will not be ruthlessly exploited please be generous with your intentions. We hope to have Event Leaders/ Locations
after Feb 27 and updates will be emailed as required. Non-Alberta volunteers can check for other Events at www.PAawarenessDAY.org.

Regards,
Christopher JONES
Team Leader - Alberta
E albertapaao [at] mail.com

Online Webminars by PAAO

Parental Alienation Webinars 2010

PAAO (The Parental Alienation Awareness Organization) is proud to sponsor a series of webinars. Please fill out the information below in order to register. (To participate all you need is your web browser and your computer speakers.)



Dates: February 8, 9 & 10, 2010

Where: On the Internet!

Cost: $10/webinar

$50 for all webinars.

(Members get a discount - $40 for all webinars for Gold Members. Refunded $10 once you sign up.



February 8, 2010

1 PM - 2:30 PM EST - Dr. Reena Sommer - Custody Battle First Aid Kit

<http://www.drreenasommer.com/a_profile.html>

3:30 PM - 5:00 PM EST - Jeff Parks - TBD

February 9, 2010

11:00 AM - 12:30 PM EST - Dr. Michael Bone

<http://jmbconsulting.org/cv.htm> - Dealing with Parental Alienation; Remedies and Treatments

2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST - Dr. Ken Lewis - TBD

3:30 AM - 5:00 PM EST - Charlie Asher

<http://www.uptoparents.org/> - Draining the Swamps: Reducing the

Parent Thoughts and Legal Processes that Nourish Parental Alienation

6:00 PM - 7:30 PM EST - Brian Ludmer - Legal perspectives on Parental Alienation

February 10, 2010

2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST - Dr. Jayne Major - The Pathology of an Alienator

For more info/sign-up goto:

http://www.paawareness.org/webinarsignup022010.asp

Grandparents Requesting Access and Dignity (GRAND) Society

I came across this article in The Victoria Colonist (BC) that mentions the "echo" impact of PAS on grandparents who no longer see their grandkids. It quoted a group called GRAND of Ontario that has been lobbying on the issue.

On visiting their website blog they have come up with the term GAS (Grandparent Alienation Syndrome) - which I thought was very unique.

For more info goto:

http://cangrands.com

Fictional Portrayal of PAS in "The Look of Love"

"The Look of Love" by Jill Egizii

Although I have my doubts about the appeal of this novel to men, it will likely not deter women and may provide them insights into the harm and danger of PAS as well as entertainment.

[The title, "The Look of Love" was also name of a wonderful tune composed in 1967 by hit songwriter duo, Burt BACHARACH and Hal DAVID for soundtrack of James Bond movie "Casino Royale" starring Peter SELLERS and Ursula ANDRESS (also featured "What's new Pussycat" by Tom JONES). It has become well loved hit in many genre's - bossa nova, jazz, soul, pop and rap - by such stars as a Nina SIMONE, Sergio MENDEZ, Issac HAYES, Dionne WARWICK, (our own) Diane KRALL and JayZ.]

Dr. Richard WARSHAK on ABC 20/20 - Fri Dec 18

DR. WARSHAK ON ABC 20/20

Friday, December 18, 2009

9-11 p.m. ET; 8-10 p.m. CT

On Friday, December 18, ABC 20/20 will present the fascinating story of an international abduction case involving an alienated child. In preparation for this show, I was interviewed by Chris Cuomo.

During the second taping, I had an opportunity to demonstrate some of the procedures used during Family Bridges: A Workshop for Troubled and Alienated Parent-Child Relationships.

I expect this show to have a major impact in educating the public about the suffering of children who have been turned against a parent, and about what can be done to help ease a child's transition back to a rejected parent.

Please mark your calendars. Note that on December 18, 20/20 begins one hour earlier than usual and runs for two hours. The segment in which I am involved is scheduled for the first hour, although this is subject to change.

If you enjoyed the show, please leave your comments at: http://abcnews.go.com/2020.

Article: Children torn by divorce

This article in BC's Vernon Morning Star is notable just because of the issue is receiving attention.

Many of the points made about PAS are well known to us all.

I maintain that adoption of the current legislation before Parliament - Bill C422 - proposing an Equal Parenting Amendment to the Divorce Act would solve alot of the issues that enable PAS to flourish. The legal "winner take all" battle often encouraged by lawyers acting for both parties. They get paid no matter what. I read a comment about this article that concluded:

All of this should be attended, less by attorneys and more by psychologists and social workers who have the best interests of the child as their goal and the understanding that children generally fare better when raised by two biological parents.

I agree.

Lobby Campaign to have PAS included in DSM-V

Glenn Sacks is asking for support in lobbying the DSM-V Task Force to add PAS to the upcoming DSM-V. As he says:

A group of 50 mental health experts from 10 countries are part of an effort to add Parental Alienation to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V), the American Psychiatric Association's "bible" of diagnoses.

Fathers & Families wants to ensure that the DSM-V Task Force is aware of the scope and severity of Parental Alienation. To this end, we are asking our members and supporters to write DSM. If you or someone you love has been the victim of Parental Alienation, we want you to tell your story to the DSM-V Task Force.

All you have to do is click here to be taken to a data input form and enter your contact info, as well as your own personal story. Letters of support will be printed and mailed.