Chair Report for Dec 2023
December 2023 Chair’s Report: From where I serve….
And so, another month of service to our groups. We have a busy December after a quiet November. Upcoming information is first: At our December 16th assembly, we will approve the 2024 budget, available on the website for you and your group to review. We will also hold an election. Five positions are up for election: chair, vice chair, treasurer, trustee at large and international trustee. Duties and qualifications, suggested resume forms, a description of our election process, the Third Legacy Procedure, are all linked and live on the OIAA 16 December Assembly page. The board has received resumes for the positions and those wanting to stand will present their qualifications to the assembly.
Eligible voting members per our bylaws are intergroup representatives, or their alternates, OIAA officers or their alternates, OIAA committee chairs or their alternates. We need to meet a quorum before conducting all business. To participate, your group must register with OIAA and have a registered intergroup representative, by December 8th, 11:59 pm ET.
Join OIAA here
Update information here
Send questions to the Registrar: registrar@aa-intergroup.org
Simultaneous interpretation is available upon request.
Notify Lesliee A communications.chair@aa-intergroup.org as soon as possible if you need these services.
Finally, I posted the assembly agenda with links and it is available and linked from our Assembly page: OIAA 16 December Assembly Agenda .
Board news heads this month’s report. We are meeting our plan to approve the guidelines before the year ends. Our secretary heads up this work. We discussed and approved the first half at the November board meeting and will approve the second half at our board meeting on the 10th of December. We will post these on the website for review by the membership and hold workshops for any questions or discussion with interpretive services available. We will hold them at times to reach as many of our international members as possible. We plan to bring them to the assembly for a vote in March, as guidelines, bylaws, officer/trustee elections, and the budget are the four areas defined by our bylaws that require a membership vote. Look for them to be posted to the website for viewing around the first of the year. As I mentioned, November was a quieter month, and I was grateful. I fell at the end of October and November gave me a quieter time to heal, recover and reflect. I think with gratitude on all the team that surrounds me and the sacrifices they make to service, giving up family time, serving despite illness and pain, answering calls for help, developing new ways to serve the groups in our care.
In October, Nona and I attended the 38th Annual ICOAA Seminar hosted by the Greater Cincinnati Intergroup in Florence, Ky, October 12-15th where we made a presentation which included a video our communications committee prepared. The video, “What Is OIAA?” received applause!! In November, a member of the Communications committee wanted to use it at a local intergroup and the board approved it for viewing publicly. Our tech team, uploaded it to join videos they produced to our YouTube channel and you can view it here: What Is OIAA? Check out the videos produced by both committees here on the OIAA YouTube Channel. I am very excited about the work our committees are doing in service to the organization and our groups. I am pleased we are communicating, cooperating, and collaborating.
So, a quieter month in November, a board meeting, four committee meetings: finance, unity, communications, tech. And I prepared for the election: 5 positions and a budget to pass. But we cannot do that without a quorum, so we need your help to come to the assembly and have a voice in both the elections, including two new non-officer trustees and an aggressive budget. Unity is still discussing WhatsApp groups and has communicated with Russian speaking groups within Russia and outside of Russia. Finance is answering questions about best banking practices and thinking about a workshop about them in conjunction with the IGR forum sometime in the future, Communications is considering incorporating archives into their committee and looking toward their next project. They also plan on holding a contest for the new OIAA tagline like we did with the logo. They have also been responsible for interpretive services. Tech has any number of subcommittees responsible for the various services that make up our website: cloud services, event crew, tech steppers. And our core services, steppers including our registration services, and PAC, help us to fulfill our primary service of listing groups—all the other committees help to service those groups.
We are on the cusp of a different board composition with our election in a few weeks. They will bring different skills and assets to the table. This expanded board began with a motion from a member to add an international trustee. It took debate by the board and the ad hoc guidelines committee to bring it to consensus, to fruition.
A willingness to stand or volunteer for 12 step service work reminds me again of the 7th tradition. The funds you have contributed enabled us to plan for services to our groups, but we need 12 step service volunteers to realize our potential. (Service Opportunities) It is in the 7th tradition where money and spirituality mix. We contribute funds to the basket to support the needs of our groups. We decide how to contribute to our service organizations with the money our group doesn’t need. And we contribute our service to preserve the program for the future.
We are no longer imprisoned by the spirits of alcohol. With step one, we cried out, “Help me!” With step 12, we were asked to help others. We have become responsible. You can contribute your talents and gifts back to the program, which for 88 years has provided the beacon of light for generations out of the darkness of alcoholism. Someone shared with me she was serving so we would be here if her granddaughter needed the program. What is your why? Can you find the why and how of giving back here? Service facilitates recovery. Through service I found a fourth dimension where I have stopped fighting myself and others. Instead, I found the friendships and love of people I might never have met. We became sisters and brothers, encircled by love and purpose, all working toward the same goal, a sustained program for the future. We maintain our recovery through our meetings. We maintain the future of our program through the willingness and responsibility of our service. I hope you will consider joining us. Check out our committee work! Give of your spirit! Join the team!! You will not regret it.
See you in a few weeks and I am grateful for your support personally, and for the organization.
Humbly and respectfully submitted:
Susan R
OIAA Chair
chair@aa-intergroup.org
If you have ideas for the OIAA 2024 International Convention, reach out to our Unity and Convention Chairs now. (Unity.chair@aa-intergroup.org or Convention.chair@aa-intergroup.org Tagline-Convention of Online Groups 2024) The Unity committee is also looking for a secretary.
We are looking for an archivist, PIC, and CPC chair. If you have an interest, reach out to chair@aa-intergroup.org.
And our 2nd Annual General Meeting on December 16th, 2023, 2 pm EST. We will hold elections for chair, vice chair, treasurer and the new non-officer trustees-international trustee and trustee at large. We need your participation! OIAA General Assembly The upper right-hand button translates this page.
We will also approve the 2024 budget! 2024 OIAA Budget
To participate, your group must register with OIAA and have a registered intergroup representative, by December 8th, 11:59 pm ET.
If you need interpretive services, please contact Lesliee A, communications.chair@aa-intergroup.org, as soon as possible.
OIAA General Assembly
Saturday, December 16th, 2023
11:00am PST/1:00pm CST/2:00pm EST
Meeting ID: 839 1683 1125; Passcode: OIAA
And remember, if you want to step up to service, we need your help!! It’s really a mouse click away. Service Opportunities
