Area 26 Quarterly Meeting Reports • July 16-17, 2011 • Hosted by District 3Printable Version Coming Soon |
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Officers Reports
Host Committee & Intergroup Reports
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DCM Reports |
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STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Other Reports
Treasurer's report - Vonda L.
Good Morning, I'm Vonda, you're Area 26 Treasurer. Thanks to District 3 for
hosting this weekend, it's been great. I have, once again, only included groups
on the contribution report that have made a contribution. If you know that your
group has sent a contribution and it is not on the report, please come see me
and we can research the situation. The beginning balance on April 1 was
$8,738.03, the total group contributions this quarter were $13,912.39. This
brings the total income for the 2nd quarter up to $22,650.42. The total expenses
for the 2nd quarter were $7,650.42. This leaves an ending balance on June 30 of
$16,427.66. So thanks to the groups and a nice contribution from the Bluegrass
Intergroup, we are back where we need to be financially. As per the Area 26
financial guidelines; which say that at the end of the quarter, any amounts over
the $15,000 prudent reserve/operating expense should be sent to the General
Service Office - a check for $1,363.66 was mailed to New York on July 1. Before
anyone jumps on that and asks there is still one check out for software for
the website committee for $64.00 which is why the amount to GSO is $1,363.66
rather than $1,427.66. This gives us a beginning balance on July 1 of
$15,000.00- which is exactly where it is supposed to be at the beginning of a
quarter. WHOO HOO! Once again, I would like to remind everyone to please include
your group name, group number and district number with all contributions, please
tell your treasurers this is very important if you want your contribution to
be allocated correctly. Also, you need to remind the groups in your district
that there is a new mailing address: Area 26 Treasurer - PO Box 517 -
Simpsonville, KY 40067
Chairperson's Report - Barbara F.I have not done a great deal as a Chairperson this quarter. I do want to thank District 3 collectively; you have done a wonderful job. I have done that as a DCM and I know it is a big job. It turned out very well and I appreciate it. The official thing that I did was to participate in the Past Delegate Ad Hoc Committee. I do want to thank everybody for your service and I want to thank everybody for their comments and well wishes for the last quarter. I would like to especially thank Lynda for the editing of the Agenda because there is always something that needs to be corrected. I do appreciate the opportunity to serve.
Alternate Delegate's Report - Lynda R.Thank you to District 3 for hosting this weekend. Once again, you have done a fabulous job of making us feel welcome. Your hospitality is very much appreciated. I'd like to thank District 1 for inviting me to participate in their workshop on April 17th on the A.A. Group pamphlet. The workshop was well attended and there were lots of questions on everything from how to get people interested in service to group autonomy. It was a fun afternoon and I'm so glad your district is continuing to conduct these service-based workshops. They're great! I'd also like to thank all of the Louisville Metro Districts for inviting me to present an introduction to service at their 6th Annual Unity Picnic and Delegate's Report last month. Joy gave an excellent presentation describing her Conference experience this year as well as hitting the highlights of the business conducted there. There was lots of good food, fellowship and even a magic show. While at the picnic, I spoke with a couple DCMs about their concerns over a recent issue of the Grapevine. Based upon that conversation, I thought it was best to fill you in on my recent experience. Some of you may remember last February's edition. It featured several articles on what it's like to be a gay member of Alcoholics Anonymous and it had a photo of the 'Gay Pride' flag on the cover. I wrote to Ami Brophy, the Grapevine's Executive Editor/Publisher, expressing my concern about A.A. becoming involved in public controversy and our implied affiliation with an organization outside of A.A. Shortly after receiving the letter, Ami called to discuss my concerns. Basically she said they had made a mistake with the cover and that they had formed a new committee that would review all future covers to ensure that they were in line with our Traditions. She also indicated that the letter would go before the Grapevine Board at their next meeting for review and further discussion. I was impressed with Ami's willingness to listen and her response to my concerns. As I mentioned yesterday in the 'What's on Your Mind' session, I am very concerned about affiliation and anonymity since the digital Grapevine is now linked with Twitter and Facebook. Last week, I sent another letter to Ami in this regard. Once again, I received a phone call from her as soon as she received it. She told me the issues raised in my letter were on the agenda for discussion by the Board at their meeting this month. There are several that believe there are issues and anonymity and affiliation and there are those that do not, herself included. If the Board cannot reach a resolution, she believes it will be on the agenda for next year's General Service Conference. I have a few copies of both letters available if you would like them or I'd be happy to email copies to you. Unfortunately, a family emergency kept me from attending Howling at the Moon in June. I'd really been looking forward to it. I'd again like to offer my apologies to Mark D. and District 27 for not being able to be there for their workshop. I'm looking forward to attending the North Carolina State Convention and Southeast Conference being held in Raleigh, North Carolina next month. The presentations by the Delegates at last year's Conference were very well done and I learned a lot. It would be great if some of you could make it to Raleigh, too. Once again, thank you for the privilege and opportunity to be of service to Area 26.
Delegate's Report - Joy F.
Opportunities for service, fun & fellowship ----THANK YOU
DCM ReportsDistrict 1 - - DCM: James G.I would like to thank District 3 for hosting this weekend. I have been looking forward to having a great time here in Bowling Green with all of you. Also at this time I would like to also thank Joy for her delegate report at this year's Unity festival in Louisville and also I want to give a big thanks to all the metro districts for their participation with this year's festival. District 1 is doing fine. Our attendance has greatly increased. At our last meeting we had 18 to 20 GSRs in attendance. I am planning to visit more of our groups in the next few months prayerfully we can raise our attendance even more. District 1 is still holding quarterly workshops. We had one on the 10th of July. The topics were Sponsorship and The Grapevine. Our next workshop will be in October. In the coming months District one will be focusing on filling the various chairperson positions. District 1 still meets at the Ice House located at 1400 South Shelby Street on the 2nd Sunday of the month at 4:30 pm. District 2 -- DCM: Doug P.Thank you to the hosting districts for this quarterly meeting. District 2 continues to have regular business meetings every two months. At our last business meeting 6/04/11, 14 of the 22 group's GSRs and the committee chair for corrections were present. The corrections and treatment fund-raiser was a big success raising almost $1,000.00 for the purpose of purchasing literature. Elections for new officers in District 2 will be up-coming at the next business/dinner meeting in August.
District 3 -- DCM: Nancy B.
Hi, I'm Nancy Bouldin, DCM for District 3. Welcome everyone to south central
Kentucky. It is an honor and privilege to be your hosts this weekend. We have
had some financial problems this year, but a lot of our groups have stepped up
to the plate this past week with contributions to help cover the costs. God
knows!! We have had a lot of fellowshipping on the phone, done a lot of
foot-work, and a lot of now God's in control. I don't know how District 5 hosted
the Area two meetings in a row, but my hat's off to them. And, if given the
chance, District 3 would do it again!! We currently have 24 groups in the
district covering five counties, two groups went inactive this year, and three,
outside of Bowling Green, are really struggling with only two or three members
at a meeting. Several groups in Bowling Green have very large meetings with
35-50 or more in attendance. I wish people traveld to meetings outside their
comfort zones, like we used to, to support the smaller groups, especially in
other counties. But this too shall pass and times are hard, gas is high and
nothing stays the same. We only have one more eating meeting scheduled for the
rest of the year, but money is tight and people are just not interested anymore.
One of our larger groups paid to have new meeting schedules printed as the old
ones were not so current. One reason being that for our group have had to change
meeting places in the last few months. The new schedules came off the printer
one day and two days later were already out of date a group in Simpson County
added two more meetings a week. And that's a good thing. Most of our standing
committees are at a standstill or on hold at this date. Corrections continues to
carry the message to men and women behind the walls in three of our counties and
the Website committee has our new district 3 website up and running with, as
current as possible, meeting days, times, places and even maps. They have also
included current fliers announcing eating meetings, etc. I guess I should say
"he" as the website committee is a one-man committee. The Special Needs
committee has put into place "Meetings on Wheels" after learning about the group
in Lousiville. That committee is a one-woman committee who, with the help of the
Grapevine chairperson, has gotten several volunteers that have already taken
many meetings to five or six people who have not been able to get to meetings
due to surgery or illness. And, after several years, we are beginning to form a
new Intergroup. There are approximately six or seven IGRs that have met twice
and, with the help of a couple of men that have served on Intergroups acting as
guides, they are in the process of revising an old Intergroup structure. We are
carrying the AA message in District 3 and trudging the road of happy destiny.
Elections are coming up for the groups in September and for the district on
October 2nd. Information on electing groups trusted servants will be mailed
after the August GSR/Business meeting, the first Sunday of the month.
District 4 -- DCM: Jill D.Thank you to District 3 for hosting this Area 26 meeting. Since the April Area 26 meeting, our District has remained steady with 12 to 14 people in attendance. We have had several new visitors attending in the past three months. They are coming to find out what the District is about, which tickles my heart. Currently, our District is not planning any A.A. workshops or activities. 1) Corrections is our main issue of importance with: We finally have our foot in the door with Meade County, who said they didn't want A.A. in their facility. You know it's not what you know in a small town, but WHO you know. 2) We are still waiting for a slot to open for the Breckinridge County women's jail. 3) Hardin County Corrections has opened the door for A.A. to now come into their facility. The first A.A. meeting was taken into the men's side on June 9th. The women's side does not allow anyone into the facility unless they work there. 4) Grayson County Corrections has A.A.'s taking meetings into men's and women's facilities. This facility welcomes Alcoholics Anonymous with open arms. The buzz word at District meetings is: ELECTIONS, ELECTIONS, ELECTIONS.
District 5 -- DCM: Ken A.District 5 is alive and kicking. We held a "How It Works" workshop in Bardstown at St. Monica's. It turned out surprisingly well. Attendance was good. Workshops were held on Singleness of Purpose, How to Chair a Meeting, Sponsorship, and Anonymity. Also, we want to thank David Whealdon for the Archives workshop. It was well attended too. The District meeting held at the Coffee Club in June went well also. The meeting was well attended. It seems all Groups are good. Discussion on the District 5 picnic and the responsibilities were given out to the Home Groups. The picnic will be at the ballpark on the 17th of September. Lots of fun, food and friends will be there. Come visit us.
District 6 - DCM: Curtis P.Home Groups - A) District 6 has 16 home groups with approximately 65% of GSRs attending the monthly district meeting. B) District 6 meetings are held the first Wednesday of every month. 2) Committee Chairs A) Treatment: District 6 has recently learned that the Brighton Center is not within our district but is in District 32. B) CPC Reviewed costs of literature distribution to a local community college liaison. Additional follow up to take place at a later date. C) Grapevine Subscription prices changing July 1, 2011. D) Central Office Regular weekly meetings are now being held at the new Central Office location. 3) New Business A) District 6 treasurer informed the group of surplus funds in the treasury. This was primarily the result of contributions from the conference host committees. B) Three proposals were made suggesting how to handle the surplus: 1. District Picnic 2. AA Workshop 3. Allocate Funds C) District voted to allocate excess treasury: (keeping prudent reserve) 60% - Central Office 20% - KY Area 20% NY GSO D) District 6 is in support of brining back past Delegates for their experience but to limit their presence to have a voice only, no vote, not financial support from the Area.
District 7 -- DCM: Susan G.'m the DCM from District 7. I want to thank everyone in District 3 for hosting this quarter. After Albany, where you'll find the best little home group in the world, Bowling Green is my favorite place in Kentucky. Things are going well in South Central Kentucky, and there isn't a lot of changes to report. There are several more meetings at the Gratitude House in Somerset and a new Young Peoples group applying for a group number. That's exciting. We haven't had a new group in District 7 in 5 years and have never had a Young Peoples group. We've had one District meeting this quarter and have another planned for August 7th. We'll be discussing ways to get newcomers involved in service work and the fall elections. September 11th is the date for the Annual Burnside group picnic in Pulaski County. If you're going to be visiting Lake Cumberland or Dale Hallow Lake this summer, come visit us at our meetings. We'd love to have you.
District 8 -- DCM: Redd H.No Report.
District 9 -- DCM: Buz T.Always a gracious & wonderful host, District 9 would like to thank District 3 here in Bowling Green, Ky for hosting this Area Quarterly. District 9 & District 23 are very excited to be Hosting an Area 26 Voting Assembly again !!! We have had several planning meetings already and we will be prepared for some - S.S.H. - "SOBER SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY". District 9 Fall Picnic will be held again in Beautiful Jenny Wiley State Park at Dewey Lake Dam. Saturday September 17th 10:00 AM until 4:00 PM. Picnic Shelter #4 right at the Dam in Prestonsburg /Auxier KY. District 9 continues to THRIVE w/ Corrections. Max. Security Prison & Minimum Security Prison meetings every week as well as Two (2) weekly Detention Center meetings in Johnson & Floyd Counties. We have rounded-up donations from several Groups, so we have been able to take Mini Big Books into all the jail & prison meetings. THANKS FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE A TRUSTED SERVANT
District 10 -- DCM: Joy M.District 10 is doing great. Those who hold chairs are very active, and have been working with Louisville Intergroup on service projects when able. I am happy to report our Grapevine Chair was able to secure new Grapevine (in print) subscriptions. Our district participated in the Unity Picnic on June 25th many from our district showed to take part in presentations, set up and clean up. At our last district meeting, talk about elections took place. One member suggested taking a district inventory beforehand. We all agreed this would be helpful, and scheduled to meet on a day other than our district meeting day to review questions and eat pizza. Afterwards a quick laptop presentation was made on how easy it is to access aa.org and area26.net. Thank you District 3 for hosting the Area this time around. Yours in Service.
District 11 -- DCM: Cindy S.Thank you District 3 for doing an excellent job hosting this weekend. District 11 is doing well with no recent changes. We participated in the annual Delegates report at the Care Center, in which Joy did a great job. Last weekend we had a bring-a-book to jail dance that raised money and about 100 books for correctional facilities in our area. There are 6 GSRs from District 11 here today. Thank you for allowing me to serve as the Alternate DCM. It's been a privilege. District 12 -- DCM: Eddie B.My name is Eddie Borah and I am the DCM for District 12. I would like to thank District 3 for their hospitality, awesome BBQ and commitment to AA service. Our monthly district meeting was held last Sunday with discussions involving upcoming elections, Tradition breaks and our annual Ice Cream Social. District 12 hosts 3 annual events and would like to invite anyone that might be in the Louisville area on Saturday, August 6th to attend District 12's Ice Cream Social. The event will be held with the 11th Step Group that meets at St. Paul's United Methodist church at the corner of Douglas and Bardstown Rd. Vonda L., our Area Treasurer, will be our speaker. Ice cream/drinks/desserts begin at 7 pm with the speaker to begin at 8 pm. Thank you for allowing me to be of service.
District 13 -- DCM: Bill C.
District 3 would like to thank District 3 for hosting this meeting, and all of
their hard work. We still enjoy good attendance at our district meetings, which
are normally held on the second Sunday of the month at the Pigeon Roost. We have
an average of 16 members attending. We along with several other Louisville
Districts held our 5th annual unity picnic this month with over 100 in
attendance. Our Delegate Joy, gave an interesting presentation concerning her
trip to New York as our Delegate. Good food and fun was plentiful. District 13
Corrections Chair Ed M., has been in contact with the warden of the Bullitt
County jail concerning the status of the meetings there; thank you Ed. District
13 Special Needs Chair Jo Ann M., is still working with Meetings on Wheels in
the Louisville area. Currently this project has 59 people involved. Jo Ann is in
the process of sending notification to all of our GSRs of our upcoming district
elections in September. Thank you Jo Ann. District 13 is starting to plan
another send a book to jail dance in the near future. I also
District 14 - Alt. DCM: - Scotty Y.District 14 would like to thank District 3 for hosting our Area 26 meeting and providing wonderful fellowship, food and hospitality. Our district has meet twice since the April Area meeting. The attendance has been lower than usual; our trusted servants have experienced births of grandchildren, college graduations and vacations. All joyful events and blessings that add meaning to the sober lives we have today. We welcome Denny L. as our newest GSR representing the Cynthiana group. And sad to report that one of our Lawrenceburg home groups has decided not to participate at the district level. The committee chair positions for Corrections and Literature have been filled with Charlie R. and the Paris group representing Corrections and Ken M. accepting responsibility of Literature. Thank you both for your continued service. District 14 is planning our second annual Fall Fellowship Festival to take place on Sept. 24. The ad hoc committee for this event is looking at the Charles Brooking Park in Georgetown which is the same location as last year's festival. Please check our Area 26 website for confirmed details. While last years event was certainly a great event, we have suggestions to evaluate and improve this year's festival. Thank you for allowing me to serve.
District 15 -- DCM: Joseph M.Thanks to District 3 for an excellent lunch and your hospitality. Good Job! Since our last area meeting District 15 and 28 in cooperation with The Bluegrass Intergroup have put on a workshop on the last Saturday of every month. April was "Been sober awhile now what?" In May Joy gave her report from GSO. In June the topic was "GSR Trusted Servant" and on July 30th the topic will be on our literature. Thanks to Peggy S. for her efforts as workshop chair. Jason R. District 15 Corrections Chair continues to be an inspiration in his efforts carrying the message to the Fayette County Corrections Center. Unfortunately, District 15 Grapevine Chair, Paul G. has been having health problems and it appears will not be able to continue in this position. His willingness and constant action in carrying the message about our meeting in print will be missed and our prayers are with him. Attendance at District meetings has been down the last few months and the District meeting for July was cancelled, as the 3rd was in conflict with family stuff for most. I was just informed that Dale W., District 15 Literature Chair recently had triple bypass surgery. I would ask for prayers for his recovery and comfort. Thank you for the opportunity to be of service.
District 16 - - DCM: Jason M.Thanks to District 3 for hosting. We appreciate the work you guys have done. Thank you. There is not much new to report from District 16. We continue to grow, we now have a Bluegrass Intergroup liaison, Richard R. Our DCM meetings have changed from the first Thursday of the month to the second Thursday in order to accommodate the Intergroup meeting. Our Alternate DCM, Amy B is gathering information to help our district explore the possibility of a district website. We have a district picnic on October 2nd at Catalpa Park in Richmond. We are also in the process of changing our district structure to increase the rate that the district reimburses the DCM for mileage to area meetings. This proposed structure change is being voted on by the groups. We now have women's meetings in the jails in Mt. Vernon and Richmond and will meet the Madison County Jailer to bring men's meetings into that jail, hopefully this month. District 17 - DCM: Lee S.
My name is Lee Spicer and I am the D.C.M. for District 17. District 17 would
like to thank District 3 for hosting this quarter's Area meeting. In May the
District's Left Over Group sponsored their second annual Hog Roast. During the
roast they had a corn hole tournament, and an Al-Anon speaker. An AA speaker
closed the event out around 5:00 p.m. A special thanks to Mark W., Bill M., Mike
W. and Rick S. These guys stayed up all night cooking the 300 lbs. hog for the
rest of our local fellowship. Home group members said there were over 200 in
attendance. During this quarter our District meetings have maintained an average
number of 15, out of which 11 are GSRs. We have had good and sometimes heated
discussion about Traditions as well as other group concerns. With the September
elections coming up we have been talking about how to get more AA members
involved in Service Work. Although we have had little success, we have a GSR
that is now bringing her sponsee to the District meeting and we also have a GSR
that is new
District 18 -- DCM: Gene M.It's been 6 months since we seen you last and I'm proud to say "AA is alive and well in N. Kentucky." To bring you up-to-date, our District meeting meets on the second Thursday of each month and we average 15 in attendance. Corrections committee facilitate 23 meetings in the Campbell County jail. Which means we provide a chairman, Big Books and Where and When for each meeting. Institutions committee facilitates 36 meetings in Droege House, York Street and Falmouth. They also provide a Chairman, Big Books and Where and Whens. CPC/PI provided over 300 pamphlets in either loose or literature racks. These were placed in the County Library, N. Ky Health Dept., Legal Aide, Doctors offices and 2 area High Schools. Something new for our District is that we have voted and amended our bylaws to add to our current active committee is a events committee. We have done this to assure that an event of some sort happens each quarter. This gives the District a way to promote activity by the AA members in our District. As you can see, our drunks are busy doing the deal which carrying the message in many forms to the still suffering alcoholic and I'm very proud of them. Nigerian Big Books have been distributed throughout the state of Kentucky, primarily to the areas of the state that do not have a large enough AA population to support the Penitentruaries and jails that are located within their District.
District 19 -- DCM: Stacy T.I am Stacy and I am currently serving as the DCM for District 19. District 19 would like to thank District 3 for their hospitality and hard work We are still working on ways to increase District participation and have been discussing hosting a 3 Legacies event. This event has tentatively been scheduled for September 17th, but we are still working on the details. The event will be a potluck with the District providing the meat. Thank you for allowing me to serve.
District 20 -- DCM: Jeffrey H.No Report
District 21 - Alt. DCM: Melissa B.We would like to thank District 3 for hosting this quarter. Great job you all! I feel I must apologize to the GSRs of District 21. I have made changes in my life this new year. They are good changes! But never the less, it has taken me away from my ability to give to this job as required, and as a result, I have really dropped the ball in keeping us all involved and informed. Please forgive me. We did have a new meeting start in Shelbyville. Thanks to Laure R, GSR for Shelbyville. It's an open discussion meeting at 6:00 pm on Monday at St. James Church. The meeting is going well and will soon be registered. We will be holding our District picnic and elections on September 10th at Shelby County Parks and Recreation in the Hill Top pavilion. Same place as last year. Last year went very well. At this time I would like to thank the GSRs of District 21. Thank you for allowing me to serve.
District 22 -- DCM: Vonda J.Thanks to District 3 for hosting this area meeting loved the Traditions
Workshop skit. It was very interesting and informative. Our District
participated in the Delegate Report/Annual Picnic with other districts in the
Louisville area in June at the Care Center. Joy gave an excellent report and it
was well attended. We have a new home group that meets on Tuesday evenings in
Greenville. We have added 3 new GSRs into our District. Our District meetings
have been well attended with good discussions held by the members in attendance.
We had a workshop on the ABCs/123s
District 23 -- DCM: David K.Thanks to District 3 for hosting this weekend. Summertime has had an effect on meetings in our District this period. Many groups report a drop in attendance and contributions and there has been some informal discussion about eliminating some meetings. Nothing has been formally decided yet, and we are looking forward to the fall and hopefully improved attendance. One of our treatment facilities has installed a metal detector, requiring everyone to pass through, leave keys and money with the guard before entering the facility for the meetings. Our Sunday morning meeting made the decision to a friendlier facility. The meetings that continue there are carrying the message to smaller crowds. There has not been a District meeting during this quarter however, I have been able to attend meetings at most of our groups and can report the message of recovery, sponsorship and service continues to be carried effectively. We are looking forward to hosting the Area Assembly in October and are slowly gaining participation from all groups.
District 24 -- DCM: John W.I'd like to thank District 3 for the play, food and hard work. Currently we have approximately 15-20 GSRs. I continue to visit home groups without GSRs in the District 24 offering inclusion at the District and a chance for service work. District 24 will sponser a workshop September 11th at 5:00 pm at St. Mark's in Louisville. Responsibilities of a home group member "Are You Participating." Elections at the District level will be held at the September District meeting. Between August 1st and September 13th, I will visit all home groups in District 24 to announce elections and invite GSRs to be present for elections.
District 25 - - DCM: Gary P.We had our quarterly district meeting, 4 GSR's were present. The Bluegrass Group has changed its meeting time to 8:00 pm, Lexington Ave group says attendance is good. The Harrodsburg Group reported attendance has been steady the past 6 months and the Group has been able to financially contribute to A.A. as suggested. Dan C. will be celebrating his 60th A.A. birthday at the First Christian Church in Harrodsburg September 17th. Door opens at 6:30, speaker at 7:00 pot luck. The Road Recovery Club House has moved to 1000 East Lexington Ave., S 21 Danville KY so all groups that was meeting at the club house have moved. The Casey Co Group met with the Russell County Drug Court. We told the Coordinator that the AA members wanted to cooperate with the court, but not affiliate ourselves with the Court, and when we sign the papers we have affiliated ourselves with the court. We came up with a way that works for all of us. Now it's the Drug Court members that sign the papers and not the AA members. When the meeting is over a paper is made available to the Drug Court members, they then sign it and I email it back to the court on Sunday night. We also do that for the Casey County Court and just last week we got a commitment from the Probation Officer and we will soon be doing the same for him. Now the group isn't signing any papers from the Courts. We also had a group conscience and decided that January 1st we will join District 5. District 25 would like to thank District 3 for hosting the Quarterly meeting and the warm hospitality that went into it.
District 26 -- DCM: Brad P.District 26 would like to thank District 3 for hosting this weekend's area meeting. All groups have had good attendance at meetings. We have had two district meetings since April with someone from all seven groups represented. District 26 is pleased to announce that we now have a meeting in Fort Campbell on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. The meeting is located in Building 6145 on 38th Street and Desert Storm Ave. Larry W. is doing a Joe and Charlie Big Book study at Rebos in Hopkinsville on Friday nights at 7:00 p.m. We have had several people step up for upcoming service positions at the District level. We are looking forward to getting fresh faces involved. Thanks again for letting me be of service. District 27 -- DCM: Mark D.We have had 1 district meeting since the last area meeting. At that meeting we went over some of our district guideline material that we are trying to construct for our district. We also held our Howling at the Moon campout. Thanks to Joy F for coming in and sharing the Delegate's report. Also George J of the Literature chairman for his workshop. Also Cathy B for her Corrections workshop. Griff N is working on getting a meeting started in the Barren County jail. Our next district meeting will be July 24, 2011. District 28 -- DCM: Rita Britt J.Thank you District 3 for hosting the Area 26 meeting this weekend. District 28 meets the last Sunday each month from 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. at the Token Club in Lexington, KY. Attendance at District meetings has been down this quarter with an average attendance of about 9 members. However, those present are active and involved in service activities. We currently have committee chair positions open for Treatment, C.P.C. and Group Awareness. Treasurer's report last month indicated a decrease in group contributions to the district. G.S.R.'s were encouraged to bring this up at their Group Conscious meetings. I attended the Delegate's report May 21st and shared a copy of Conference Advisory Actions and other information from the report with G.S.R.'s present at the May district meeting. The District Ad Hoc committee to review the District 28 guidelines has been inactive but hope to move forward with reviewing the guidelines this next quarter. In May I updated group meeting information on Area 26 website and encouraged G.S.R.'s to visit the website. This quarter we discussed how to cooperate with District 15 and the Bluegrass Intergroup Workshop Chairperson in providing monthly service related workshops in Lexington. Saturday, June 30th there will be a Literature Workshop at 1:30 p.m. at the Alano Club, 370 E. Second St., Lexington, KY. District 29 -- DCM: Dalton D.No report.
District 30 -- DCM: Katrina C.No report.
District 31 -- DCM: Cindy T.District 31 had 2 business meetings since our last Area meeting in April 2011. We held a District dinner on June 11th in Dawson Springs which was a success. Our District continues to struggle with lack of participation in service and offices. Thanks to District 3 for hosting this weekend.
District 32 -- DCM: Dick W.Thanks to District 3 for hosting this meeting and for their outstanding hospitality. Things are good in District 32. We continue to grow and our existing Groups are strong. With the help of Cathy B. we had a Corrections workshop in June. The workshop was great. We learned more about how to properly conduct a Corrections meeting and we added several AA members willing to attend the meetings in our four correction institutions. We are in the planning stages to vote for new officers and rotate out our existing officers. We believe that this is part of our AA Traditions and will allow others to benefit from AA service work at the state level.
District 33 - - DCM: Lona B.There were too few representatives (6 out of the 13 possible) present at the June meeting of District 33 to form a quorum, so no formal business was conducted. However, it was announced that nominations for new officers will be held at the September meeting, to be held the second Saturday in September at a location not yet determined. The elections will be conducted in December. In the last three or four years, several new groups started up in the District; recently one of those groups, which meet at the Woodmen of the World building in Benton on Thursday evenings, has dissolved, and the meeting has been removed from the West Kentucky Intergroup website. We also recently learned that there is a possibility that the 143 Group, which meets Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings at the Benton Church of Christ, may also either discontinue or move to a new location. We do not believe that either of those actions indicates that AA now has fewer members in our area, but rather that we had too many meetings more is not necessarily better, a lesson that most of us learned back in our drinking days.
District 34 -- DCM: Jeff N.District 34 is alive and trudging in Western Ky. The Greenville Group will be hosting an Ice Cream Socail at Kirkwood Lake on September 10th. The speaker is from Chicago IL. More will be revealed. District 34 mourns the loss of Steve H. Even though Steve was from District 31, he was active in service with the meeting at the Green River Correctional Complex. The inmates have been very affected by this loss.
District 35 -- DCM: Gary F.My name is Gary Forsyth and DCM for District 35. I would like to thank District 3 for hosting the Area meeting. The food was good too. Here in District 35 we are carrying the message and doing it well as we can. Jason T., are P.I Chair, put an ad in the Ky Post to tell Where & When open meetings are in District 35, with the group's ok. It reaches about 36,000 people a week. He is going to the Gateway Health Fair to put on a display and talk about What AA is and What AA is Not, an maybe John A. from Area 26 P.I committee can come too! It will be held on 8/25 from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm. We have invited Barbara B. from Central Office in N. Ky. to our District 35 meeting again. She is the Chair for Intergroup. We would like to know how WE can carry the message better but no show. Jack H. Corrections chair is trying to get more people oked or cleared to do jail meetings in K.C.D.C. We try to carry that old message. He is working with Intergroup on the next Corrections Dinner. He is thinking about getting a good lead together for this one.
District 36 -- DCM: Lucio L.Thank you to District 3 for having me here. I would like to inform you that we have opened the doors to you and have formed five Spanish-Speaking groups. Our economic situation is greatly helped through small donations. The members of our five groups have been sending the message through speaking at AA meetings, visiting hospitals and jails, and spreading the work among the community. (Lucio also read his report in Spanish. Unfortunately, I do no have the ability to type his report in Spanish.)
Host Committee and Intergroup ReportsBowling Green Host Committee - No reportLexington Host Committee - No ReportLouisville Host Committee - - Angie S.My name is Angie Smith and I am the current chairperson of the Louisville Host Committee. I would like to thank District 3 for their hospitality and wonderful lunch. We have been very busy since the last Area where we accepted the task of putting on the 61st KY State Convention. The date has been set for February 3-5, 2012 at the Fern Valley Hotel and Convention Center in Louisville. We have speakers selected and workshops planned. In the near future the program will be available on the Area 26 website. We would like the Area 26 Standing Committee chairs to come, if they can, to put out their displays and speak in a workshop, telling of their Committee's functions and interests. I do plan to make a statement on future flyers that says our mailing list is completely confidential. The purpose of any AA convention is to enjoy a weekend with multiple AA/Al-Anon speakers and workshops and to have a lot of fun. My hope is that the 61st KY State Convention can be just that. Please take flyers back to your Districts. Owensboro Host Committee - No reportNorthern Kentucky Host Committee - No reportPaducah Host Committee - No reportKentucky Conference of Young People in AA (KCYPAA) - No reportLexington Bluegrass Intergroup - No reportLouisville Intergroup - No report.Western Kentucky Intergroup - Lona B.The quarterly meeting of the West Kentucky Intergroup was held June 5, 2011, at the Intergroup office on Highway 641 in Gilbertsville. The Intergroup has recently received requests, forwarded from GSO and the Area Corrections Chairman, to consider supplying Big Books to inmates of correctional institutions located in the Intergroup Area, and at this meeting voted to buy a case of Big Books, and a case of back issues of the Grapevine, for the express purpose of complying with individual requests from inmates in those institutions. To date we have forwarded three Big Books to women at the Women's Correctional Center in Fredonia, and two dozen copies of the Grapevine to be used at the AA meetings there. We have also been able to make arrangements for security clearances for about a dozen women to begin assuming responsibility for bringing outside speakers into the two women's meetings held there. Our Intergroup will be accepting nominations for officers at the September meeting, with elections in December. The September meeting will also be the Annual Intergroup Picnic, and will be held Sunday, September 5, at the Kuttawa Harbor picnic pavilion on Kentucky Lake. We invite any and all to come join us for lots of food, fun and fellowship. Detailed information will be announced soon on the West Kentucky Intergroup website: www.wkintergroup.org.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:Archives - - David D. for David W., Chairperson
I want to thank District 3 for all their hard work. Thank you for your
service. This past Friday was the 10 year anniversary of our
repository in Lexington at its present location. I have been to
the Repository every 3rd Sunday of the month, except when that
day has fallen on that of other AA events: i.e. Area 26
meetings. I have had a couple of visitors this last quarter. On
May 14th, I conducted an Archives workshop for District 5 in
Bardstown in conjunction with a service workshop that district
was holding. I want to say I enjoyed District 5's
workshop a lot. And 10 people remained from the main Workshop for the Archives
event, where we covered quite a bit of ground with a great question and answer
session. I want to thank District 5 for this opportunity to serve. Yesterday we
had 4 people attend the Archives Committee meeting. As there are no real agenda
items concerning Archives from the last General Service Conference we had a
round robin, we focused on some house keeping issues. We have decided to start a
re-catalog and reorganize what we have in the repository. To facilitate this
process, the Area 26 Archives Committee has authoized me to purchase a file
cabinet and a computer. I am just thrilled with the enthusiasm of this small
group. Once again, I invited everyone to visit the Area 26 Repository. We are
open the 3rd Sunday of every month from 12- 4pm and by appointment. Please feel
free to contact me to schedule a visit. Thank you for letting me serve Area 26.
Cooperation with the Professional Community (CPC) - - Charlie S., Chairperson
I would like to thank District 3 for hosting the area meeting. The hospitality
and the food were both excellent. I would also like to thank those who attended
the CPC committee meeting. As always, it is exciting to have the attendees to
introduce themselves and to hear what is going on in their districts regarding
CPC work. We addressed the reoccurring question of how to do CPC work while
being an attraction rather than a promoting Alcoholics Anonymous. The group
rallied around the energy that goes into informing and educating those in a
position to be able to affect their understanding of AA so that they can help
the still suffering alcoholic. Another reoccurring topic of discussion is
whether to sign court papers. Mark from District 27 informed us that his group
has decided to announce a group appointed time as to when court papers will be
signed. Gary from District 25 provided me with copies of sign in sheets for the
drug court clients to sign. Then, the sign in sheet is mailed directly to the
drug court to verify attendance. This alleviates the need
Corrections - - Cathy B., Chairperson (reported by Jason R.)Thank you to District 3 for hosting this weekend. The food has been great, especially the Western KY barbeque. We had a great corrections committee meeting on Saturday without any major controversies. We helped each other in our sharing session with common problems in our correctional facilities around the state. We found that many of us had the same issues in meetings across the state. The most common problem seemed to be drug talk in meetings, and we came up with various solutions to this problem. I have learned this last quarter that Inmates may receive a free copy of the Grapevine. If they will just send a letter to the Grapevine. I did not bring the address with me, but if you would like the address, come and see me after I give my report. The last quarter has been very busy for the Corrections Committee. The list of activities include: I attended the Spring Fling in Danville at the Recovery Roadhouse. This was a fund raiser for Big Books for Northpoint Training Center. Thanks to Mike L. for organizing this event. I attended Howling at the Moon in June and gave a brief report. I helped present a corrections workshop in Florence. A new Spanish speaking group is now active at the Fayette Co. jail. Thanks to Alberto for starting this meeting. Two faithful volunteers retired from service. Joanne G., my sponsor, retired after 19 1/2 years of service at the Fayette Co. jail. Mike L. retired after 17 years of service at Northpoint Training Center. Mike continues to attend the meetings at the Boyle Co. jail and Fayette Co. jail. Thanks to both of these faithful trusted servants for their years of work in carrying the message behind the walls. I received the following requests for help: A letter from KY State Reformatory was sent to the Lyon Co. library. This letter was then sent to the Western KY Intergroup and then sent onto me. Two men agreed to answer this letter. Four requests for Big Books from Western KY Correctional Complex were received from GSO in NYC. I passed these requests onto the Western KY Intergroup. A request for meetings near Bell Co.for an inmate who will be released from the Hope Center in Lexington. A request for penpals for inmates at Luther Luckett. A request for meetings to be started at Dismas Charities in Lexington. Changes to Corrections pamphlets were made by the recent General Service Conference and will be included in the delegate's report.
Grapevine - - Joe O., ChairpersonI'm Joe Osborne, Chairperson of the Grapevine committee. Yesterday we had our regular meeting and there were 10 people in attendance. As most of you may already know, the price for the Grapevine went up the first of July. I think that has probably to do with the survey because the survey said that we needed the price for it to be solid. Also, if you add two of these products, you get a $12.00 discount. We also had a young man possibly from the Hardin County jail, and he said that he came upon a Grapevine and that was all that he had to read for a long time, and he read it over and over. It impressed him enough that he is with us here today. He felt that he owed the Grapevine that much to share his experience, strength and hope with us. Cathy sent me the form for a free subscription to the Grapevine for inmates. I made copies for all the guys in my district who take meetings to the jails. It says it is a lifetime subscription but I'm not too sure about that. We talked about the August issue and the topic for August will be on relationships in the room. We also talked about the September issue and that topic will be about dealing with losses. It was suggested at our meeting that if you know of someone who is having a token birthday, buy them a subscription to the Grapevine. There is concern that the Grapevine is a little different then what it used to be in the past. It used to be the only message in print. Today, they have the internet, Facebook, etc. We had a good meeting and I would like to thank District 3 for all of their hard work. My wife and I really do enjoy coming here.
Kentuckiana Newsletter - - Amy B., Chairperson
I'm Amy Basham and currently serving as your Kentuckiana Newsletter chair. I
would like to thank District 3 for an awesome weekend. We began yesterday's
committee meeting with a brief review of our last meeting. We then talked about
the current printed edition. This edition cost $461.10. This includes 450 copies
with staples, 50 copies without staples for corrections facilities and what the
committee is most proud of, 25 condensed versions in Spanish for our linguistic
district. Thanks Peggy and Gloria from District 15 for helping make this finally
possible. Our next issue come out in October and will be called "First Fall
Assembly." Deadline for submissions is September 1st. The next issue comes out
in January and will be titled "History of AA: Miraculous or coincidental."
Deadline for submission for the January issue is December 1st. We will continue
with our concept articles and Concept XI will be written by Barbara F. We will
also complete the Committee Chair interviews by splitting the remaining
chairpeople interviews over the next two editions. As mentioned at the previous
meeting we had a very interesting discussion about the newsletter. We began the
discussion by reading the paragraphs from our service manual Area Newsletters
and Bulletins found on page S41. We actually had several points we talked about
from "What is our purpose and are we meeting it to could we place the newsletter
on the website and make it interactive" We realized we actually had more
questions than answers. In order to better understand our purpose and the future
of the newsletter we have decided to conduct a survey of three short questions.
You will find these questions on the website and in our next edition. We are
also requesting that DCM's ask their groups and let us know what groups think.
These are the questions we would like to ask:
Literature - - George J., ChairpersonThe committee would like to express our appreciation to District 3 for hosting the Area this weekend. After introductions, we discussed the beginning and purpose of AA literature, starting with the development of the Big Book, the role and scope of the Literature Committee from the Home Group to the Conference and Trustees Committee on Literature. Next we outlined and discussed how conference approved literature is developed and the role of each member and each level of service plays in the process. This discussion was involved and exciting. The idea of the AA group literature representative being part of the District literature committee, as outlined in the AA Group pamphlet, was discussed. I was also formed that, currently, most District literature committees are a committee of one, the Chairperson. The next items discussed were the Conference Advisory Action from this year's conference. The committee was highly appreciative to have had the opportunity to be actively involved, having a voice in this process. The committee voted that the word "successfully" was removed from the language in the motion Atheists & Agnostics successfully sober in Alcoholics Anonymous for the proposed new literature on Spirituality. Discussion of Advisory Action was followed by reviewing notes of the Conference Literature committee discussion on agenda items considered. The Area 26 Literature Committee found it very hopeful that the same concerns expressed in our committee prior to the conference, in addition to other concerns and ideas were given careful and thorough consideration. It almost gave us the sense of actually being there, part of the discussion. It was during this discussion that we found humor in the idea that at some point or another most if not all of us, get the feeling that "we need to straighten AA out" only to realize that AA is a Spiritual Entity under Spiritual authority and all is well. We reviewed the update report on eBook technology, Digital Rights Management; other literature purchases then online store were points of interest. And finally, we reviewed and discussed the service material, AA, Resource for Drug & Alcohol Court professional. In the discussion it was noted that clear language is present communicating AA's Singleness of Purpose and the fact that "AA doe not provide recovery for other Addictions" It was considered that this piece could be returned with proof of attendance sheets to appropriate institutional staff persons. This piece of literature is downloadable from AA World Service website. District 27 workshop we had 9 in attendance. We would like to express appreciation for our Delegate passion on the amount of information so that the committee might be informed in its service to Area 26.
Public Information - - John A., ChairpersonFirst, I want to thank all those who attended yesterday's meeting. We had a total of (7) seven people in attendance. Will all those who attended please stand? Thanks to District 3 for their hospitality hosting us this weekend. Last quarter, Gary P, DCM for Dist 25, reported a service club in Danville that was listed as "Alcoholics Anonymous Dist 25" in the phone book. Two days after our Quarterly, Gary called to let me know that the new Danville phone book no longer had that listing. I have updated the Public Information Committee's audiovisual equipment by purchasing a new flat screen LCD TV and a Blu-Ray/DVD player. The cost with tax is $291.25. The funds will come from the $500.00 which was allocated to the Public Information Committee for the last two years. No other withdrawals have been made from our allotment in the past two years. I showed the new equipment to the Public Information Committee yesterday, and we watched three of the Young Peoples videos. In addition to showing off the new equipment, I also talked about the Public Information Kit and Workbook. Following a brief discussion, I brought up the topic of anonymity. It was during our conversation that Gary F. from District 35 told us about the Transitions treatment facility obtaining the mailing list for the Northern Kentucky Convention. Per Darryl M.'s suggestion, I will be sending letters to the treatment center, and the host committee of the convention. I will also contact G.S.O. Respectfully submitted,
Registrar - - Chris T., ChairpersonI would like to thank District 3 for hosting this Area 26 meeting. Since the last area meeting, in April, I have made adjustments to the GSO data base for 81 different groups and or individuals. Most of these modifications also required a change to the living document I have on my computer known as the Area 26 Directory. I have also put together individual packets for each District in the Area. These packets require updated information to be completed and returned by the current DCMs to the Registrar on or before November 11, 2011. This will thereby give us ample time to report our changes to the GSO and also commence with the publication of the 2012 Area 26 Directory.
The GSO records for Area 26 reflect the following statistics:
Special Needs - - Debbie C., Chairperson
First, I would like to tell everyone how very glad we have been to welcome you
to District 3. What an honor it is to host this body. I?m so glad you are here.
Since our last meeting, I have had the opportunity to co-lead a Special
Needs/Accessibilities at the Falls City Convention. While this workshop was not
well attended, those of us who were there got to learn a lot about the barriers
that keep people from this program of recovery, such as, wheelchairs, visual
impairment, hearing impairment and many others. We also had the chance to hear
first hand how the Meetings on Wheels program got started in Louisville, how
they are operating at this time and their plans for the future. I would like to
thank the Host Committee in Louisville for inviting me to participate in this
workshop. You will notice that I use the Committee title "Special
Needs/Accessibilities" that is our new name, which came out of the 61st General
Service Conference, and all of the literature will be changed to reflect that
title in the future. Our committee yesterday was attended by 5 representatives,
2 of whom were new District representatives. I was able, with the budget allowed
my committee, hand out new Special Needs/Accessibility kits to each of these
attendees with the understanding that they would pass that kit along to the next
Chair in their District. These kits are the first that have been made available
to our
Treatment Facilities - - Brian S., ChairpersonI would like to thank District 3 for their hospitality this weekend. Also, thanks to Area 26 for the opportunity to serve and thanks to all who attended our meeting yesterday. I'd like to ask all who attended the treatment meeting yesterday to stand and be recognized. Since our last meeting I haven't pursued any real activity with exception to my regular commitment at JADAC in Louisville. I have fielded a phone call or two for guidance from the fellowship and I did forward a Bridging the Gap request from Phoenix Arizona to Gary F. in Northern Kentucky. The person is in treatment in Arizona and will be returning to Kentucky to live. In our committee meeting yesterday, we had 14 people in attendance. Some were first time attendees and many returning participants as well. Paul F. from district 6 gave a brief overview of his activity in St. Elizabeth hospital in Florence, KY. Paul did a good job expressing the personal benefits he receives by taking such actions. He also updated the committee on the improvements the hospital has made in their relationship with AA. 9 months ago, Dick W. district 32 DCM shared with the committee about the struggles he was encountering with St. Elizabeth hospital. The hospital has streamlined their volunteer application which sounds better than their old system. Still, there is a great need for more volunteers in the Florence area and especially female volunteers. Next we launched into a topic which led to a great sharing session. The topic really was singleness of purpose but the topic read as Why is it that in Louisville there are 427 AA meetings a week yet only 58 of them are closed meetings That's less than 14% of our meetings in Louisville are for alcoholics only. Why? What message does that send? Is it an intentional attempt to reach more potential alcoholics or is merely a lack of understanding of our traditions or our vital need for unity? Is AA being spread too thin? As you might imagine, many people had something to say about this. I sensed that we could have carried on well into lunch if we wanted to. In summation of the sharing session, it came down to three words: education, education, education. How this topic fit our committee is the fact that we're like first responders; we're on the firing line; we have an opportunity to share the truth about AA to people who haven't even made it here yet. But we need more AA's on the firing lines with us; in the trenches with us; sharing our life saving message to those who have yet receive freedom from alcohol.
Website - - Jon S., ChairpersonFirst, I like to thank those of District 3 for hosting the meeting. As usual you
did a great job. Would all those who helped please stand and be recognized. We
received 142 emails this past quarter and answered 102, 40 did not require a
response. I also send an email to every district asking if they would be
updating their own meetings of if they would like us to continue to update them.
I like to thank the eight that responded. We had 95,963 successful requests for
pages from 11/28/10 to 5/5/11. Of those request, 2.471 links from other websites
the rest were links from search engines or directly from users. We purchase some
software to equip our website team from a company who sells at great discounts
to nonprofits. We got the software for $64 that would have cost $1,616 retail.
By the end or this quarter we should have two other people besides me editing
our website. This should make it possible for the next Website committee
chairperson to focus on the things other than the tech stuff. We have completed
our website guidelines and will be submitting them as an agenda item at our next
area assembly. We had seven people at our committee meeting.
Links from other sites details
Email Report Details
Welcome to Service Workshop - - Darryl M., Co-ChairpersonDarryl, Co-Chair for Area 26. There were 28 people in attendance at the Welcome to Service Workshop yesterday. There was a lot of discussion about home group participation in service. We shared how to stimulate service at the home group level, also I was allowed to explain our General Service Conference and Structure. Yours in Service.
DCM Meeting - - Barbara F. - - ChairpersonAt the DCM meeting, there were 24 Districts represented. We spent the vast majority of the time, if not all of it, talking about the upcoming election. Trying to get people to stand and the importance of rotation.
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