Bridge of Hope Recovery

Host a Meeting

Meetings exist because someone decided to run one. That someone can be you.

Who can host

Any verified member with no negative marks on their record can become a host. That is the full list of requirements.

You do not need a clinical background. You do not need a specific trauma history. You do not need to have hosted before or to know exactly what you are doing. You need to show up, read the Safe Communication Boundaries at the start of every meeting, and hold space for other people doing the same work you are doing.

The peer who has been in recovery for three years and the person who just got through something hard last month are both qualified to hold space for someone who needs to be heard. Lived experience is what this fellowship runs on.

What you are responsible for

When you host a meeting, you are responsible for everything that happens in it. Bridge of Hope Recovery is a fellowship of peers. We are not an organization and we do not manage meetings, spaces, or outcomes. You are a peer holding space for other peers. That is the full scope of what you are, and it matters enormously.

Your conference call account

Bridge of Hope Recovery does not provide conference lines. You obtain and maintain your own free conferencing account and provide your own dial-in number, access code, mute code, and any other connection details. This keeps the fellowship free in perpetuity and puts you in full control of your own meetings.

We recommend freeconferenceusa.com for free conference lines with no time limits. Setup takes about five minutes and the account is yours to keep.

  1. Go to freeconferenceusa.com and click Sign Up. Registration is free and takes about two minutes.
  2. After signing in, your dial-in number and access code will appear on your dashboard under Account Info.
  3. Your moderator access code lets you control the call. Your participant access code is what you share with attendees.
  4. To mute all participants at once, press *5 on your keypad. To unmute all, press *5 again.
  5. Individual participants can mute and unmute themselves by pressing *6 on their keypad.
  6. Enter these details when you create your meeting in the calendar. Members will receive them when they view the event while logged in.

Your video meeting account

If you host a video meeting, you obtain and maintain your own free video account and provide the meeting link and any access code.

Zoom's free account allows group meetings of up to 40 minutes per session. If your meetings run longer, a paid Zoom account costs approximately $17 per month and removes the time limit.

Cameras are optional for all participants. No one is ever required to appear on video.

Recording of any kind is strictly prohibited in every meeting on every platform, including video recordings, audio recordings, screenshots, and any other form of capture. This applies to conference call meetings, video meetings, and in-person meetings without exception.

  1. Go to zoom.us/signup and create a free account with your email address.
  2. After signing in, click "New Meeting" from your home screen to start an instant meeting, or click "Schedule" to set up a recurring one.
  3. Under Schedule, set your meeting to Recurring and choose the days and times that match your meeting schedule.
  4. Check "Require meeting passcode" and set a simple passcode. You will enter this when creating your meeting in the calendar.
  5. Save the meeting. Zoom will give you a meeting link and a passcode. Copy both into the calendar when you add your meeting.
  6. Before each meeting, click "Start" in Zoom to open the room. Participants join through the link you provided.
  1. Sign in at zoom.us or open the Zoom desktop app.
  2. Click Schedule from the home screen to plan your meeting in advance.
  3. Give your meeting a topic that describes the group, such as "Open Share, Monday evenings."
  4. Set the date, start time, and expected duration.
  5. If your meeting repeats, check Recurring meeting and choose your pattern, for example weekly on the same day. Set the end date to No Fixed End Date if the meeting runs indefinitely.
  6. Under Security, make sure Passcode is checked and enter a simple passcode that attendees will type to join.
  7. Click Save. Zoom will display your meeting details including the join link and your passcode. Copy both so you have them ready for the next step.
  1. Go to the Calendar page and click the button to add a new meeting.
  2. Select Video / Zoom as the meeting type.
  3. Paste your Zoom join link (it looks like https://zoom.us/j/123456789) into the Meeting Link field.
  4. Paste your passcode into the Access Code field.
  5. Fill in the rest of your meeting details and submit. Members who are logged in will see your link and passcode when they view your event on the calendar.

Your meeting space (in-person hosts)

If you are hosting an in-person meeting, you are responsible for finding, arranging, and securing an appropriate space. This means confirming the location is available, ensuring it is physically safe and accessible, and managing whatever arrangements the venue requires. Bridge of Hope Recovery does not source, book, fund, or take responsibility for meeting spaces.

When you approach a library, church, or community center, the venue flyer explains who we are and what a meeting needs. Print it and leave it with them.

Print the venue flyer

A note on anonymity

In-person meetings build some of the deepest community connections in this fellowship. They are also the format where anonymity is hardest to protect, for you and for everyone who walks through the door. As the host, you are the person setting the tone. Remind your attendees that what they see in the room stays in the room. Use community names only. And be thoughtful about how and where you promote your meeting, because the people who show up are trusting that the space is as safe as you said it would be.

Reading the Safe Communication Boundaries

Members agree to the community rules when they register, and the full Community Rules are available on the site. In meetings, you read the Safe Communication Boundaries aloud at the start of every meeting, every time, without exception. Phone meetings, video meetings, in-person meetings, open share meetings. Every one. Every time.

You read the shortened version, which will be included in every meeting script. After reading it, let attendees know the full Safe Communication Boundaries are available on the site.

This is not optional and it is not skippable for returning members. New people may be joining who have not attended before. Returning members benefit from the reminder. The reading takes a few minutes and it creates the container that makes everything that follows possible.

Prayer and faith-based content

Hosts may open and close meetings with a prayer only in meetings explicitly marked as Faith-based. The Serenity Prayer is the one exception. It may be said in any meeting and is always optional.

Upholding the boundaries during your meeting

You have the authority to mute participants, remove participants, or end the meeting if the safety of the space is at risk. You are not required to warn before acting when safety is the concern. Your authority in the meeting is final.

If you believe someone in your meeting may be in immediate danger, encourage them to call 988 or their local emergency number. You are a peer, not a crisis counselor, and your responsibility ends at that encouragement.

Showing up

When you create a meeting, members schedule their time around it. If you cannot run a meeting you have scheduled, cancel it in advance so members are not left waiting. Consistent no-shows are reported and reviewed the same way any other conduct issue is. Enough confirmed no-shows and hosting privileges are suspended.

If something comes up and you cannot make it, you can designate a co-host who takes over in your absence. A co-host must also meet the hosting eligibility requirements.

What your meeting can look like

When you create a meeting you choose a format. The format shapes the middle section of your script. The opening, Safe Communication Boundaries, and closing are the same for every format. Your personal pre-filled script lives on your My Hosted Meetings page, behind the first icon on each meeting card.

Book Workshop

A discussion or exercise built around a book, workbook, article, or written resource. The host will read a passage and then open the floor for 5-minute shares about how that passage reached them. When the sharing goes quiet, the host will pick up and read more. This will continue until the end of the meeting. The meetings can take several weeks to complete a book. Progress bars and page numbers are provided so you can pick up immediately.

Open Share

Members take 5-minute shares on whatever is on their minds as long as it pertains to your trauma or the effects it has had on your life. No specific topic or focus.

Empty Chair

A guided technique where participants take 5-minute shares to place a person in the empty chair and speak to them to address unfinished conversations. Speak to a lost loved one, or confront a person who hurt you. Say the things you have not had a chance to say to whoever you need to without fear or confrontation.

Speaking My Story

Members take turns sharing their stories in 5-minute increments while others witness. You can start at the beginning, the end, the middle, whatever part of your story you need to share. Speaking our story out loud kills the shame and puts the accountability where it belongs.

Meditation or Other Technique

A guided meditation, breathing practice, or other technique led by the host.

Skills Workshop

A coping skill or strategy is introduced, practiced, and briefly discussed.

Art

A creative prompt or exercise using visual art as the vehicle for expression and sharing.

Music

A piece of music or theme is introduced and used as a starting point for reflection and sharing.

Exercise

A movement-based practice led by the host at participants' own pace.

Writing

The host offers a few topics and participants are given time to write on whichever one calls to them. The floor then opens for 5-minute shares to read what they wrote. No writing experience needed. This is not about craft, it is about getting it out.

12-Step

A step study meeting for members who also work a program in an outside fellowship such as AA, CoDA, SIA, or Al-Anon. The host names which fellowship's steps the meeting follows, and either works one step at a time or rotates through them. Members take 5-minute shares on where they are with that step and what it is bringing up. You do not need to belong to that fellowship to come. Bridge of Hope is not affiliated with any of them, and no fellowship's literature is provided here. Bring your own.

Host Choice

The host designs the middle of the meeting however they choose. The only requirement is that the opening and closing scripts are read. If you have an idea for a format not listed here, this is your space to try it.

Creating your meeting

Once your hosting eligibility is confirmed, you can create a meeting from the Calendar page. You can edit, pause, or delete your meetings from your My Meetings page. When creating a meeting you will provide:

  • The meeting name and a brief description of the focus
  • The date, time, and expected duration
  • The format: phone, video, or in-person
  • For phone meetings: your dial-in number, access code, and mute code
  • For video meetings: your meeting link and any access code
  • For in-person meetings: the address of your location
  • Whether the meeting is recurring or a one-time event

Once submitted, your meeting appears on the fellowship calendar and verified members can see the connection details.

Ready to host?

If you meet the eligibility requirements and you are ready to hold space for this community, we are glad you are here.

You need a verified member account to become a host. Joining takes two minutes and costs nothing.

Become a Member