Chairperson’s report on NERAASA 2017
After arriving late, my co-attendee and I chose to take care of our hunger and dined at the hotel restaurant. This was my 7th NERAASA and it was great to see the friends I’ve met over the years. We’d often catch up on our service, areas, etc. thus delaying my attendance at the panels. The highlight of the assembly though was the NE Regional Trustees report to hear that we’re very close to being “self-supporting” and as such there would be no increase in literature prices this year.
The most useful of the events I attended was the roundtable for the NE Chairpersons, moderated by Billy N., Chair, AAWS Board of Directors. It was great seeing servants that I’ve met throughout NY at prior NYSIW and seeing those that I’ve meet at previous NERAASAs but more importantly it was the experience imparted on us over the course of the two nights. It started on the first night with Billy asking the following questions of the area chairs:
Topic #1: What has been our number one challenge as we enter our 2nd year as Area Chair?
1. Participation.
2. Wise spending.
3. Interference from Delegates and Past Delegates.
4. Maintaining interest in our day jobs outside of A.A.
5. Personal conflicts between trusted servants.
6. Maintaining attendance at Area assemblies.
These are common challenges facing almost all Area chairs.
Topic #2: What is our number one fear about becoming a new Area Chair this year?
1. Effective meeting management.
2. Balancing our personal views and our leadership responsibilities.
3. Dealing with the egos of trusted servants (including our own).
4. Apathy from some of our Past Delegates.
5. Keeping up with the work in a timely manner.
The take-aways that offered the greatest utility to me at this point in my service as chair to Area 47 are the following:
- We deal with things the rest of the people in A.A. don’t even know or care about, so we increase our personal recovery practices in order to keep our sanity as Area Chairs, then bring our recovery into our service. We follow the guiding principle expressed in Concept VI that we must first be an effective business operation in order to accomplish our primary spiritual aim. Ego may have gotten us into service, but humility keeps us here.
- We were all concerned by the increasing emphasis and time spent at Area meetings on Officers’ reports, while the times of committee reports keep shrinking; we are seeking to reverse this trend.
- We set the example for the groups. We do not keep money for without a stated A.A. purpose; we let the Area decide what to do with it. My job is to help the Area reach a decision, so we make sure the groups are fully informed about our spending details. We should know our Area’s Guidelines and Handbook, and study the Guidelines of other Areas. Where our budget can afford it we need to attend other Areas’ assemblies. In financial matters, we can’t afford to spend more than we take in; that’s not how sober people live.
- We should seek to benefit from the experience of our Past Delegates without letting them criticize or grandstand. Where possible we should invite them serve on our committees provided that criticism and grandstanding can be held at bay.
- As Area Chairs, we’ve got our members’ backs. We refuse to let anyone disrespect others and can utilize Tradition I if needed. Our job is to run the business of the Area, to chair the Area meetings (not to give our opinions), to let the Area make the decisions, and to ensure that the Area’s decisions are carried out. We help our Area develop its group conscience. We make sure our Area is in compliance with all legal requirements. We were elected to serve as Area Chair; you were not, so we will not let others run our meetings. Inconsistency breeds contempt, so we are not afraid to enforce time limits and procedural rules. Our job is not to get someone to attend their first assembly, but to get them to come back. We serve the Area; not the other way around.
- We should avoid utilizing acronyms during the assembly because many, especially newcomers, may not know what DCM, AAWS, GSO, etc. mean. Avoid using them.
I want to thank Area 47 for sponsoring my attendance at NERAASA and Mary B., DCM-0260, for a pleasant “meeting before – and after – the meeting.”
