District 9 Minutes

4 May 2008

ATTENDANCE: DCM – Sheryl F.; Alt DCM – Carrie C.; Treasurer – Georgette W.; Archives – Mary Ann P.; Corrections – Vicki V.; Grapevine – Brenda M; Literature – Mary Beth P.; Treatment – Leo Y.; Secretary – Pat J. Groups present – Central Discussion – Colleen M.; Clinton – Donna P.; Foxhall – Dianna Y.; LaNuevaVida – Joaquin E.; Marquette – Jamey C.; North Scott – Neil B.; Northwest – Celeste N.; West End – Kim M.

Secretary’s minutes for April 2008 are corrected to read as follows: “A motion was made and seconded to form a Finance Committee to make recommendations to District 9 on our budgets. After discussion and a vote, motion failed.” Minutes approved after friendly amendment.

Treasurer’s Report: Beginning balance - $1,821.20; Total income - $519.00; Total Expenses - $469.69; Operating balance - $1,870.51

REPORTS:

DCM: Dates to Remember: June 13-15^th Spring Conference; Sept 13^th Cluster Meeting; Oct -17-18^th Fall Conference. I would like to start my report today reading the report that our Area 24 delegate gave this year at our General Service Conference in New York on Self Support: Responsibility to Communicate and Participate. I am passing around today to the chairs the reports presented by the area 24 chairs at our last business meeting in March. I am also passing around the minutes from the fall conference in 2007. These will be the minutes we will be reading at our Spring Conference. I have not received our Agenda for the spring conference but will be sending those to you when received. I attended the Marquette and Intergroup events this past month - enjoyed the fellowship and speakers. I received an email from the Area 24 Corrections chair that the treatment workshop was confirmed for November 15^th in Mt Pleasant, Iowa. If you are interested in attending this workshop you will have to be cleared thru the prison first. I have the information you will need if interested. (Following is Area 24 Delegate’s report in NY)

“Self-Support: Responsibility to Communicate and Participate”

Mike Maynard – Panel 57 Delegate, Area 24-Iowa

My name is Mike and I am an alcoholic. I am privileged to serve Area 24 – Iowa as a Panel 57 Delegate. First things first I want to thank our Conference Coordinator Doug R for the invitation to do a presentation at the 58^th General Service Conference.

I would like to talk about our “Responsibility to Communicate and Participate” as it applies to our most sacred of A.A. services. This is the service upon which our entire fellowship stands, the service upon which our own individual sobriety is ensured, the service upon which our future rests. I am of course referring to our Twelfth Step and our responsibility of carrying the message of Alcoholics Anonymous which our program was founded on including introducing new members to our history, the development of our service structure and of services currently provided by G.S.O.

As members of Alcoholics Anonymous we are responsible to be self-supporting in terms of communicating with, and participating in the lives of the men and women that we sponsor. The Twelfth Step is not optional. I believe that if we who have recovered would communicate more effectively about the importance of our A.A. services, and talk about how those services work to reach the still suffering alcoholic, that more of our fellowship would participate with contributions of both money and time. Through our individual efforts in sponsoring people we can make a difference one person at a time.

I know that all of us here have participated in workshops, panel discussions, and cluster meetings, often talking about how to get more people involved or how to increase contributions. We have driven many miles and spent countless hours participating in group, district, area and regional events. This is all to the good, but I believe that our most effective work has been and always will be done one on one with the people that we sponsor. When we sponsor, we genuinely gain their trust and we can talk openly to them about the services that A.A. provides. We can help them to make the connection on how our services, at all levels, work to reach the still suffering alcoholic, and how important it is for us, individually and collectively, to support those services.

Page S22 of the A.A. Service Manual, under the heading “Stimulating Interests in General Service” says:

“Most A.A. members are primarily interested in their groups, in their own sobriety, and in helping other drunks one-on-one. And that is as it should be. While the work of general service has precisely the same objective - carrying the message to the alcoholic who still suffers - the connection is not always direct or obvious. Some stimulators are usually needed to get the attention of A.A. members - to show them that service can add a rich dimension to their sober lives and Twelfth Step Work, and that their participation is vital to the future of A.A.

Good communication is of vital importance. In personal Twelfth Step work, there is no end to communication… But when it comes to general service work, communication has a tendency to break down. It can take hard work to get the attention of alcoholics, but with a creative approach, they can be encouraged to take time out from the nuts and bolts of recovery to think about another phase of their new lives. Once A.A. members are well informed about service, they often want to become involved and to take on their own service responsibilities”.

There are several communication tools available from our General Service Office that we can utilize as sponsors that are designed to show people the kind of help that G.S.O. offers to groups everywhere. These tools include videocassettes, audio tapes, CDs and CD ROMs, as well as a variety of literature. As a sponsor I see it as a personal duty to become familiar with these tools and utilize them whenever possible to help the new member become more familiar with A.A. services.

The essay of Concept 12, Warranty Two on page 65 of the A.A. Service Manual states in part:

“Sometimes we hold off when we are asked to meet area or Intergroup service expenses. As to our world services, we may remark ‘Well, those activities are a long way off, and our group does not really need them. Maybe nobody needs them.’ These are very natural and understandable reactions, easy to justify. We can say, let’s not spoil A.A. with money and service organization. Let’s separate the material from the spiritual. That will really keep things simple. But in recent years these attitudes are everywhere on the decline; they quickly disappear when the real need for a given A.A. service becomes clear. To make such a need clear is simply a matter of right information and education.”

We have a great responsibility as sponsors to clearly and effectively communicate about the value of our A.A. services. Perhaps the most important and sometimes the most difficult thing that we try to transmit to the new members is the importance of placing the welfare of other people ahead of their own. That their new lives are now going to be about service to God and the people about them. These are themes that run from cover to cover in our Big Book. I am a believer that if the new member really understands this, through the working of the twelve steps that they will, by virtue of their spiritual awakening and the example set by a sponsor, become active in and support our services.

Service in A.A., although often overlooked and often picked at is for many of us the payback. The payback on an account that can never really be paid back, except through our continual efforts to work within A.A. to ensure that A.A. remains A.A. for the generations to come. Let us never underestimate our responsibility to communicate and participate, and let us never forget that our lives, as ex-problem drinkers depend upon our constant thought of others and how we may help meet their needs.

Thank you Alcoholics Anonymous for my life.

Alt DCM: The number of hits on the web site for April 2008 were 463. Our web site is www.aaquadcities.com. The Cluster Meeting will be held on Sept. 13, 2008. A committee has been formed to begin planning the Cluster Meeting. I will keep everyone updated on our progress.

Archives: The Archives Committee members are planning on a meeting during the month of May to discuss further duties for the committee. We archived materials collected thus far, including district minutes, group flyers, inter-group newsletters, and the Archives Newsletter, AA Markings. We are brainstorming new ideas for our project during the upcoming months. I am attending the Spring Conference on June 14 and 15 in Sioux Center, IA. I am attending the banquet on Saturday night and the Archives Workshop.

Corrections: Not much has changed since the last report. All is going well with the Men’s meetings on Wednesdays at 7:00 pm and on Thursdays at 11:00 am. These meetings are at the maximum attendance as the Scott County Jail allows. No word from the Scott County Jail on a Lady’s meeting or on additional evening meetings. Applications for carrying the message into the Scott County Jail are available. You can call Johnny G. at (563) 499-3371 or e-mail at johnnygrubbs@netzero.com.

Grapevine: I have contacted Sarah H., Area 24 Grapevine Chair and asked for experience and recommendations concerning the Grapevine magazine and how I can be of the most valuable service to our groups. I have become familiar with some of the Grapevine material and currently receive the monthly Grapevine magazine. Also, my Grapevine committee has been formed. I will be attending the 2008 Spring Conference and Grapevine Workshop. I have purchased a one year subscription of the Grapevine to be received by the Mark Unit Treatment Center at Genesis West Hospital. I would like to challenge all GSRs and District Chairs to bring back one subscription of the Grapevine by our June meeting.

PI: We are continuing to check libraries for copies of the Big Book. We also mailed some pamphlets to an area Domestic Violence shelter.

Treatment: All is going well with treatment we did miss a meeting at the Salvation Army but problem has been resolved anyone interested in helping with bridging the gap or chairing meetings please contact Leo.

Bettendorf: Our business meeting was held on April 16th.  Things are going well at Bettendorf Group.  I plan to attend the Spring Conference in Sioux Center June 13-15th.

Central: Greetings from Central Discussion. We had our quarterly business meeting in April and voted on a new Chairperson. It is Rich B. for 2008-2009. We also voted on getting a professional cleaning crew to clean our rooms monthly starting in May. I plan on attending the Spring Conference in June.

Foxhall: We have changed the format of our meeting and it seems to be going well. Currently we have ticket discussion meetings for all weeks except the last Tuesday of the month we have a 10 & 30 minute speaker. Our Anniversary is Tuesday, June 3^rd, everyone is welcome to attend. Food is provided and there is lots of it.

LaNuevaVida: Our group meets at 322 E. 3^rd St. in Davenport.

Northwest Group: Group going well, considering another meeting. We are trying to get archives material organized. Plan on attending Spring Conference.

West End: I would really like to thank Pat for mailing the April minutes. My computer is in the shop. Meetings are going well. Tentatively planning on attending service weekend in June.

Old Business - Jammie B. was elected as new CPC Chair.

Meeting adjourned at 4:10 pm. Next meeting will be held June 1^st @ 3:30 PM @ Central Discussion.