Please copy this for your group

Please copy this for your group

GLBT in AA
Moves Forward

On January 7, 2000 at 12 Noon we will hold the next meeting of GLBT in AA. The meeting will be at the Founders' Club, 2218 1^st Ave. So, in Mpls.

At this meeting we will hold elections for new officers. I have been co-chair for over 2 years and it is now time to make some changes. The group was formed originally to work on the International Convention of AA which was held this past summer. We must now decide on a new direction, mission statement, and maybe even a new name.

There are a few ideas I and some of the other members of the group see as possible goals to work toward. They will be discussed in January and some of the basics started to decide on these goals.

Education committee - Start a committee to look into the feasibility of providing various services to the GLBT recovering community such as seminars on the steps, presentations on the service structure, the 12 Concepts, and Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous. Fourth Step Seminars already exist, but we could help insure that they will continue by training the personnel and providing space for them. Urge groups to become more active in AA, NA, Al-anon, etc. as a whole by having representation through GSRs, Intergroup representatives and the like. We could keep a resource library of literature and tapes of speakers including local speakers and help local speakers who are interested get listed with IAC (The International Advisory Council for Homosexual Men and Women in Alcoholics Anonymous) and become active in circuit speaking. We could provide outreach to the GLBT community to let them know we exist (Pride Festival and Parade?). There are many possibilities in this area, both in taking short presentations to groups and in supplying space for members of all groups to come together for workshops or presentations.

Social Committee - We could also provide sober social activities on a monthly basis. We already have the Halloween Dance, New Years' Party, Gratitude Dinner, and Gopher State Hospitality Room in place. There is also a ski party planned for January. There are many possibilities of providing some GLBT sober fellowship the other eight months.

Re-establishing IAC representation in this area and create a better communication network between groups in this area.

Other ideas that have been kicked around - providing child care at functions, advisory committee to work with other committees to advise on traditions and service structure, strategy committee to help keep a focus and to set priorities. The possibility of obtaining space for a recovery club house could be a long range goal.

We also would like to start working with NA, Al-anon, and Adult Children groups (how about an Ala-teen group?) in the GLBT community.

As you can see, the possibilities are many - please join us at the January meeting and let's start working on a unified, strong GLBT recovering community!

MinneSober

MinneSober, which is held in October each year, will be starting its plans for the 2001 Roundup on January 10, 2001. The planning meeting will be at the Minneapolis Regal Hotel, 1313 Nicollet Ave. at 7 PM.

There is a new focus starting for the Roundup which makes for a great opportunity to do service work and learn about working with others (as well as about the program).

Questions can be directed to Krag S. or Jeff P.

I happened across this little ditty again and thought it worth repeating. It makes for a good thing to think over during this Holiday Season.

Sign on Lowry Alano Wall

If the shoe fits -

Do you attend meetings and mingle with the flock

or do you stay at home and criticize and knock

Do you take an active part to help the work along

or are you satisfied to only just belong

When the business session comes around

do you pretend to be sick

Then leave the work to just a few

and talk about the clique

Think this over, member, you know right from wrong

Are you and active member

or do you just belong?

New Year's Eve Party