IT WAS 30 YEARS AGO TODAY.. Started The First C.A.S.A. Meeting (Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous)
by Terrence Shulman
Excerpt from my book Something for Nothing: Shoplifting Addiction and Recovery (2003)…
In April 1992, I got a call from a friend who wanted me to take a weekend seminar called “The Forum.” It was a spin-off of the est training which I had taken at age 15 while in high school. I thought to myself -“been there, done that”–but my friend’s excitement drew me in. I knew I was in a rut and needed some kind of jump start. The est training had challenged my beliefs and stories about my life and exposed what kept me stuck in the past. But I think I was too young to get it. I decided to attend a free introduction to “The Forum.” I knew there was more to life than what I was experiencing. I signed up.
The course helped get me out of my shell. I started to meet new people and it occurred to me that I was still on the pity pot, still feeling like a victim and still feeling that life was unfair. That old tape. It gave me some breathing space to look at my life. I took a few more seminars and became more energized, more hopeful. I’d stopped shoplifting by this point but knew I still had to keep an eye on it. I was taking my life to the next level.
In July and August, I took the fourth and final seminar in the main series: “Self-expression and Leadership.” It got me to look at where I am and can be a leader in my life, what my passion is, what I’m good at, and what motivates me. Each participant was asked to create a project in his community which expressed his deepest and most authentic concern, passion or contribution. I remember racking my brain, asking myself: what can I give to the community, I don’t have any passion? And then it hit me: I thought, “Right now, I’m passionate about my recovery and stopping shoplifting.” Was this the opportunity to start the shoplifters recovery group I felt I still needed and which I was sure others could benefit from?
And so, C.A.S.A. (Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous) was born.
I did the footwork and, in September 1992, started the group. I secured a meeting room at the church where I attended my S.O.S. meetings. A respected member of that group vouched for my character as I figured the church folks might be a little nervous about a recovering shoplifters group meeting in their building. To my surprise, they were very supportive.
Because I was a newly practicing attorney I sent notices to the courts but didn’t put my name or phone number on the flyers. I was afraid of being associated with the group. I naively invited a newspaper reporter to our first meeting to help publicize our group but nobody showed up that first night. She interviewed me but wouldn’t write a story about the group until there actually was a group. I begged her to write it so we could get the word out but she wouldn’t.
I was ready to give up…
For fourteen consecutive weeks I showed up on Wednesday nights. Nobody else did. I was ready to give up. I called a couple of the courts back to see why they weren’t sending people to the group. One court clerk summed it up, saying “Oh, yeah, we got your notice but we thought it was a hoax. A group for Shoplifters? And thre was no name or phone number on it” I hit my head and realize I had to go out on a limb a lot more or give up.
The court clerk gave me the number of a local therapist who’d given a recent presentation on shoplifting for the courts. His name was Steve Campbell. I called and went to visit him. He was a tall trim man in his late 40’s with a shock of whitish hair and a busy grey mustache. I felt at ease with him immediately. He was impressed with my story and my attempt to start a group. I realized I still had so much to work on emotionally. He introduced me to men’s group work which became a big part of my life. I met men who were working on father issues, recovery issues, grief issues, life issues. I moved out of my mother’s and into a house in a trendy part of town with three bud- dies. Juniper had moved back home out of state.
The day after Christmas, I managed to get an article about C.A.S.A. in the Detroit Free Press. They tied it into the holiday season and how there’s a great increase in shoplifting and shoplifting arrests at that time of year. People began trickling into the group. Before long we had a core group of about five or six people. Finally, I met people who had the same problem I had. It was the first time in my life that I felt good about helping others. And I was getting the help I needed….
First Article about C.A.S.A. in The Detroit Free Press Wednesday December 23, 1992: Shoplifters’ Group Fights Obsession (Retailers Say They Lose Billions to Theft) by Marian Dozier
It was a rough time for Rudolph, that March of 1990.
His girlfriend had left him, his father was deathly ill, and his second year at Detroit College of Law was dragging on, unsteady and uninspiring.
As he’d done countless times before–almost without thinking–he headed out to steal something. This time it was a bottle of champagne under his coat. This time he was caught–and arrested.
“I was so disappointed with my life. Taking things always provided a fix almost, a thrill, a feeling of power at times when I was feeling powerless,” said Rudolph, 27, now rehabilitated and a lawyer at a downtown Detroit firm. “It wasn’t about the champagne; it was about dealing with the background issues of life. I couldn’t.”
Rudolph, not is real name, says he is a kleptomaniac-a person whose thefts aren’t criminally motivated but prompted by the inability to handle emotions that surface in everyday life.
With the support of his psychotherapist, Steve Campbell, who specializes in impulse disorders, Rudolph started CASA–Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous–a support group for people obsessed with stealing. So far, his group has just four members, but Rudolph has been contacting district courts in Wayne and Oakland counties, asking officials to tell people who need help about CASA.
This is a good time to reach out: Retail experts say that 45% of all shoplifting is done during the Christmas season. Most thieves are not kleptomaniacs.
Shoplifting occurs year-round. Through the first 10 months of this year at Oakland and Somerset Malls alone, 441 people were arrested for shoplifting, said Troy police Lt. William Tullock. Monthly arrests for November and December likely will be about 15% higher than for the average month, Tullock said.
“Shoplifting is a serious crime. And the funny thing about it is that everyone thinks it’s penny-ante,” said Chris Kindsvatter, president of the Michigan Merchants Council. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”
Retail fraud adds up to an annual $35-billion annual loss nationwide–$3-billion in Michigan alone according to Merchant Council figures.
Only a fraction of that loss is from people like Rudolph, people who steal for the distraction from their said Campbell whose practice is in Clawson. “They are lonely, or angry, or depressed; when they’re they’re shoplifting, there’s relief. Shoplifting becomes a fix for those emotions.”
CASA meets Wednesday nights from 7:30-9:30pm at the Northwest Unitarian Universalist Church at 23925 Northwestern Hwy Service Dr. in Southfield. Meetings are free, safe, confidential, and anonymous. For more information, call 399-9317.
MY RECENT INTERVIEW with Subkit’s Evelyn Wiseman on How I Started The Shulman Center
Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in mental wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Terrence Shulman, Founder of The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending and Hoarding, located in Southfield, MI, USA.
What’s your business, and who are your customers?
I founded The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending, and Hoarding here in metro Detroit in 2004. As a licensed social worker and certified addictions counselor, I offer sensitive, specialized, and effective short-term to longer-term addiction-recovery therapy for persons who struggle with compulsive stealing (particularly shoplifting and/or employee theft), compulsive shopping/spending, and/or compulsive hoarding disorder. My clients are diverse and can access my services virtually (by phone or video chat) no matter where they live. I also provide education and resources to loved ones and the general public through my websites, books, consulting, monthly e-Newsletters, and through my numerous interviews with the media (some articles and video clips are accessible on my websites).
Tell us about yourself…
I am 57 years old and have been an attorney-at-law since 1992 and a licensed social worker and certified addictions counselor since 1997. My father struggled with many addictions, and I have, too. I had problems with shoplifting and employee theft for about ten years (1980 – 1990) between the ages of 15 – 25. I was arrested twice for shoplifting and fired from two part-time college jobs for low-level workplace theft. I finally came clean with my family and got into therapy in 1990 at age 25. The rest, as they say, is history. I started off as a criminal defense lawyer, but–after three years doing that full-time–I went back to get my masters in social work to help others who struggled with addictions–especially stealing–on a deeper level. I started a support group called C.A.S.A. (Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous) in 1992 to help me and others,
and then I published my first of four books (Something for Nothing: Shoplifting Addiction and Recovery) in 2003. I was featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2004. I later took an interest in working with clients who struggled with overshopping/overspending and hoarding. I have felt gratified and privileged to help people with these various disorders as there are very few treatment options available in the U.S. or elsewhere. My hope is that there will be more understanding, acceptance, and help options in the near future.
What’s your biggest accomplishment as a business owner? first attempted to start my own business in early 2001 after having worked for four years as a full-time addictions counselor at a local drug and alcohol clinic. I was not successful and went back to work at the I clinic (part-time) for three more years until 2004. But I never lost sight of my dream of publishing my first book (which I did in 2003) and launching my private, specialized therapy practice (which I did in 2004). So, just being able to make a living doing what I felt called to do–and to keep it going and growing 18 years later–is my biggest ongoing accomplishment. Aside from that, the numerous opportunities my work has afforded me have been innumerable, including: having helped over one thousand clients at this point, having educated the public through my websites and interviews on TV, in print, on radio, etc. having gotten to travel to present at many addiction recovery conferences across the 0.3., Having consulted with various businesses and companies and has changed people’s lives for the better.
What’s one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner? My father was a bit of a workaholic–as a child prodigy pianist and, later, as an attorney himself. I remember telling myself when I was young that I’d never become a workaholic… but I did. I think it’s especially easy to be a workaholic when you own and run your own business. My wife, Tina, has helped me a bit here and there, but I’ve been the sole employee and not only “kill the deer” (do my primary work counseling clients one-on-one for an average of 20 hours per week) but also answer emails, phone calls, write letters, do research, mail out books, etc. for another 20 hours a week. And while I don’t see clients during the evenings or weekends–and even take Fridays off most weeks–it’s hard not to check emails, phone calls, etc., during off hours. And for the first ten years of building my business and writing/publishing four books (2004-2014), it was full-on and a strain on my marriage.
What are the top tips you’d give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Follow your bliss/passion (and the money will follow).
- Create a niche skill/service that distinguishes you from most others.
- Treat potential and actual clients (and everyone in general) with respect, integrity, and as valued and honored human beings and not just customers.
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
I feel grateful for this opportunity to let others know about my work and services and a bit about my personal/professional journey to entrepreneurship. Thanks a lot!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://theshulmancenter.com/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/theshulmancenter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/terrencedarylshulman/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/terryshulman
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3BWI8kc
Unsteal.org NonProfit 7 Years Old!
September 2022 Press Release
Contact name: Pawel Gwizdala
Phone: 562-445-7190
Email: unstealnonprofit@gmail.com
Unsteal Boxes Generate $2360.40 Annually in Recompense for Petty Theft
Unsteal Nonprofit, Inc. donated 26 metal collection boxes to convenience stores in the Los Angeles, California, area to help the storeowners recover some of their losses from frequent and unrelenting petty theft (shoplifting).
“The Unsteal Boxes are about second chances,” said Pawel Gwizdala, the organization’s cofounder. Storeowners have a safe, convenient way to get their money back, and shoplifters can clear their conscious by repaying for petty theft anonymously, in cash.”
Between” May 27, 2022, and Jul. 11, 2022, 14 of the donated boxes collected $45.45. According to Gwizdala, storeowners could generate $2,360.40 annually from individuals inspired by the Unsteal Box message: “Stolen from here ? We forgive you!”
In addition to dropping off cash in person, past offenders can return money online through PayPal at Unsteal.org. All money paid online or placed in the Unsteal Boxes will go to the victimized store.
Gwizdala, 35, and his partner Terry Shulman, 57, launched Unsteal Nonprofit, Inc . in March 2015 to offer retribution for any past petty theft by collecting money and returning it to the victims. Gwizdala, who lives in Southern California, and Shulman, who lives in metro Detroit, describe themselves as former and repentant petty shoplifters.
Mr. Shulman is a subject matter expert on shoplifting, four time author, lawyer, licensed clinician and founder of both The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending & Hoarding and support group Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous. Mr. Shulman has been featured as an expert on Oprah, Prime Time, CNN, and in O Magazine, Time, Newsweek, and the New York Times
For more information, visit Unsteal.org or email unstealnonprofit@gmail.com. ##
HAVE A SAFE MONTH & NEW YEAR, AND REMEMBER: LIFE IS WHAT WE MAKE OF IT!