May Chair’s Report

Announcements

Interpretation Request Reminder

If your group, committee, or OIAA event needs interpretation services, please contact Jen H., Unity Chair, at unity.JenH@aa-intergroup.org at least one week before the event whenever possible.

Advance notice helps us better coordinate interpreters, improve reliability, and support participation across languages and communities. Our goal is always the same: to make sure the hand of AA is available to every alcoholic seeking help, regardless of language or location.

IGR Support and Development

The PAC Committee continues to explore ways to assist new Intergroup Representatives (IGRs) and connect them with experienced IGRs, with an emphasis on support, connection, and shared service experience.

Unity Committee – IGR Orientation

The Unity Committee has begun a recurring monthly IGR Orientation Workshop, held on the third Sunday of each month, providing an opportunity for connection and orientation for new IGRs and member groups. This supports Unity’s broader liaison work of strengthening connection across our listed meetings and international fellowship.

Service is strongest when no one feels they are doing it alone.

 

Unity Committee & 2026 Online International Convention

Planning continues for the 2026 OIAA Online International Convention, scheduled for November 20–22, 2026, with Host Group registration now open.

Unity continues its work of liaison outreach, international connection, and direct support to meetings throughout our directory. Their work reminds us that OIAA exists not simply as a listing service, but as a living fellowship connection point for alcoholics around the world.

June Assembly – Annual Committee Reports

Our June Assembly will include the annual Committee Chair Reports to the membership, in keeping with Section 5.05 of the OIAA Bylaws, which states:

“All committees shall maintain records of their activities and make at least quarterly reports of those activities to the Board. In addition, all committees shall make at least an annual report to the Assembly.”

This is both a legal responsibility and a spiritual practice. Transparency builds trust. Reporting strengthens unity. Good process is not bureaucracy—it is how we remain accountable to one another and to the fellowship we serve.

Look for an assembly agenda linked to our homepage banner in mid-May!

July Service Expo

In July, instead of the usual summer IGR Forum format, OIAA will host a Service Expo, where committees will meet directly with the membership in breakout rooms to share their work, answer questions, and invite participation.

This gives members an opportunity to better understand how OIAA functions and where they may feel called to serve. Service opportunities across committees continue to be listed on the IGR Hot List and Service Opportunities page.

Upcoming Safety Workshop – May 2

Our next Safety Workshop, “Online Safety Beyond Zoom,” continues the conversation beyond platform settings and technical controls, focusing on spiritual safety, group responsibility, accessibility, and welcoming the still-suffering alcoholic.

Safety in AA is not only about technology—it is about protecting the hand of AA so that when anyone, anywhere reaches out for help, they can find recovery.

Chair’s Report to the Membership-From Where I Sit

Board Report

April and May have continued the work of strengthening OIAA through clearer process, stronger committee support, and responsible stewardship of our resources.

Three standing committee efforts are actively moving forward: CPC (Cooperation with the Professional Community), the Ad Hoc Guidelines Committee, and the ongoing reboot of the Communications Committee.

The Ad Hoc Guidelines Committee reflects Assembly direction toward broad participation and review through committee process and group conscience, rather than top-down revision. This is an important principle for us as trusted servants—we support the fellowship; we do not govern it.

The Ad Hoc Guidelines Committee has begun its formal review of the OIAA Guidelines—not the bylaws—with the purpose of improving clarity, consistency, and usefulness while preserving both spirit and practical purpose. This work will proceed through committee review, Board review, membership workshops, and ultimately Assembly vote.

The CPC Committee has approved its revised charter, elected new leadership, and has begun rebuilding its infrastructure, including response templates, committee mailbox access, and professional outreach tools. Their international participation and renewed energy are already evident.

The Communications Committee reboot is also underway after a lengthy hiatus. Recruitment conversations have begun, and charter review is in process to align the committee with present needs, especially around multilingual communication, document consistency, archival work, and support for committee messaging.

I also accepted the resignation of our PI Chair, with gratitude for her service and willingness to serve. Public Information remains important work, and we are seeking a trusted servant willing to step into that role.

Our April IGR Forum on “7th Tradition: How Online Groups Do It” was very successful, with strong participation and practical sharing from group treasurers across multiple online meetings. These conversations matter because financial self-support is not merely bookkeeping—it is spiritual responsibility and group autonomy in action.

OIAA also remains financially stable and responsibly positioned for service. Finance continues reviewing budget variances, year-end planning, and possible reallocations to ensure resources are used wisely in carrying the message rather than simply accumulating excess.

Vancouver Convention closeout is nearly complete, including final tax rebate work and documentation for future convention planning. At the same time, planning for St. Louis

Additionally, our planned participation and continued representation at ICOAA annual workshop help ensure OIAA remains both responsible internally and present wherever online AA service needs a voice.

Combined Board & Committees (CBC)

Our recent Combined Board and Committees meeting brought together officers, committee chairs, and trusted servants across OIAA to review progress and strengthen communication across service structures.

This meeting reflects both legal responsibility and spiritual purpose.

As a New Jersey nonprofit, our bylaws require committees to maintain records and report regularly. Spiritually, Tradition Two reminds us that our leaders are but trusted servants—they do not govern. The Board supports committees, committees support groups, and groups carry the message. We work from the upside-down triangle.

Several important committee developments are worth highlighting:

PAC continues strong work supporting new meetings and groups seeking listing in our directory. During Q1, PAC reviewed 167 new meeting submission forms and completed 51 new meeting listings, while continuing multilingual template development and improving first-contact forms to reduce delays.

The IGR Steppers subcommittee under PAC has begun initial discussions on how best to support new IGRs and strengthen connection across the fellowship.

Technology continues significant work behind the scenes: directory cleanup, form improvements, event support, charter maintenance reminders, and ongoing work with Code for Recovery on the next-generation meeting directory.

Unity continues convention preparation, liaison outreach, and direct meeting support across the international fellowship.

Finance remains steady, transparent, and prudent in its stewardship of contributions.

CPC is rebuilding with strong new energy and international participation.

Communications is in the early stages of revival after a year of dormancy.

These are not separate efforts. They are expressions of one shared responsibility: helping the still-suffering alcoholic find Alcoholics Anonymous.

Committees were also reminded to review their committee pages, service opportunities listings, agendas, minutes, and AI summaries so that our members can see the work being done and understand how to participate.

Transparency is not performance—it is trust.

I Have Been Thinking about the Fifth Tradition….

“Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.”

Tradition Five keeps us honest.

It reminds us that all of our budgets, workshops, directories, translations, committee reports, and planning efforts are not the mission—they are only tools in service of the mission.

Sometimes that means supporting large international efforts. Sometimes it means helping a single newcomer find a meeting that fits.

Sometimes it means ensuring there is room for special-purpose meetings—such as Dual Diagnosis meetings, accessibility-focused meetings, and meetings for alcoholics navigating mental health challenges—so long as we remain clear that our purpose is helping the alcoholic.

AA has long recognized that alcoholics arrive carrying many burdens. Conference-approved literature addressing emotional sobriety and mental health reminds us that our work is not to diagnose or affiliate, but to welcome and help the alcoholic.

We are not professionals. We are not treatment providers. But we are responsible for making sure the hand of AA remains available.

Our 12-Steppers data reminds us how real that responsibility is.

In the first quarter alone, OIAA received over 1,700 service requests, including more than 750 direct 12th Step requests and more than 500 requests from people seeking to join OIAA. More than 4,500 responses were sent, with an average response time of just over one hour.

That is Tradition Five in action.

Not theory. Not policy.

A hand extended.

Recovery is not built in isolation.

The conspiracy of our alcoholism tells us: trust no one. Stay separate. Carry it alone.

Recovery teaches the opposite.

Community is not extra—it is part of recovery.

Whether it is a newcomer reaching out for help, a new IGR learning how to serve, a committee learning how to work together, or a group finding its place in the larger fellowship, the answer is rarely isolation. The answer is connection.

OIAA exists because recovery happens in community.

We carry the message together.

When anyone, anywhere, anytime reaches out for help,
we want the hand of A.A. always to be there.

And for that, we are responsible.Top of Form

 

Bottom of Form

Respectfully submitted,
Susan R., OIAA Chair

Questions or Comments: Chair@aa-intergroup.org