Day 1: Is our literature still relevant today? Has the call for stories been effective over the decades?

Do the submissions fulfill the need that they are a part of?
As the fellowship grew the preface expanded on the goal of the personal stories in the second edition. Over 100 hand written stories for the 5th edition.
Over 2,500 stories submitted for the 5th edition.
Trying to reach the current fellowship of new alcoholics coming into AA.
Use of the current membership for those who are still coming in.
What kinds of new literature or communications are still needed or obsolete.
3 legacies to guide us.
Primary purpose
Area service is anything whatever to help reach the still sick and suffering alcoholic.
When discussing the target of pamphlets, it’s talking about reaching the newcomer.
Alcoholics are never recovered on our own resources.
None can survive unless we carry the AA message.
Group survival: 12 Traditions.
In 2022 over 1 million pamphlets were distributed.
Manner in which we use this large communication.

Summary: The stories change to stay current with our membership. There were over 100 hand written submissions for the stories for this latest edition. 2,500 in total submissions. This shows a great interest in people wanting to share their message with others to help them relate. We have to continue to carry the message.

Day 1: Participation in Online Groups:

Online Groups: What was it like. First online meeting unknown, maybe 80’s or 90’s.
Email meetings, phone meetings, fax meetings.
Like today’s WhatsApp meetings.
Early meetings got in touch with GSO. As time passed this call and response meetings started to pick up traction.

They became international correspondence meetings. Still available today through GSO.
They became area 95.
So what happened: in 2020 Covid Happened.

Quickly adopted virtual meetings.
Fury of online meetings.
Exploded in 2020.
Do these meetings still participate in the general service structure. Would these new meetings have a voice.

They were still carrying out tradition 5, our primary purpose.
We saw an advisory action to allow these meetings to join a geographic district. Today:
AA members have a home, a district, a GSR a voice in AA.
They have a vote and a purse.
Area 72 Western Washington added a virtual district.
Some areas still figuring it out.
Many virtual meetings still figuring out.

What to do: Fully virtual area? Voice at the GSC?

We area in an area of change and this change can be good.
In the early days why establish a trusteeship, why vote, why a conference. Now why not make change. Open-mindedness is essential.
What have we learned from the proliferation of online groups since covid 19. Has the need for online groups decreased since 2020.
How can we do hybrid?
How can we do service in online format?
First group online in 1986. Night Lighters Online Group.
AA community is constantly connecting in online/virtual format.
Online 2 virtual districts in the GSO.
AA will not be put to a stop by any means. An AA meeting is 2 people and a pot of coffee.
12 &12 Step 3 38 & 39. War broke out, AA’s were scattered all over the world. They had even few lapses than those at home did. The message and dependance on a higher power worked. Has the need for online groups decreased since 2020? No, was the response. Make meetings available for those who want to get sober. Tradition 5, primary purposes. Carry the message to the still sick and suffering alcoholic. 12 steps 12 traditions won’t change but our available to embrace a way to carry the message, lets hope this goes on to change for time to come.
According to the ad-hocs 2023 the number of online groups has continued to grow. Members want a voice in the general service structure as online groups. Where to register, what district to choose. Can it be a virtual district?
Some delegates were waiting for further guidance but some stated they did not look into it enough.
Online structure continued to grow while the delegates were waiting for further instruction. Should a virtual area be created. The recommendation was 2 sentences long and stated the need was not there. The recommendation was to create an AA guideline to increase online participation.
Let’s consider the needs of others. Those who need online meetings. Those who live remotely. Who prefer online meetings.
What can we do: Investigate.
There should be a place and a vote in our service structure to give online groups a voice.
Hope that when not if this happens, it will be discussed at the GSC.

Summary: Online groups need a voice. They are a vital part of AA. They reach alcoholics in ways that in person meetings can’t. It’s important that we suppose online groups. That we merge them into our service structure. We have to adapt and realize that online meetings are a function of AA and that they serve an ever vital need.

Day 2: Founders Literature

Revising our literature to stay relevant.
Should we revise the 12 and 12, 12 traditions pamphlet or video on 12 traditions.
Any change to the 12 step and 12 traditions needs 3/4 approval from the fellowship. 123,000 AA Groups in the world. 3/4 approval from them.
If you have a desire to stop drinking you belong.
We need to be more inclusive.
Requests the change the essays in the 12 and 12 but it is a very difficult challenge to get the change made in the 12 and 12 as it requires 3/4 approval of the 123,000 groups. Instead of trying to change the 12 and 12 why not make a plain language 12 and 12.

12 steps and 12 tradition, step 6 and 12; changes were made. There was an outpouring of responses with 40 agenda proposals to have the changes rescinded or changed back
Slippery Slope, changes to the literature can create an open door to take aim at all literature. Some believe that the changes were politically motivated. Which could then lead to more changes to specific groups in the fellowship.

Limited discussion was had prior to the changes that were made. The thought is that a through group conscious was not had prior to the GSC when the items were changed.
Outside Issues: These changes endorse the idea of outside issues. Which is a distraction from our primary purpose.

AA Comes Of Age P. 231. AA will make mistakes, we need not fear doing this. But admit our faults and respond promptly. We will continue to grow.
You are a MIRACLE
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Does our inability to grow the past few years show that we are not using the most effective means of AA to reach the still sick and suffering alcoholics.
What if we took the hours upon hours each year about our founders writings to entrench and secure the branches of service in AA each year. Are the discussions we have each year keeping others from wanting to get involved in Service.

How would the changes be formatted on the page:
Footnotes with changes. Or we can follow the actions our founders took with asterisk.
Discussion at the mic:
Something like the Joe and Charlie tapes for the 12 & 12.
This issue will affect every AA in the world. Yet they have no voice in the U.S. and Canada. We need to find a way to get input from all those around the world so that they have a say as to what will affect them. Changing the literature is not creating Unity. Plain language big book will be the acid test.
Change we must or die we will. Our membership has plateaued. Program of change not stagnation. We say we need to preserve our founders’ work but we also need to preserve our founders’ principles. We need to make changes. It’s going to be difficult. But we have to do it.
Unity: being affected by changing our literature. We can’t achieve unity if all members are not included. Exulting our founders is against their principles. We’re not a historical society.
In 1964 how many groups were there then. Would one want to be treated for cancer knowing in 1964? Need to recognize the shrinking trend of our fellowship. No need to change the original text, just publish new versions that reflect the current membership.
God’s faith inspires my words. Have to have faith in the fact that He will do so. Discussion and voting, have others have faith in the GSC. Those words are also God inspired. Any changes in our literature or aspects of our fellowship is for the betterment of the fellowship and if I don’t believe that I have a lacking in my program.

Summary: I found this a bit disturbing. The conflict that arrose from these discussions I think is the opposite of what we so often are actually talking about when it comes up. We talk about the unity in AA and the message being carried. We talk about the importance of our principles and how God inspired our literature is. Yet at times I think we forget that due to fear or something changing. We forget our principles of unity and acceptance. Of listening and keeping an open mind. That we too have to be God inspired and not cirtizing the individual who speaks about trying to reach more sick and suffering alcoholics. I don’t have a position that is set on this. However I love our literature even though it takes me time to learn exactly what it is saying. I think a plain language big book would help people but it is separate from the Big Book. Our Big Book saved my life and even though it is archaic in comparison to how I speak, I love it and it did for me what nothing else in this world did.

Day 2: Communication in AA

If members are aware of the information what is our responsibility to inform them. We ought, never you must.
Fellowship needs transparency and the need for it from the bottom upward. Leaders who are trusted to serve us in AA.

The ultimate responsibility and authority lies in the members of AA and therefore there is a need for transparency so that we can be best informed.
There is communication between the trustee in our region and the delegates on not only a monthly basis through a meeting they conduct but also constant email and digital communication.

Delegate reviews this information and will review and consider how and when to share this information. They should be free (Delegates) to decide what to bring to the group level.
More typically he/she/they will email the DCM’s to be shared.
DCM’s may decide to pass it along to the GSR’s at the district meeting or may not share it at all.

GSR then has the ability to share or not share this information at the group level.

Summary: We have to inform those whom are noted in our structure as the most important for making decisions. If we don’t inform our groups, those who are the most important can’t make the best decision possible.

Day 3 Belonging in AA/ Step 1-3 / Step 12/ Concept 9/ Safety In AA

People would be talking to the chair, not me.
The set aside prayer. Set aside what they think about the Area and instead think about what they can do to have a more productive and unified committee.
Stated a DCM night, share thoughts and experiences.
Working with Dark districts.
Not to publicly confront anyone but to pull them aside and address the situation.
Inventory and then setting up more ad-hoc committees.
December meetings are usually a holiday get together.
Safety In AA
Service material approved by staff does not need approval by the conference.
March 12th 2020.
Safety in the Digital World.
May 2020 Death of Geroge Floyd
May 2020.
2017- 2022
2022 Separate paragraph no government in AA.
Safety in Online Meetings.
Diversity Inclusion.
2021 Revision:
Those who identify as gender non conforming or gender non binary. Feel unsafe at a meeting when being questioned about their gender identity. Their right to use their pronouns is protected by tradition 10.
Are we successful in providing a safe and protected meeting space.
Anyone who wants to stop drinking is welcome in AA.
Does a sense of belonging in AA provide a safer meeting space in AA.
Safety: The condition of being safe; like or approve of something. Decent/kind/caring.

Safety in AA, “Our Common Welfare”. Racial discrimination
Sexual harassment
Gender intolerance

If you’re a GSR have you ever asked anyone in your group if they feel safe.
Have to remain teachable.
Safety has a lot of layers.
John Smith can come into a meeting and talk about his divorce and it is related to his sobriety/ program and recovery. However someone who comes in and references their transgender identity are told that the concept of transgender identity is an outside issue.

Inclusivity comes down to good sponsorship. A 3 legacy sensor, not using our finite resources to try to change the literature to reach more alcoholics. But it comes down to sponsorship in carrying the message and defining precedence for the newcomer in the meeting.

Summary: Safety in AA to me is the crux of our fellowship. We have to continue to realize that it’s important to keep our rooms safe for the still sick and suffering alcoholic. Not only in how we speak to people (welcoming and within societal appropriateness) but also in our actions. Safety to me is not a joke nor something to be taken lightly and I was reinforced with that idea at NERAASA. I think there is a lot of room to grow with safety but I think from what I heard it is important to others and it is being recognized as something we can and should continue to work on.