Assembly Chairman, Clara E. opened
the first quarterly business meeting of the Louisiana Area Assembly for 2002
with a moment of silence and the Serenity Prayer. Newcomers were welcomed to the assembly. Charlene B. read Tradition One; Phyllis M.,
Tradition Two; and, Mandy R., Tradition Three.
Clara talked briefly about guidelines which may be helpful to new Group
Representatives and District Representatives.
Those she mentioned were: G-8, Taking a Group Inventory; G-11, Group
Representative; G-13, Suggested Programs for Meetings; and, G-15, District
Meetings. She pointed out that M-59,
Group Binder, is available for $9.00, rather than the regular price of
$15.00. This binder is individually
customized with group/area records, meeting format, and other helpful
information.
Assembly dates for 2002 are: May 17, 18, 19; August 16, 17, 18; and,
November 8, 9, 10. The dates for 2003
are May 16, 17, 18 and November 7, 8, 9.
Rates for 2003 are $64. 2004
dates are May 14, 15, 16 and November 12, 13, 14, with hotel rates of $66. The contract for 2003 and 2004 will be signed
on Monday. AA has voted to have only two
full assemblies per year. Clara said we
would discuss the other two assemblies later, whether we want to follow AA’s
lead in having two assemblies and two Area World Service Committee Meetings, or
whether we feel a need for change.
Change would require a vote by Group Representatives. She asked that anyone having experience with
hotel bookings, give her their names and telephone numbers. AA plans to hold their Spring 2003 committee
meeting in Gonzales and the fall meeting in
The revised Procedures Digest and
Qualifications & Duties for Officers & Coordinators has been
printed, and is available for sale for $4 for the set. These should be brought to assembly along
with the Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual and LaTreasure Chest.
Clara thanked some of the members
who had helped her during her term as Alternate Chairman of the Assembly: Joyce
C., Pebble B., A.D. and Marsha R., and
the people who had helped her to assemble and dismantle the banners. She asked the District Representatives to stand.
Officers Reports:
Alternate Chairman – Jeri S.
reported there were 76 registered, 14 newcomers, 45 Group Representatives. There were 26 at the Newcomers’ Meeting and
17 at the District Representatives’ Meeting.
She thanked the District Representatives who had been assigned tasks for
completing them. Assignments for the
next two assemblies are as follows:
Assignment |
May |
August |
|
Morning Al-Anon Meeting |
District 3 |
District 19 |
|
Registration |
District 10 |
District 15 |
|
Sweets |
District 1 |
District 7 |
|
Salts |
District 17 |
District 6 |
|
Raffle |
District 2 |
District 17 |
|
DRs’ Meeting |
District 18 |
District 2 |
|
Night Owl Meeting |
District 14 |
District 7 |
Jeri asked that one person from
each room sign the hotel count sheet to be sure we get credit for the rooms we
occupied.
Secretary – Mary Lynn J. said
there was one correction to the minutes as printed in LaTreasure Chest, a
date for the Regional Service Seminar in San Jose was incorrectly stated as
September 29-29, rather than the correct date of 27-29.
Treasurer – Carmen P. reminded the
assembly that the Treasurer’s Report for February 2002 is actually for the
November assembly income and expenses.
Transactions from January 1 through this assembly will appear on the May
2002 Treasurer’s Report. Carmen
explained that the $2,000 Reserve Fund was set up to cover emergencies, such as
cancelled assemblies. She asked that
Group Representatives remind their treasurers to include the Group’s Name, WSO
ID Number, and District Number on all checks, and to make them payable to
Louisiana Area Assembly, not to Carmen.
Checks should be mailed to Carmen Perilloux, 2703 Main St., LaPlace, LA
70068. Telephone number
985-652-6032. Do not put “Treasurer” or
AFG or Al-Anon on the outside of the envelope.
She introduced the “new” Russian can, which is used to collect change to
purchase literature for our adopted Russian group. Carmen said that she is happy to be
treasurer, with so many new DRs, new GRs, and new groups’ treasurers. She calls donations that she receives through
the mail little love letters because so much love had to go through so many
people for that contribution to reach her.
Alternate Delegate – Anne S.
thanked Bob for speaking on Saturday night.
She announced that Linda N. will be the May speaker and the workshop
would be Jay’s Delegate’s report. She
passed around a card for anyone interested to sign for Marsha and A.D. R., and
promoted the Baton Rouge AIS’s Heritage Day.
The speaker will be Pat D. from Baton Rouge, who is now Pat I. from New
Orleans.
World Service Delegate – Jay P.
said he has served as Group Representative, District Representative, AIS board,
held Assembly Offices, and now he is our delegate to the World Service
Conference, making him feel like a frog that has jumped from a lake to the
ocean. He extended his thanks for this
opportunity to serve in another way. He
has received cards and letters from current and past delegates, which have
helped with his questions, concerns and apprehensions. He is taking a “buddy” clown, a gift from a
past delegate, which will remind him to relax and have humor. Send cards and letters to him at Conference
to Jay Patel, Sheraton Stamford Hotel, 2701 Summer St., Stamford, CT
06905. Mark the envelopes, “Hold for WSC
April 19-26”. Use Jay’s home address as
the return address so if cards don’t arrive on time, he’ll get them when he
gets home. That address is 5508 Sleepy
Hollow Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70817. Jay
directed the assembly’s attention to a display he had in the back of the room,
which shows some of the things he is working on. He has received literature in Spanish and
French, which serves to remind him that Al-Anon is a huge family and that
alcoholism is an equal opportunity disease.
Jay is a member of DOLS, Delegates-On-Line, for current and past
delegates to communicate on line. This
is another source of helpful information.
If you are having any problems in your group or district, send him the
questions and he will ask for answers.
Send questions to him at latel_digital@msn.com. He submitted a bid for a Regional Service
Seminar for August 2003 in Baton Rouge.
The site will be selected at the World Service Conference by the
delegates in the South Central Region, which includes Louisiana, Texas East,
Texas West, Arkansas, Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. If selected, this would be the first RSS to
be held in Louisiana since 1992, which is where Jay got interested in service
by attending a CPC workshop. Members of
the World Service Office participate in the seminars, so it is an opportunity
to get to know some of the staff. Jay
said he sent a letter to each of the Action Committee Chairmen asking us to
dream. He gave his interpretation of
Concept 5, which deals with the Right of Appeal, as an invitation to dream. He said the Steps are pretty straightforward,
but as you move through the Traditions and Concepts, things get more difficult
and can only be understood through service.
He said the minority opinion spoken of in this Concept makes him think
of ideas whose time have not yet come, but by listening to that minority
opinion we assure that they are heard.
The time may not be right, but by hearing the idea it can be recognized
when the time is right. Ideas start with
one person. He has asked Action
Committees to list goals as though time, money or tools are not obstacles. Jay also used a kaleidoscope to paint a
picture of service. He said to think of
the triangle in the kaleidoscope as the program and put ourselves into the
center, experiencing the kaleidoscope and all the beauty it holds. Recovery will be full when we practice all
these principles in our personal lives.
Come up with those ideas whose time has not yet come. Dream a little bit. He has wondered about attendance. If each alcoholic affects 4 other people, our
attendance should be 4 times larger than AA, but instead we are only one-third
their size. Step Eleven says God has not
given up, and neither should we. Action
Committees can come up with ideas of how to reach those people. He said Lisa, our Public Outreach
Coordinator, and Debbie, our Web Site Coordinator, are dreamers. They are already dreaming of ways to reach
people whose lives have been affected.
He asked for our prayers while he is at Conference and said he would
give his report at the May Assembly.
Another thing Jay has been working on is the budget. The AWSC took a group conscience to
prioritize activities. He asked them to
take a fresh look, to be dreamers. He
said this would give us an idea of the real picture. The officers will look at which things they
think are important for the assembly and try to bring the gaps to your
attention. He said this would be
discussed with GRs. We have no time to
drag things on. He wants to set up
procedures and guidelines motions so future Budget and Finance Coordinators can
take up without problems. Jay took part
in a teleconference with other new delegates and the Conference
Coordinator. They went over agenda items
and got to ask questions about what to expect.
Jay will be the Al-Anon speaker at the Covington AA Convention May
24-26. He will speak on Saturday at 2:00
pm, and asked members to come to give him moral support. He introduced the coordinators to the
assembly: Debbie R., Web Site
Coordinator; Joyce W., Group Records Coordinator; Mary N., Forum/LaTreasure
Chest Subscription Coordinator; Lisa H., Public Outreach Coordinator; Johnna
D., Convention Coordinator; Sue A., Literature Coordinator; Cecilia W., Budget
and Finance Coordinator; and Melinda C., Newsletter Editor. Not present were Pebble B., Alateen
Coordinator, and Franny S., Associate Coordinator of Public Outreach. Jay said that we have two orphans who need
child support. They are The Forum and
LaTreasure Chest, but Mary N. will have some ideas on getting them
supported.
Convention Coordinator – Johnna D.
came dressed in gardening clothes, holding a potted plant, to promote the 29th
Louisiana AFG Convention, which has as its theme, “Grow Where You Are
Planted”. The convention will be held
May 31, June 1 and 2 at the Best Western in New Iberia. The telephone number is 337-364-3030. Room rates including tax are: $62.86 for a
standard room; $77.45 for a small suite; and, $80.82 for a large suite. To assure this special rate, make
reservations before May 16, 2002.
Speakers will come from as near as Breaux Bridge and as far as Wisconsin. This year there will be an added sunrise
Al-Anon meeting at 7:30 am on Saturday.
The hotel will be serving a breakfast buffet this year. The cost is $8.25 per person including tax
and gratuity. There will be a 25-person
minimum. Each year there is a raffle to
help with the convention costs. The
raffle items are: 1st prize - $150 cash; 2nd prize - $100
cash; 3rd prize - $50 cash; 4th prize – Serenity Throw; 5th
prize - $25 cash; and, 6th prize – a set of convention tapes. Please take raffle packets and convention
flyers back to your groups. The
convention is a delightful experience.
You can do as much or as little as you like, but the more you put in the
more you will get back. Last year’s
attendance was 282. We are shooting for
300 and then to outgrow our current facility.
The banquet meal will also be a buffet.
Clara suggested taking up an extra collection to support the convention.
Budget & Finance Coordinator –
Cecilia W. thanked Linda N., who had audited the assembly books for 1999-2001. She said everything appears to be in
order. Cecilia said limits for being
reimbursed for assembly had been set.
This means that with receipts officers could be reimbursed from $75 to
$130 per assembly; coordinators, $45 - $100; past delegates $45 - $100. Coordinators are also allowed $25/year for
copies, postage, etc. Present detailed
expense reports accompanied by receipts.
Cecilia pointed out that Group Representatives are reimbursed by their
groups and District Representatives by their districts in accordance with the
limits on which they agree. She
suggested supplying receipts as good business practices. Linda N. had also reviewed the books of the
convention. The Budget & Finance
Coordinator also reviews the records for D-SAC (Deep South Alateen Conference).
Ask-It Basket or Suggestion Basket
for ideas compliments, problems and questions is on the officers’ table each
assembly. Clara said the suggestions
from the November assembly concerned AA not allowing Al-Anon’s to mistakenly
register at their registration, but to direct them to Al-Anon; a request to
purchase a Concept Banner; a request to add the Al-Anon Declaration after the
Lord’s Prayer.
Clara said someone had caught a
typographical error on the Procedures Digest.
The Assembly Accepted date should be Nov. 11, 2001, not 2002. Please correct your copy.
Web Site Coordinator – Debbie R.
reported that our current web site is broken.
There are broken links and inaccurate meeting information that cannot be
fixed. She said we could get a pretty
nice site for $10/month. Some of the
items that could be on the website include the newsletter, archives, meeting
lists with map links, creative Alateen page, plus others that have not yet been
thought of. She said a motion would be
presented asking for the funds to set the new page in motion. She will be especially interested in comments
and suggestions from the membership to find out what they want. A site with 100 mg will be sufficient, but
can be expanded if needed.
Membership Outreach – Cecilia W., Chairperson and Reporter for this committee reported that the committee reviewed general goals and began to prioritize and focus on specific goals. District 7 is planning more workshops. They are encouraging each member who attended this assembly to support the Al-Anon State Convention, specifically by planning to attend, inviting at least one other person to attend, picking up an extra flyer and giving it to someone who might be interested in attending, committing to selling and buying a certain number of raffle tickets, encouraging Alateens to attend, and talking about the convention at meetings. Their planned goals are for continued support of the convention; encourage districts and groups to conduct workshops; and, use the website to reach out to members.
Fellowship Communication – Melinda
C., Chairperson and Reporter, said they are asking libraries to give books to
Al-Anon if they are removed from the shelf; they will copy a page containing
the subscription forms for LaTreasure Chest and Forum for all 171
registered groups for the GRs to hand out.
They challenge all DRs to challenge their GRs to buy a subscription of Forum
for a professional's office and ask DRs to report back to them in August
how many have done this. They encourage
use of the Forum and CAL. They
will promote and/or explain that the newsletter and LaTreasure Chest are
one and the same. The committee
encourages writings from first-time attendees about feelings and experiences at
assembly for LaTreasure Chest and/or Forum. Ask everyone to write a paragraph for LaTreasure
Chest. Information from the
Literature Coordinator: 2 new books
available in May, Hope for Today (B-27) $10.00, the newest daily reader
based on sharings from adult children of alcoholics; and, Forum Journal (M-74)
$5.00, celebrating the Forum’s 50th anniversary with quotes
and photos from the Forum.
Deadline for LaTreasure Chest is April 8th. Send sharings for LaTreasure Chest to
Melinda Cucullu at mindy926@aol.com or mail them to her at
1336 Denmark Court, Slidell, LA 70461.
Group Services – Joyce W.,
Chairperson and Reporter, said the group discussed their primary goal of
strengthening connection between the Assembly and existing groups, encouraging
each group to have a GR attend the assembly, reaching out to newly registered
groups to invite participation, keeping the mailing list current, and recording
history of the group. Planned goals are
to visit groups other than regular meetings to see if the GR or current contact
person is still active; set up a Group Services table each assembly to have
records available for changes; and, invite DR to speak at meetings so members
can meet the DR. A “Room and/or Ride”
Committee was formed to arrange for people to get a roommate to share a room at
assembly in order to minimize expenses.
The contacts, who will be coordinating this for each area, will be
published in LaTreasure Chest with their phone numbers and e-mail
addresses.
Public Outreach – Lisa L.,
Chairperson and Reporter for this committee, said some prior goals that had
been accomplished included donating books to local libraries, meeting with
director of a shelter for battered women, putting pamphlets in doctor’s
offices, and contacting drug and alcohol counselors at area schools to give
them books and literature, along with contact numbers. Planned goals are to check out at least one
Al-Anon book from local libraries because books that do not get checked out get
thrown out; write thank-you notes to local radio and TV stations when we
hear/see a PSA; gather information to promote National Recovery Month in
September; and, contact foster care organization about getting literature to
them with contact numbers.
Some discussion following the
Action Committee Reports included the following: It was noted that April is “Alcoholism
Awareness Month” and something to consider is an anonymous interview with a
radio station. When donating books to
libraries, put a memorial in it, and it will be less likely to get thrown
out. Give report to groups in sections,
perhaps covering one Action Committee each week since the goals they present
are meant for everyone. Action Committee
reports are printed in LaTreasure Chest.
Clara said she had learned that
Franny S., who is the Associate Coordinator for Public Outreach, was not
present because her home had burned down, and Emily G., DR for District 12, had
a death in her family. The hotel count
was 28, with 4 people not staying at the Hampton Inn. Clara reminded the assembly that there would
be a sign-in sheet each assembly that should be signed by one person in each
room, assuring that we get the proper credit for rooms occupied.
Lisa L. presented a motion,
seconded by Sue A., regarding the allocation of $165 for website. The motion reads: To allow $165.00 for the creation of a new
web site, replacing the now defunct free-net site. The amount includes domain registration,
set-up fee and the first annual fee. The
floor was opened for discussion. Some of
the discussion included how expenses for the newsletter could be cut if it was
made available on the website. One
member wanted to see the motion include a figure for an annual payment to the
site host. It was decided that we should
try this out for a while before we make a long-term commitment. Thirty-nine (39) GRs voted on the
motion. All were in favor. Motion carried.
Old Business – At the November
assembly new business included the discussion of AA’s decision to conduct only
two full assemblies each year, with two rotating committee meetings. GRs were instructed to discuss this situation
with their groups in order to make a decision about how we want to proceed. Some of the discussion on this issue
included: Is the motion that we now have
to continue going with AA still valid since they have changed the number of
assemblies? Can we have an ad-hoc
committee investigate other alternatives?
Do our goals coincide with AA, or do we decide what we need to make our
decision? What would go on at the two
one-day meetings? Someone suggested that
we stay with AA for the fellowship.
Another member added that it works with numbers. It just makes good business sense. What business can we accomplish without a
full assembly? Why do we have to
move? AWSC is to coordinate the agenda
of the full assembly. There is an agenda
for “Interim Assemblies” on page 134 of the Service Manual. AA wants to attract people who do not
normally attend assembly to their one-day meetings. The discussion ended with a motion by
Gretchen B., seconded by Myrna B., which reads:
To stay with AA for the two large Assemblies for 2003 and 2004 in
Alexandria at the Hampton Inn. Forty-two
(42) GRs voted, all in favor of the motion.
Motion carried. Clara asked for volunteers
to serve on an ad-hoc committee to investigate all alternatives. They are:
Melinda C., Lisa L., Estelle, Esther S., Mary N., and Jeanette W.
Clara expressed her thanks to all
those in attendance, and recognized Past Delegates Gail F., Ruby W., and Mary
Lynn J.
Sue A., Literature Coordinator,
mentioned that printing will be discontinued in May on Having Had a
Spiritual Awakening, and that the booklet Sexual Intimacy is out of
print but still available. If anyone would like to get either of these, they
should notify Sue so she can have them for the next assembly. She also said that sharing sheets are
available for Recovery in Relationships, which is the working title for
a book that has been conceptually approved.
Raffle items were distributed. The raffle brought in $228.00.
Clara reminded those districts
that are responsible for items for the hospitality room that they should have
them in the hospitality room by 11:00 am and have 2 people available to set
them up.
The meeting was closed with The Lord’s Prayer.
Submitted by:
Mary Lynn Jacob
Secretary