[del677]

Best wishes! I do hope this club idea works! Sounds like it could help a lot of people.

One suggestion to help keep order is to have some guidelines on how we expect people to behave which you go over at some time at every meeting. This can help when someone becomes unruly, as you'll have already established the guidelines and by repeating them at every meeting it helps establish them and then others will help out if someone gets out of line. Keep the guidelines short enough that it doesn't take up much time. Possible items to include are: Respect; Confidentiality; silence your cell phone; no direct advice giving (save it for after the meeting), however you can talk about your own experiences and what you did in a similar situation, which is sort of a sideways giving of advice, but it's not specifically presented as advice. (No "Shoulds"). No discussing Religion or Politics.

Just having people together is what makes it work. It really doesn't matter what people do or talk about, or what activity they participate in, as long as they are doing it together as a group. That's the secret. And listening. When someone talks, everyone else politely listens. No side conversations allowed when someone is talking.

I'm excited for your endeavor! Best wishes!