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State of the Organization and History of Evergreen International, Inc.

Report from the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Larry Richman
Delivered Saturday, September 17, 2005 at the 15th Annual Evergreen conference

As is tradition at this awards dinner, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees gives a State of the Organization message to share with you the organization’s plans and also to provide accountability to you for what’s happened the past year. But we’re going to change the format a little this year. Since it’s Evergreen’s 15th annual conference, we would like to celebrate the events not just of the past year, but of the past 15 years—in fact, 16 years since the organization began.

If the history of Evergreen International were ever published, it would be a multi-volume set of stories of courage and faith and service that would be very uplifting and inspiring. Throughout the conference this weekend, you’ve heard from many men and women of courage who are applying gospel principles to the everyday challenges of life.

The Beginning

Evergreen was founded 16 years ago. If you measure that time in terms of the growth of individuals, it was an eternity ago. But in many ways, it was just yesterday. In the summer of 1989 in Salt Lake City, eleven LDS men who struggled with same-sex attraction came together and on July 12 formed a support group. They believed that homosexual behavior was not in keeping with the gospel of Christ. They were not satisfied with either of the two choices that presented themselves: (1) setting aside their spiritual beliefs by accepting a gay identity or (2) suppressing their sexual feelings. As they searched for answers, they were intrigued by the early success of Frank Worthen and other Christians who had formed “ex-gay” support groups. They read the few books available at that time that suggested that homosexuality could be overcome by discovering and resolving the underlying causes. In 1989, there were really only three books that spoke to this theme:

  • Homosexuality: A New Christian Ethic by Elizabeth Moberly
  • Homosexuality & Hope by Gerard van den Aardweg
  • You Don’t Have to be Gay by Jeff Konrad

Although these books existed, they were not found in most bookstores. At that time, a couple of dozen men met once a week in the basement of a business in Salt Lake City.

The First Conference

In May 1990, the small group, named the Evergreen Foundation, boldly sponsored a conference to publicly attest to their belief and hope. They brought in two out-of-town speakers: Joe Dallas (ex-gay leader and author of several books, including Desires in Conflict) and Jeff Konrad (the author of You Don't Have to be Gay). On Friday, May 4th, they held a full-day conference in the Marriott Hotel for themselves and the few therapists who worked with them on developing a healthy male identity. Saturday was a half-day seminar at the Bryant Intermediate School for men, spouses, parents, and Church leaders. For Saturday night, they advertised a free public lecture on the University of Utah campus.

The conference enraged local gay groups who quickly spoke up in the media. That Sunday morning, Jeff Konrad appeared on the television show Take2 with Rod Decker. Articles appeared in local newspapers—in fact, full-page articles. These stories were picked up by the Associated Press and UPI and were published in newspapers throughout the United States and in other countries. Some of the men in the group were invited to appear on local television and radio programs, some were invited to the Phil Donahue Show, and Jeff Konrad appeared on Larry King Live on CNN. This prompted heated public debate over the possibility of growth out of same-sex attraction. It also inspired interest by those who felt the truth of the principles we were talking about.

Moving On

The week after the conference, they divided the 40 men who were attending into four chapters: Salt Lake, Salt Lake South, Utah County, and Davis County North. They later structured Evergreen with a beginning level named Crossroad, an intermediate level named Steps, and an advanced level called The Highway. The annual conferences continued and the chapters continued to grow. We published a Participant’s Introduction and Guide and a Chapter Leadership Handbook with policies and guidelines on how to run the chapters. Chapters were also formed for spouses and for family and friends of those struggling.

Incorporation

Two and a half years later, it was decided to formalize the organization. On November 12, 1992, Evergreen International, Inc. was incorporated in the State of Utah as a non-profit organization. The three who signed the incorporating documents issued a written statement that reflects the spiritual insight of these early pioneers. I call them pioneers because they were truly plowing unknown ground. Let me read a few excerpts from that statement.

“Having set forth our names publicly in the incorporating documents of the organization, we wish to state our hopes, vision, and expectations for the organization for the consideration of those others who work within it. We consider our work in Evergreen to be the most important contribution we have made to society in our lives thus far…”

“We believe that the scope and progress of our work is not just of interest to us and a few other men, but is a matter of importance to God and is part of His plan to offer repentance and a fullness of joy to all His children. The Board of Trustees must always remember that we have been placed in a world overflowing with need; that we have been given agency and the opportunity to act; [and] that the power is in us to bring to pass much righteousness…”

They also offered a dedicatory prayer, from which I’d like to quote:

“We dedicate this corporation, which we have called Evergreen International, to thee for the furtherance of thy work… We dedicate the meetings, the activities, the publications, the conferences, all of our communications and community outreach, all of the financial and human resources, the work of each chapter and the Board of Trustees. All of these things and all of the future works of this corporation we dedicate to thee, without reservation, for the furtherance of thy work.

“We give thee thanks for…living in a time of great knowledge…that the knowledge of reparative therapy for homosexuality has come to each of us. We thank thee individually for the extent to which we have allowed these principles to heal us and cleans us. We thank thee for the intelligence, research, and revelation, and for the diligence and sacrifice of those who have pioneered this cause and brought it forth. We pray that thou wilt shower forth blessings upon their heads for their good works….

“Father, we acknowledge thy influence in the creation of this organization and its development over time to the point of its legal incorporation. We acknowledge thy influence in the gathering together of the men and women who have possessed the skills necessary to bring it forth, and we acknowledge thee as the source of our knowledge concerning how to go about this work.

“We recognize that we live in the dispensation of the fullness of times, and we recognize that the work of Evergreen is part of the full flowering of the gospel, which has been spoken of by modern prophets. We commit ourselves to do thy work. We commit to always seek to know thy will through thy spirit.

“We now unitedly ask thee to open every necessary door for this organization as soon as we are ready to receive each advancement and blessing…. We ask thee to fill our minds with inspiration that each one serving here might know how to proceed with his assignment.  Increase our capacity to serve….

“We petition thee on behalf of our brothers and sisters who struggle with homosexuality, to open the heavens and send down angels to minister to those who desire to repent. Whisper to their minds and suggest in their hearts knowledge of what they must do. Fill their souls with courage and strength to face evil darkness and tear it from their lives. We plead with thee to comfort and reassure those whose hearts are ready to faint, those in whom the light of Christ is nearly extinguished, and those whose lives have been devastated or lost through a course of error. And bless all of the loved ones who mourn and suffer because of this evil.

“… we dedicate all our efforts to thee and defer to thee alone all glory and gratitude. Let this work go forward without impedance and without delay from this moment, in the name of Jesus Christ, whose atonement alone makes this work possible, Amen.”

More Growth

In 1992, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints published guidelines for Church leaders on how to counsel and help.

The next year, the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists held a conference about same-sex attraction and published the talks in their journal. This was the most comprehensive collection of LDS information about same-sex attraction published up to that time, and it was sold at Deseret Book for years.

In 1994, the first LDS book about same-sex attraction was published: Born That Way? by Erin Eldridge. Some of you know Erin, who spoke at this conference last year.

In 1994, there were 14 Evergreen chapters (10 for men, 1 for spouses, and 3 for friends & family). Two of the men’s chapters were international (in Canada and Australia).

At the annual conference in August 1994, a master business plan was presented, which included plans for a paid executive director and secretary. For four years up to that time, one valiant soul had answered the phone, retrieved the mail, and filled book orders from a back room at his place of business. Now, thanks to a self-less contributor, Evergreen had the funds to hire a part-time executive director. David Pruden was hired in December 1994, and for the next four years operated Evergreen from his existing office.

      In 1997, four more LDS books were published.

  • A Place in the Kingdom: Spiritual Insights from Latter-day Saints about Same-Sex Attraction

  • Resolving Homosexual Problems: A Guide for LDS Men

  • Helping LDS Men Resolve their Homosexual Problems: A Guide for Family, Friends, and Church Leaders

  • and a 50-page booklet entitled Understanding Male Homosexual Problems: An Introduction for Latter-day Saints.

The next year, we published the Evergreen Workbook for Men.

That same year, the first group for female strugglers was begun in conjunction with LDS Social Services. And the following year, Evergreen began concentrating efforts on developing programs and resources to help women strugglers.

By November 1998, it was determined that Evergreen could no longer directly supervise its chapters and instead encouraged support groups to be developed and supported locally. We provided suggestions on how to organize and run support groups and established minimum criteria a group had to comply with to maintain an affiliate support group status, meaning that the group is on Evergreen’s list and we refer people to it.

Office

Evergreen opened its first dedicated office on February 1, 1999 at 211 East 300 South. The office was manned by volunteers working under the direction of David Pruden. The office had a walk-in bookstore, provided meeting space for a variety of group activities and training meetings, and increased our ability to meet the growing number of requests for educational materials and information. A year later, we had the funds for paid office staff. In February 2005, the office was moved to its present location at the Crane Building at 307 West 200 South.

Evergreen Priorities

In June 2000, the Board of Trustees sharpened the focus of the organization by identifying three priorities: (1) be a referral service, (2) develop resources, and (3) provide education. Let me mention some of the things we do under these three categories, and give a history of what’s happened with each.

1. Referral service

  • We maintain a network of therapists and affiliate groups to whom we can refer people for help. Over the years, we have developed the world’s largest database of this kind, with information on hundreds of therapists, LDS Family Services agencies, support groups, and other organizations that can help.

  • We provide phone support. Over the past 15 years, we’ve probably answered 36,000 calls.

  • We nurture and provide help to groups. That one group in 1989 grew to four in a year. And four years later, there were 14. Six years later, the 14 had doubled to 28.  Three years later, the number had almost doubled again to 47. There were 36 groups for men (including 6 international), 2 for women, 1 for spouses, and 8 for friends and family. We also have two Internet groups: one for affiliate group leaders and another for Spanish speakers, which has 75 members from nearly 20 countries. A year ago, we decided to begin referring to the affiliate support groups as growth and accountability groups to emphasize the correct role of these groups.

  • The first Evergreen Web site began in October 1996 as a few simple pages on AOL. In the year 2000, a much larger Web site was created under the name www.Evergreen-intl.org, including an online bookstore. Two years ago, we completed a major enhancement of the Web site and acquired the domain name www.Evergreeninternational.org. The new site has all the current Evergreen publications, scores of testimonies and life stories, current and past events, newsletters, links to many resources, and a section “The Way Out” with hundreds of pages of resources for men, women, families, Church leaders, support groups, and therapists. Since its inception in 1996, our Web sites have received 80,000 visits and those visitors have viewed half a million pages.

2. Resources

  • We have published a quarterly newsletter since 1994. A few months ago, we began an e-mail subscription service to distribute the newsletters electronically to reduce printing costs. Those who sign up also receive monthly information by e-mail, such as major additions to the Web site; new products added to the bookstore; announcements of events, such as conferences and firesides; and major news events about same-sex attraction. We now have 350 signed up.

  • We maintain a library at the headquarters office, which any of you are welcome to use. Three years ago, the library was merged with a personal donation, and it was named the Charles W. Socarides Library, a collection of nearly 500 books, articles, research papers, and audiovisual materials.

  • Over the past 15 years, we have provided over 10,000 information packets to interested individuals and Church leaders and we’ve sold over 20,000 books and other materials.

  • We have also encouraged independent writing in magazines and books and have helped authors get nine books and booklets published.

 3. Education

  • We have held 15 annual conferences, which have been attended by over 5,000 people. They have included major addresses by 10 general authorities, numerous world-renowned speakers, and hundreds of workshops.

  • Every year, we hold numerous firesides and training meetings.

  • We maintain close relations with the Church. Our Board of Trustees always includes one or more emeritus General Authorities and we continue to meet every year with Area Presidencies and other Church leaders. Upon request, we provide training to stake and ward leaders. Over the 15 years, we have trained nearly 10,000 Church leaders.

  • We also maintain relationships with other community organizations. Two years ago, we joined with other faith-based associations such as Exodus, Courage, Jonah, NARTH, and PFOX to form PATH (Positive Alternatives to Homosexuality), a non-profit coalition of organizations who have goals similar to ours. (See www.pathinfo.org).  The purpose of this umbrella organization is to leverage our efforts and learn from each other’s successes.

  • We encourage therapist training and development and have directly trained hundreds of therapists. For a year and a half, we sponsored the Center for the Study of Gender-Affirmative Therapy, which held an all-day clinical training conference attended by more than 100 professional therapists and counselors.

International

When we added the word “International” to the name of the organization in 1992, it represented a dream and a belief that assisting those with same-sex attraction issues would someday reach beyond the western states to help individuals throughout the world. That started to become a reality beginning in 2000. The three Jason Park books have been published in Spanish. Other materials and parts of the Web site were translated into Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, and other languages. Evergreen leaders have met personally with Area Presidencies, stake and ward leaders, and therapists throughout Latin America, Europe, and the Pacific Islands. Scores of Evergreen participants regularly communicate with one another in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and German. And since the year 2000, the Evergreen conferences have attracted participants from outside the United States.

We began a Spanish support group in Salt Lake City last year. A missionary couple has spent the last year in Mexico City laying the groundwork for a future LDS Family Services office there. At the end of this month, they will hold a training conference for local therapists on the subject of same-sex attraction.

We need your help

What can you do to help accomplish Evergreen’s mission? Let me mention just a few ideas that require very little time or money but can have a significant impact, especially if we all do our part.

Financial support

You don't have to be rich to help. This work relies on small and large donations from people just like you. You can make one-time donations, set up monthly contributions by direct deposit, or indicate “Evergreen International” on your United Way donation form. Your employer may even match your contributions or make a contribution themselves. You can donate appreciated stock and avoid paying capital gains tax. You can even leave assets to the organization in your will.

I assure you that financial procedures are in place to ensure that funds are handled appropriately and that expenses are approved and monitored by the Board of Trustees.

 Volunteer

I've mentioned tonight some of the things Evergreen is involved in. It's a great burden for a few people, but very manageable when many people are involved. If you have a few hours a month you could devote to this important work, please contact the office to volunteer.

 Speak Up

There are also many day-to-day things we can do to educate our families, our wards, and the community about same-sex attraction. Don’t be afraid to speak up and correct any misunderstandings of people around you. Ask your ward or stake if they’d like some training.

 Faith and prayers

Your faith and prayers have an amazing effect on how this work moves forward. We believe that God wants this work to move forward and will bless us as we are ready to make things happen. As an organization, we commit to follow the direction of His prophet without reservation or exception.

We are living in an evil world where Satan has captured the hearts, and minds, and values of many people. We need to be stronger than ever to choose wisely in a world where people “call evil good, and good evil” (2 Nephi 15:20).

The Lord has promised us that as we “search diligently, pray always, and be believing, . . . all things [will] work together for [our] good” (D&C 90:24). As Sister Elaine Dalton explained, “That doesn't mean that everything will be perfect or that we will not have any trials, but it does mean that everything will be okay if we just 'hang in there.' Ours is the opportunity to 'be . . . an example of the believers' (1 Timothy 4:12), and the Savior has promised that 'all things are possible to him that believeth' (Mark 9:23). So believe in yourselves. Believe that you are never alone.  Believe that you will always be guided" ("Believe!" Ensign, May 2004, 110).

"When the challenges of mortality come, and they come for all of us, it may seem hard to have faith and hard to believe. At these times only faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement can bring us peace, hope, and understanding. Only faith that He suffered for our sakes will give us the strength to endure to the end. When we gain this faith, we experience a mighty change of heart, and like Enos, we become stronger and begin to feel a desire for the welfare of our brothers and sisters.” (Robert D. Hales, "Finding Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ," Ensign, Nov. 2004, 73.)

May we pray for our brothers and sisters—and for ourselves—that we will be lifted and strengthened through faith on the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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