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| Alcoholics Anonymous in Southern Wisconsin | ||
Alcoholics Anonymous-Area 75 Sunday, April 10, 2005
Pre-Conference Assembly Meeting 9:00 a.m.
Madison Senior Center
Madison, WI
AGENDA PLANNING MEETING
OFFICERS PRESENT: Nancy G, Delegate; Robert S, Alternate Delegate; Howard P, Area Chairperson; Monica M, Alternate Chairperson; John B, Secretary; Kathy W, Alternate Secretary; George B, Treasurer; Nancy H, Alternate Treasurer
STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS PRESENT: Jo Mc, Grapevine; Ken Y, Bridging the Gap; Fred K (Alt.), Corrections; Stu E, Cooperation with the Professional Community (CPC); George P, Public Information (PI); Marian B, Treatment; Michael N, Special Needs; Terry R, Archives; Rick J, Conference Advisory Committee; Nancy S, Archivist; Cindy H, Spring Conference 2005; Lavonne S, Unity Conference 2006-2007
DCM’s PRESENT: John N-D1; Susan J-D2; Ray Z-D3; Jim Mc-D6; Dale W-D7; Darryl S (Alt.)-D8; John W-D11; Annette D-D12; Chris C-D13; Greg H-D15; Patrick R-D16; Carol Mc-D17; Patrick N-D19; Dan K-D20; Matt Z (Alt.)-D22; Mark C-D25; David W-D27; Ron G-D29; Lori M, Bill J (Alt.)-D30; Dale H-D32; Gary T-D34; Dennis L-D36.
GSR’s & DISTRICT COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS PRESENT: D1-Art B, David F; D2-Denise E; D6-Fred K, Liz Y; D7-Cheryl P, Cathy F, Packy D, Jeff W; D8–Russ K; D13-Kent B, Cheri C, Peggy D, Jodi K; D14-Diana K, Renuka V; D17-John H; D19-Bonnie W; D20-Steve T, Doreen H, Tamra O, Tom G; D22- Mike R, Matt Z; D25-Cindy H, David D; D27-Mike M; D28-Debbie R; D29-Mike C, Bill E, Dennis D; D30-Bill J, George S, Ray E, Nora F, Dave L; D32-Mike A, Don D, Chris C, Chris E; D34-Teri B, Rick D, Joe M, Mike B
OTHERS PRESENT: Past Delegates (Area 75)-Joan J, John B, Ken G, Leo M; Don S
Howard P, Area Chairperson, opened the meeting with a moment of silence, followed by…
The Serenity Prayer.
Bob S, Alternate Delegate & Literature Chair, read the Twelve Concepts.
John B, Area Secretary, took Roll Call.
Secretary’s Report - John B asked if there were any corrections to the minutes from the Agenda Planning meeting and they were accepted as published. John asked if anyone had a chance to view the area minutes on the area website and stated that Al had done a nice job of setting up the links. The only problem that he was aware of was the need to scroll down after opening the link. Until one scrolls down, it doesn’t appear that anything is there. The other problem was opening attachments in a pdf format. Apparently some of the various virus protection programs will not allow the attachments to open unless they are disabled.
Treasurer’s Report – George B reviewed the current area financial statement and it was
accepted as read. George stated that despite the figure shown on the balance sheet, the area isn’t broke, as additional funds had been received after the closing date of the statement.
Balance sheet found in Appendix 2.
Treasurer’s report found in Appendix 3.
Delegate’s Report – Nancy G passed out the group update forms prior to the meeting and asked for volunteers to take information back to the districts that were without representation this morning’s meeting. Nancy hopes to visit each district during her rotation as delegate and invited the DCM’s to sign up on her calendar for a visit from her. Nancy asked for information on district workshops and other district events in the hope that she would be able to attend. Nancy received the fourth quarter contribution reports from GSO indicating that 44% of the groups had contributed, up from 39% for the third quarter. Nancy leaves for New York on April 15th for the General Service Conference. Nancy thanked those members that had attended the delegate’s workshop for their input.
Nancy’s written report is found in Appendix 4.
Chairperson’s Report - Howard P thanked the districts that have mailed or emailed copies of their minutes as he wishes to be kept informed of the issues and activities throughout Area 75. Howard also thanked those members in attendance today for their input and participation in the area assembly. Howard stated that it is also his wish to attend a business meeting for each district within Area 75 during his rotation as Area Chairperson.
Howard’s written report is found in Appendix 5.
Corrections – Fred K read Paul H’s written report, as Paul was unable to be in attendance today. There is literature available for district Corrections Committees. Contacts have been found for all prisoners requesting them, which average about 15 requests per month. Help is still needed for meetings at Waupan. The corrections committee hopes to publish a quarterly newsletter. Rainbow cans are available to take back to your meetings.
Paul’s written report is found in Appendix 6.
Grapevine – Jo Mc reported that the Count On Us fund has about $600 in it currently. Jo proposes to buy back issues of the Grapevine rather than new subscriptions, as we would be able to get many more issues into the hands of inmates. Fifty back issues are available for $26 compared to $18 for a new subscription. Jo is interested in putting together a Grapevine writing workshop targeted at generating stories from young people. Jo reported that rooms are available for the International at 89 Chestnut Summer Residence through the University of Toronto. If interested, see Jo for additional information. Discussion: Kathy W had some concern that monies collected at the district level by use of the Rainbow Can would not be properly accounted for. Kathy felt that any funds collected should be turned over to the area. George B stated that by assembly action the area was charged with administration of the Rainbow Fund and the Count On Us Fund and any monies collected though the use of those names must be sent to the area. George went on to say that individual districts were welcome to distribute literature to correction facilites within their district if they had funds available. Monica M confirmed what George had said by reading the appropriate section of the Assembly Actions. George P pointed out that the Rainbow cans that had been distributed stated that the money collected could be used through the district or sent to the area. If the funds were only for use at the area level, then the cans should be recalled so that the wording can be changed.
Literature – Bob S reviewed the agenda items set for the Literature Committee at the General Service Conference. These were the items that were discussed last month by the Literature Committee at the Delegate’s Workshop.
Bob’s written report is found in Appendix 7.
Public Information – George P introduced himself as the new PI chair and thanked the fellowship for the opportunity to be of service. George stated that he had been devoting his energies to the upcoming conference that’s being hosted by District 3. He reported that they had hoped to have it at the Blue Harbor but that due to difficulties in the negotiations they had signed with the Holiday Inn in Manitowoc where a previous conference had been held. George will continue to assist District 3 in any way he can.
George’s written report is found in Appendix 8.
Cooperation With the Professional Community – Stu E asked that DCM’s try and get their district CPC chairs to attend the area business meetings as they along with any other interested parties make up the area CPC committee. Stu is available to attend district meetings to further explain and promote the CPC function if invited.
Stu’s written report is found in Appendix 9.
Special Needs – Michael N reported that a one-piece information mailing is in the works for May 1st going out to agencies and organizations that serve individuals with disabilities in the state of Wisconsin. The mailing is to inform them of the existence and availability of AA. Michael stated that he had several conversations regarding the Grapevine and accessibility for the hearing impaired and was told that studio costs would prohibit it at this point in time.
Michael’s written report is found in Appendix 10.
Treatment – Marian thanked those districts that have sent their district minutes to her and asked that those who aren’t, to please start. Marian also thanked those who attended the Agenda Planning meeting and the Delegates Workshop and looks forward to meeting with the district Treatment Chairs at the upcoming Spring Conference.
Marian’s written report is found in Appendix 11.
Bridging the Gap – Ken reported that the Bridging the Gap contact list has been compiled and distributed. A Bridging the Gap form letter has been sent out to all those listed in the Wisconsin Substance Abuse Services Directory and many responses have been received. Ken will try and visit all the districts this year and will repeat the visits next year.
Ken’s written report is found in Appendix 12.
Archives – Terry reported that a district Archives workbook was available to all DCM’s today. Nancy also gave a report and stated that there is more and more interest in having the archives displayed at district and group events in addition to the conferences. Nancy reported that she has been checking into renting a more permanent location for the archives and has contacted several other areas to discover how theirs are handled. She will discuss this further when she attends the National Archives Workshop in September of this year.
Nancy’s written report is found in Appendix 13.
DCM Reports
Note: By assembly action all members giving reports at the area are required to submit a copy of their report in writing to the area secretary. Due to a problem with the recorder, only those DCM’s who submitted a written report will be represented here. I tried the best I could to record accurately what was written down. Unfortunately not everyone’s handwriting is legible.
District 1
(a) Service Workshop/Potluck/Speaker Meeting/Dance, April 23: 9th & Main in La Crosse, Panels start at 1:00 PM, Topics: AA History, Home Group, Sponsorship, District & Intergroup.
Art B, outside sponsor for Sandridge Secure Treatment Center needs volunteers to go in for meetings.
Sparta Group #1 has switched all meetings to a “no smoking” format.
BRF Group #1 has added two non-smoking meetings, Tuesday @ 5 PM and Friday @ 5 PM.
Not many GSR’s attend the district meetings. Out of 56 groups maybe 5 GSR’s show up.
Open positions at district: Alt. DCM, BTG, GV, Treatment
My goal is to visit all groups in district1 and see if I can generate interest in service work at the district level.
District 3 – Ray Z
Secretary, treasurer and alternate DCM positions filled.
PI/CPC position was filled, but may back out.
Jail meetings are active without chair.
All other positions need to be filled.
Conference Committee Chair, George P resigned & we’re hoping to get a meeting for Fall 2007 volunteer meeting & we’re already working on speaker.
Probably (tentatively) for June or July.
District 7 – Dale W
All chairs are filled.
We have been handing out Big Books to different organizations.
We are planning a Service Workshop for October.
Some of our committee chairs have started forming committees.
We have some group updates and still more coming in.
I have sent updates of meeting lists for the When & Where to Central Office.
GSR’s have been attending the district meetings.
Ken Y, the area BTG chair visited and was well received.
District 8
Struggling, only two chair positions filled.
District meeting: 1st Friday of the month @ 6:45 PM, 2745 Park Ave., Beloit
Hosting SEWANI, Sat. May 7th, flyers on table.
Fall 06 conference – more to be revealed in conference reports
District 8 & 30 hosting mini-conference Sept. 24th 2005.
District 12 – Annette D.
Combined GV/Literature chair open, but have someone lined up.
Secretary (Mary R) stepped down due to health problems.
PI – Hustisford teachers - speakers, checking county libraries for literature.
CPC – 100 letters to professionals.
Just filled BTG & Treatment.
Hot line – we have our own. Has been cleaned up but struggling financially.
Picnic chair – annual, want in September.
Website – Alt. DCM’s responsibility (we have all meetings entered).
Special Needs – will address this issue next month (do not have chair).
District 13 – Chris C
Chris’s written report is found at Appendix 14
District 14 – Renuka V
Most chairs are filled, but CPC & BTG still open.
Kim D, our treatment chair had to step down due to husband’s health issues. She was in charge of recruiting groups to host Rap Sessions at Milwaukee Psych. Hospital on Tuesday evenings. Hope to fill this position soon.
Poor attendance by GSR’s.
We are holding an open speaker meeting with a Trusted Servant Workshop this summer.
District 14 meeting is on the second Wednesday of the month @ 7:30 PM @ the Unity Church, 74th & Milwaukee.
District 17 – Carol Mc
Carol’s written report is found at Appendix 15
District 19 – Patrick N
Hotline going well – positive tools / valuable assett.
All chairs are filled and active / Special Needs – as needed basis.
Self supporting – corrections – literature.
Workshop – Service – to be decided.
Concerted effort @ invigorating service servants.
New Archives Chair – Bonnie M.
District 20 – Dan K
Dan’s written report is found at Appendix 16
District 23
$238.82 in treasury.
20 groups, 3 new groups pending.
15 GSR’s (4 treasurers needed).
GSR workshop – Mar. 12.
Open speaker meeting – B.D. 2nd Sat., Mayville – 1st Mon., Fri. – St. Mike’s, Horicon – 2nd Fri.
Shake ups – principals before personalities – 1st step – control & power, tradition 3.
District 25 – Mark C
Trying to get to all district meetings and hoping to get GSR’s and Treasurer’s on record.
Trying to get all groups updated & current information sent to GSO.
In process of trying to fill committee chairperson’s spots to get some activity going in the respective areas.
Intergroup for FDL will be Oct. 1st. Committee has been formed & will be meeting regularly to get everything set-up.
Cindy H & the Spring Conference Committee are working hard to make final preparations. Please encourage attendance at this conference to be held at the Holiday Inn in the middle of May.
Will be contacting DCM’s for Districts 2 & 3 for the purpose of talking about setting up a Treatment Workshop. Marian B will be involved.
Dave D will be working on getting Grapevine representatives for each group. A Grapevine workshop is being looked at.
District 27 – David W
District 27 is located in Milwaukee & our district meetings are the 3rd Sat. of each month.
District 27 has 23 weekly meetings.
We send out a mailer annually to schools, police departments, judges, lawyers, hospitals, probation officers, etc…
Go to schools to educate and inform teachers and students about AA. We are here.
Will be going to each group to inform them of the district and area functions and they need to become apart of. We will be asking for their involvement.
Every six months we put on a district workshop. The next workshop will be in the fall.
We had about 60 – 70 in attendance at our March 19th workshop. Speakers were from other districts.
Our motto is no task or nobody is beneath us because we are here to serve. We are available when needed. We are trusted servants and are here to carry the message. We always get the job done.
District 30 – Lori M
We have a new PI / CPC chair, George S, who started last month.
Area BTG chair, Ken Y came to our district meeting in March.
We have a new MAICO representative, Liane J, who started the first of the year.
The only chair not filled currently is Special Needs
We are having a mini-conference this year on Sept. 24th. It will be held at the Salvation Army on Sutherland Ave, in Janesville. Flyers will be forthcoming.
Our district hotline has been very busy so we are getting the word out there.
In Beloit, district 30 and district 8 are our Delegate’s Report workshop on April 30.
Our groups are going strong.
We have our meetings listed on the area website now, 56 in all.
District 32 – Dale H
Holding meetings in the district.
Going to meetings in the district.
Minutes are being sent to the area.
All chairs are working and doings what needs to be done.
More GSR’s are attending district meetings.
District 36 – Dennis L
Our meeting is the 3rd Sunday of the month @ 8:00 AM @ Burl. 12 & 12.
District meetings are well attended and we have some new ones.
Trying to get more groups to elect GSR’s and to attend district meetings.
We then hope to get them to chair a committee.
We have a meeting list in the local paper.
Have distributed the list to local facilities such as police stations, hospitals & doctor’s offices.
MAICO – Kathy W introduced herself as the chairperson for the MAICO steering committee. MAICO’s mission is to help groups within its service area to carry the AA message. MAICO provides services beyond the scope of any individual AA group. MAICO provides 24 hour phone/answering service, conference approved literature, information about the AA fellowship, a newsletter, directory of area meetings and other services requested by individual groups within the service area. MAICO is funded by group donations and two annual fund raising events. The office is open Monday & Tuesday 11 AM – 8 PM, Wednesday through Friday 11 AM to 6 PM and Saturday 12 Noon to 2 PM. A website has been recently developed and can be reached by typing http://webpages.charter.net/maico/ into your browser.
Winnebago Land Central Office – Dave D stated that Winnebago Land Central Office does the same thing that MAICO does with the exception of the website and they don’t have a computer. The office is open from 8 AM to 5 PM Monday through Friday. The hotline provides service twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, either live at the office or on a call forwarding basis.
Past Conference Report (Fall 2004) – Lori M, the District 30 DCM presented the conference wrap-up report. Lori thanked all those who participated and made the conference a success.
Fall 2004 final report is found at Appendix 17.
Spring 2005 Conference Report – Cindy H reported that the conference was being hosted by District 25. Cindy reminded the area assembly that there is road construction and watch for the detour signs. If coming from the south, the exit for the Holiday Inn will be before the Highway 151 interchange. Please watch for the signs. Everything is on schedule and appears to be running smoothly. Any questions should be addressed to Cindy H or George B. The phone numbers and an email address are listed on the conference flyer
Spring 2005 Conference report is found at Appendix 18.
Fall 2005 Conference Report – Chris C the District 13 DCM gave a brief report on behalf of the conference committee. The dates for the conference are October 14 – 16 at the Marriot Hotel in Waukesha. Registration cost will be $13.50.
Fall 2005 Conference report is found at Appendix 19.
Spring 2006 Conference Report – David F reported that things are going along well. Had to do a little renegotiation with the hotel and hopes that it works out. They were able to obtain their first choice speakers and the program is pretty much set at this time. The dates for the conference are May 5 – 7, 2006 at the Radisson in La Crosse.
No report from fall of 2006 but the dates will be October 20 – 22.
No report or dates from the spring of 2007 conference.
Fall 2007 Conference Report – George P reported that a conference chairperson has not yet been determined. A contract has been signed with the Holiday Inn in Manitowoc. The date for the conference will be October 13 – 15, 2007
Unity Conference 2006 & 2007 – Lavonne S reported she is the co-chair for the 2006 conference and rotates to the chair position for the conference in 2007. Lavonne has asked for volunteers but hasn’t generated any interest so far. The site for the 2006 conference has not yet been selected and has had no communication from the conference chair. The 2007 conference will be the Five State Regional Conference, which will be hosted by Area 75. This conference will be held in conjunction with the Unity Conference. A conference co-chair has been named by Area 74 so the site selection process can begin for that conference. Lavonne will pass on the fact that the Special Needs Committee wishes to be involved in an upcoming conference.
Bid for Spring Confernce 2008 – The only district to submit a bid for this conference was District 34 to be held at the Olympia in Oconomowoc. The area unanimously approved this bid.
Coffee Volunteers – District 11 volunteered to make the coffee for the Agenda Planning Meeting on June 12, 2005.
Proposal on Finances – To form a finance committee to oversee and establish area budgets. Discussion: One member objected to the wording of the proposal using the word “establish”. The author of the proposal did not wish to amend the proposal. A past treasurer was in favor of the proposal based on her experience in the past budgeting process. The budget is being calculated using the old budget plus 10% regardless of the monies needed for the position. This is within the guidelines of current assembly actions and does not require approval of the area body. This is how the budget became so out of hand. Another member mentioned that the budget had not been approved for a period of time and it did not make sense to continue with a process that is clearly broken. One does not budget two or three times their expected income and ask for approval.
Call the question: Unanimous.
First vote: 47 in favor 10 opposed (no minority opinion).
The item was passed.
29) Proposal to Discontinue Printing the Pamphlet (P-30): “Is There an Alcoholic in Your Life?” – Discussion: The area can only make a recommendation to GSO by way of the area delegate and does not have authority to discontinue the pamphlet. The author of the proposal was asked to amend the proposal to read “recommendation” and agreed to do so.
a) Call the question: 56 to 1.
First vote: 16 in favor, 38 opposed (no minority opinion).
The item was defeated.
Meeting was closed with the Lords Prayer.
Respectfully submitted,
John B.
Area 75 Secretary 2005-2006
May 13 – 15, 2005 – Spring Conference, Fond du Lac WI
June 12, 2005 – Agenda Planning Meeting, Madison Senior Center, Madison WI
June 29 – July 3, 2005 – International Convention, Toronto, Canada
September 25, 2005 – Pre-Conference Assembly, Madison Senior Center, Madison WI
October 14 – 16, 2005 – Fall Conference, Waukesha WI
Announcement
Area 75 business meeting notes are now available at the area website:
Once you are at the website, double right click on area business, now right click on the document you wish to view (currently there is only one). After the document opens, you need to scroll down to view it. The appendices at the end of each section are available through a hyperlink in the document. Simply right click on the appropriate appendix and a window will open. Some appendices are part of the document and will open very quickly. Any appendix that was scanned will open as a PDF file. You will need to wait a few seconds for these files to open and you will also need Adobe reader. For those who do not already have Adobe reader on their computer, it is available as a free download at the Adobe website:
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.html
Problems with the website should be reported to the area 75 webmaster, Al B, at abuss@mwt.net
Questions concerning the content of the area minutes should be sent to the area 75 secretary, John B, jbaddaker@earthlink.net
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AREA 75 ASSEMBLY |
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Balance Sheet |
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March 31, 2005 |
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ASSETS |
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Current Assets |
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Cash in Checking-M&I |
$ |
1,274.85 |
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Prudent Reserve-M&I |
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4,000.00 |
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A/R-Conference Seed Money |
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1,500.00 |
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Total Current Assets |
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6,774.85 |
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Property and Equipment |
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Equipment |
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1,467.37 |
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Total Property and Equipment |
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1,467.37 |
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Other Assets |
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Total Other Assets |
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0 |
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Total Assets |
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$ |
8,242.22 |
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LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL |
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Current Liabilities |
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Total Current Liabilities |
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0 |
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Long-Term Liabilities |
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Total Long-Term Liabilities |
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0 |
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Total Liabilities |
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0 |
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Capital |
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Retained Earnings |
$ |
8,916.01 |
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Net Income |
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<673.79> |
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Total Capital |
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8,242.22 |
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Total Liabilities & Capital |
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$ |
8,242.22 |
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Retained Earnings |
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Net Income |
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Total Capital |
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8,242.22 |
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Total Liabilities & Capital |
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8,242.22 |
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Unaudited - For Management Purposes |
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Area 75 Assembly
Treasurer’s Report
March 31, 2005
Balance in checking account as of March 31, 2005 is $1,274.85 – Prudent reserve is $4000.00.
Conference Seed Money - $1500.00
Spring 2005 $500.00
Fall 2005 $500.00
Fall 2006 $500.00
These numbers are correct according to the checkbook and accounting software. I just seem to have trouble getting them to report properly. I will be working with this with some help from someone who knows how to get these reports to work.
Respectfully submitted,
George B
Area 75 Treasurer
DELEGATE’S REPORT
Pre-Conference Assembly
April 10, 2005
Group Updates/New Groups
I hope all DCMs received their packet of group updates with instructions. The update project is important and I ask that you make every effort to get the corrections to GSO as soon as possible. I have with me today some update sheets that did not have a district number, had an incorrect or inactive district number, or had other incorrect information. I am going to read off those locations and ask that the appropriate DCM please take these sheets for update.
I also have with me a number of new group forms for our Area sent to me by GSO. I will read off the District number or other information. If you are the DCM for that group, please take the sheets with you and contact the group to invite them to participate in your GSR meetings.
As I reported in January, I hope to visit each District meeting during my two-year rotation as Delegate. I again brought along a calendar for this year. If you put your district number and meeting time in a certain date, I will contact you as that date nears to get directions and confirm my visit. In addition to the district meetings, I will attend as many district workshops and other functions as I can. So please provide me with information on your events.
Group Contributions
I received the fourth quarter 2004 group contribution report for our Area from GSO. If you are interested in seeing which groups have made contributions, I have the sheets with me today. I am pleased to inform you that we had 44% of our groups donating to our General Service Office for that period, up from 39% for the previous quarter. I hope that we will continue to increase our self-support during this rotation. We must educate our groups on this spiritual responsibility. For DCMs and GSRs, that would be a great topic for discussion at your district meetings, and a good talking point when you contact the new groups in your district.
Delegates/Past Delegates Conference
In February, I attended the Delegates/Past Delegates Conference in Detroit. It was a wonderful weekend. A business meeting for the East Central Region was held on Saturday. Some of the candidates for East Central Regional Trustee were introduced, including Leo M. from Area 75 and Bob M. from Area 74.
I learned a lot about the Conference process through our “practice” Committee and floor sessions, and met many of the other Delegates from our Region.
General Service Conference
When we meet again in May at the Spring Conference, I will be sharing my “real” General Service Conference experience with you. Ken and I leave on Friday, April 15, and will be back on April 24. I am still amazed at the prospect of representing you at the conference, and consider it a great blessing in my sobriety.
I would like to thank the 43 people who attended the Delegate’s Workshop in March. I thought it was a very successful sharing session. With the information I gathered that day, all the advice and help provided by the staff at GSO and by our Area’s Past Delegates, and most importantly with God’s help, I will serve you to the best of my ability at the conference.
I received the fourth quarter 2004 group contribution report for our Area from GSO. If you are interested in seeing which groups have made contributions, I have the sheets with me today. I am pleased to inform you that we had 44% of our groups donating to our General Service Office for that period, up from 39% for the previous quarter. I hope that we will continue to increase our self-support during this rotation. We must educate our groups on this spiritual responsibility. For DCMs and GSRs, that would be a great topic for discussion at your district meetings, and a good talking point when you contact the new groups in your district.
Thank you for affording me this great opportunity. God bless.
Respectfully submitted,
Nancy G
Chairperson Report. April 10, 2005
I wish to thank all the Districts who have either mailed or e-mailed the copies of your minutes. Please keep me informed.
I need to apologize to those Districts, which had recent workshop or mini Conferences this past weekend. I had made a commitment a year ago for those dates.
I thank all those Districts GSR's and DCM's in attendance at today's Assembly. You are Area 75. And it's your input and continuing directions we need from you, as to how you want our Area 75 to go. We all need to keep in mind that our primary purpose is to follow our 5th Tradition of carrying our message of recovery and Service.
I will be setting my calendar for the remaining 2005 and will be contacting each District and will be asking you for the date and time of your District Committee meetings. I will additionally let you know ahead of time of my coming.
For those who did not know, Charlie E. PI Chair, for personal reasons, had to step down. Thank you Charlie for your service to our Area Fellowship. I wish to thank those individual's, who I had contacted to consider taking on this needed PI Committee chair position, and respect the reason as to why they could not commit at this time. Our new PI Chairperson is George P. I know that you will give George your support in aiding him on this task. Thank you George for standing.
As Area 75 Chairperson if there is anything that I can be of Service to your District or Group please, just ask. I thank those individuals and Groups who already had done so.
A reminder of the up coming: Saturday April 16
10th Annual Wisconsin & UP Correction Conference Brillion Community Center Community Center 120 Center St. Brillion, WI
Area 75Spring Conference
May 13, 14 & 15
Fond u Lac, WI
Please come for the fellow ship and to listen to our Area 75 Delegates report.
The next Area 75 Agenda Planning Assembly
June 12, 2005 – 9:00 AM
Madison
Yours in Service and Fellowship
Howard P
04/10/05
Literature Report
At this time there is a lot happening in literature. Most of it has to do with the General Service Conference. For those of you that missed the Delegates Workshop, I will briefly run through the agenda items, set for the literature committee at the conference.
Consider revised draft introduction developed by the Publications Department and reviewed by the Trustees Committee on Literature to be added to the front matter of the Twelve & Twelve, as recommended by the 2003 Conference and per additional consideration of the 2004 Conference Committee on Literature. (A more contemporary language for the introduction.)
Consider revised draft pamphlet “Too Young.” (Up to date material.)
Review trustees’ Committee on Literature report on “Young People and AA” pamphlet. (Attempting to add more new stories to the pamphlet.)
Review trustees’ Committee on Literature progress report on the Spanish-language Third Edition Big Book. (New stories for this edition are to be submitted by September 1, 2005.)
Consider revised draft text for the section titled “Service Sponsorship” on page 28 in the pamphlet “Questions and Answers on Sponsorship.” (Attempt to clarify and better define sponsorship responsibilities.)
Consider the revised draft comic book format pamphlet “It Happened to Alice.” (Up to date story as to better relate for the times.)
Review draft manuscript of the revised pamphlet “The AA Group. (Reviewing possible changes to the pamphlet.)
Consider revised text for the section titled “The AA Grapevine: in the pamphlet “Your AA General Service Office.” (Additional information.)
Discuss suggestion to develop a publication oriented toward and addressing the concerns of AA members with long term sobriety.
Discuss suggestion to replace the term “sexual preference” with “sexual orientation” in the pamphlet “AA and the Gay/Lesbian Alcoholic.”
Discuss request to revise the table of contents in “Living Sober” by creating “unity.” “service,’ and “recovery” sections and by including a subtitle under chapter titles.
Any comments or suggestions related to any of this material would be best relayed directly to our Delegate, Nancy G.
Respectfully submitted,
Bob S Area 75 Alt. Delegate/ Literature Chair
04/10/05
Public Information Committee Chairperson’s Report
It is with gratitude that I address you once again, this time as chair of the Public Information Committee.
In the month I have been serving in this capacity, I have accomplished the following:
I have registered with GSO and have received my P.I. Workbook. I have not, as yet, had time to actually READ it.
I have been working with Al B. and Renuka V. on the Area75 website. Al has given me the procedure for posting events so I can do that now. The district meeting list section is now accessible through the main page. If your district does not have its meetings posted yet, please contact me with the name of the person that you want to do the posting. That person will be issued a login name and a password and instructions for how to enter the meetings. This list of posted meetings gains more credibility the more complete it is.
Al, Renuka and I, the webpage subcommittee, have been discussing some possible changes to the web page guidelines. We may be suggesting some revisions at the next agenda planning session.
Al informs me that, “I moved area75.org from Network Solutions,(about $30.00 yr) to GoDaddy (about $9.00 yr). Ron and I had discussed this last year. The domain name expires in November but I wanted to make sure we didn't run into any problems. We are now paid up until November 2006.”
I have received a letter from GSO regarding the Annual Anonymity letter that is mailed to Media Professionals. They received one response from a local media professional asking for more information on Alcoholics Anonymous. I will be making contact with this person soon to find out how AA can be of service.
I picked up many boxes from the outgoing PI chair at the Delegate’s Workshop. I have not had time to go through them thoroughly as yet. There are many boxes.
I attended the “Moose and Goose” fundraiser for Area 74 Corrections literature up in Navarino, west of Green Bay with my sponsor last Friday. I extended best wishes to our friends in Area 74 on behalf of the Area 75 committee.
I want to offer my time to any district that would like to see me at their district meeting. Please contact me if you would like me to come and speak about Public Information or if I can be of any assistance in any way. If I do not get too many invitations, I’ll begin researching when and where the various districts meet and make up my own visiting schedule. I want you to know that I’ll do my best to get to as many districts as I can. I, of course, will know a lot more about what I am really supposed to do when I have perused the P.I. workbook.
Thank you for allowing me to be of service,
Respectfully submitted,
George P, Public Information Committee Chairperson
REPORT TO AREA 75 PRE-CONFERENCE ASSEMBLY
April 10, 2005
Our Area 75 Cooperation With the professional Community (CPC) Committee met at the January Agenda Planning Meeting and at the March 13 Delegate’s Workshop. We enjoyed lively, productive sessions each time. We try to conduct these with a good amount of member participation. We compare experiences with carrying AA’s message to professionals through mailings, in person, and by presentations to groups of professionals. We bring our successes, our innovations, and our problems to the table so that all might benefit from the shared experience of other members. I rely upon this committee heavily in the performance of my duties. Our members like the format we use to conduct these meetings, and I plan to use it again at our future sessions. Any District CPC Chair, DCM, or any interested regular member of AA is most welcome. Please stop in at a future meeting; our next will be on Saturday afternoon at the Spring Conference. If you are unable to come by in person or know who somebody who cannot and would like to be in contact with us, please e-mail me. I am generating an e-mail address book group listing so that we can share and forward during the time between scheduled meetings. This is much more cost effective than a mailed newsletter and allows for two-way or group contact.
I am available to visit your district meetings, to participate in your workshops, and to assist in carrying our message to groups of professionals should you need/want me there. I work for you and for your groups first and foremost. I do have literature and other resources available. But I am not clairvoyant—I do not know your needs unless you communicate them to me.
Several projects are either complete or on the horizon for the CPC Committee and/or for me as its chairman.
I did a presentation to a district clergy association of the United Church of Christ since my last report to you. Roughly twenty clergy including the association pastor for the Southeast WI Association listened to my information presentation. They had many questions about AA and how to contact us as well as how our fellowship works.
The annual WAAODA Convention is coming up just prior to our own Spring Conference. Area 75 will be splitting the $400.00 registration cost with District 20. District 20’s CPC Chairman, Tom G., and I have been sharing the work of setting things up with Tom acting as our local contact. Area 75’s portion of the fee will be split between my budget and the Treatment Facilities Chair’s budget. The CPC Desk at GSO will be providing some literature; my stock will provide any remaining needs.
The CPC Desk at GSO has contacted me about coordinating a booth at the annual convention of the NAACP in Milwaukee in July. We are very much in the preliminary stages of that. More information will follow.
Yours in Recovery and Service,
Stu E., Area 75 CPC Chairman
Area 75 Special Needs Committee Report
April 10, 2005
Submitted by: Michael N
Area 75 Special Needs Committee Chair
1. A one-page informational piece is ready to be mailed to agencies and organizations that provide serves to individuals with disabilities in the state of Wisconsin informing them about the existence and availability of A.A. The tentative mailing date is May 1, upon completion of the mailing list.
2. Facilitators for the 2005 Spring and Fall Area 75 Conventions have been contacted to encourage them to include individuals with special needs on panels and as speakers. I was informed that programs are already in place and speakers have already been assigned. I will be working with those in charge of the Spring 2006 conference to include speakers with disabilities on the program.
3. An effort is being made to identify all district special needs chairs in order to encourage them to attend the spring conference in Fond du Lac. Our goal is to form an Area 75 committee and develop a systematic plan for meeting the needs of AA members with special needs. I have talked with the chairperson of districts 4 and 22 and three DCMs to identify their special needs chairpersons.
4. An individual with expertise in assistive technology and accessibility has been contacted to assist the Area 75 web designer in making its website fully accessible for individuals with visual impairments or physical impairments, many of whom use speech output software to read their computer screens without the aid of a mouse.
5. I have had several conversations with the Grapevine Headquarters through Jo about making the Grapevine accessible for individuals with physical or visual impairments by providing audio-recorded versions. I have been informed by Grapevine officials that studio costs prohibit making Grapevine accessible. Future plans include putting Grapevine on MP3s, however, officials have provided no tentative date for such accommodations. Furthermore, the use of MP3s severely limits access of Grapevine to those with technology savvy and expensive equipment. I would like to suggest that our Area draft a strongly worded advocacy piece addressed to Grapevine headquarters, illuminating the inherent discrimination in the current system and planned resolution.
Good Morning, and I am Marian B., alcoholic and your Treatment Chairperson.
I would like to thank all Districts that have been sending me your minutes, and ask that if your District hasn’t been sending your District minutes, please do so. I get plenty of information from them, and hope that you keep on sending this valuable information to all of the Area Officers and Chairpeople. Just a note-I am no longer Area Chair, but if that’s what it takes to get your minutes, keep it up! Please, however, send a copy to Howie, so that he keeps up to speed!!
A big “Thank You” is in order to all who attended the Agenda Planning Meeting, where we had our first Treatment Committee meeting this rotation, and all who attended the Delegate’s Workshop, where we discussed issues that will be decided at the upcoming General Service Conference. One of the items discussed was a survey regarding Treatment that was sent out to all Areas. A summary of that survey was very revealing, and I have a few copies for anyone who would want to see and use it. Please see me at a break, if you want one. Our thoughts were given to our Delegate, Nancy G., and I for one am looking forward to her report on the General Service Conference, which will be given at the Area 75 Spring Conference, held at the Holiday Inn in Fond du Lac, WI, May 13-15. If you think that was a plug for the Spring Conference, you are correct.
I have here a copy of the Wisconsin Substance Abuse Services Directory for 2004, and have been in contact with the State about getting enough copies of the 2005 one, so that every District Treatment Chair that wants one may have one. From time to time I have heard from members of the Fellowship, that “we don’t have a Treatment Center here”. Guess what? Your probably do, you just don’t know it. I hope to have these Directories by the Treatment Committee meeting at the Spring Conference, (hint, hint) and be able to pass them out to Treatment Committee Chairs. For those of you who cannot wait, a similar document is available in Adobe Acrobat PDF at http://dhfs.wisconsin.gov/bqaconsumer/AODA_MH/AODAmhCty.pdf
If you want this address, please see me at the break, so you can write it down.
As always, I am more than willing to come to your District for workshops and or District meetings. I would also be willing to help any District that feels that they may need help in setting up a Treatment Committee. Did I mention workshops? Unfortunately I am not psychic, (maybe psycho) so you ladies and gentlemen need to let me know what you want and need.
On Tuesday, April 12, I will be at the Secretary’s Meeting at Milwaukee Central Office (7:00 p.m.). The week before our Spring Conference, I will be assisting Stu E. in providing literature and “manning” a booth at the WAAODA Convention here in Madison. This will help to carry the message to professionals who work with us to help the still suffering alcoholic.
Respectfully Submitted: Marian B., Area 75 Treatment Chair
Bridge the Gap Report for 04-10-2005
I was invited to address the secretary's meeting at the Milwaukee Central Office in Feburary.
All Bridge the Gap referrals have been turned in and only eight were submitted to me.
The Confidential Temporary Contact list are done, every Central Office, District Committee Member and Area Committee Member will receive a copy.
Only nine districts submitted a list of temporary contact, maybe the next time I do a list more district will send me some contact names. We will do this on a yearly basic.
We sent out 360 Form Bridge the Gap Letters to all listed in the Wisconsin Substance Abuse Services Directory.
We got a lot of great responses, the best one came from Counseling Services they didn’t know about the Bridge the Gap Program.
On the calls we got I explained The Program is for any suffering Alcoholic and that we want to help.
I think it the responsibly of the Bridge the Gap Chair to visit all District in Area 75.
So far I have visited these districts 03, 04, 06, 07, 08, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34 and 36.
I will try to visit the rest of the Districts soon. I plan to do this every year.
I read all District minutes that are sent to me, I wish more Districts would send them to me.
If any District has a workshop and sends me a flyer I will try to attend.
Kenneth Y
Area 75 Bridge the Gap Chair
Area 75
Archives Report
Pre-Conference
April 10, 2005
The Archives was displayed at the Tri-County Mini Conference March 26th. This year the display was set up in the cafeteria and viewed by many people. There is a growing interest in the materials.
I was asked to bring the Archives display to the Service Workshop hosted by District 1 and La Crosse Intergroup on Saturday April 23rd. I was also asked to be on a panel sharing the history of Alcoholics Anonymous. John, thank you for asking me.
April 30th I will have the Archives display at the Serenity club located in Cudahy for District 10’s fundraiser.
The Archives display will be at Area 75’s Spring Conference, which is hosted by District 25 and held at the Holiday Inn in Fond du Lac May 13, through the 15th.
I was asked last September to bring the Archives display to the District 12’s Open Meeting and cook out again this year on Saturday September 17th. It’s a great day that I look forward to each year.
This year I will be attending the National Archives Workshop September 23rd through the 25th in New Orleans. After receiving my letter requesting information about the procedures used by their area (Area 27) to rent an archives housing facility, the Chairperson for the workshop, Bobby B. asked me to be part of the workshop. Being that my sponsor taught me the correct answer to an AA request, I said, “Yes, thank you, I would be happy to.” So I will share our experience of creating a nonrotating Archivist position in Area 75 and how we are progressing towards maintaining a rented facility for our Archives so that the fellowship can view the materials when they wish to. I am finding the issue of housing the archives a very common theme as every Archivist and Archives chairperson pioneers further into the archives journey and develop an understanding of the importance in an area’s history and the history of each district that is in it.
It was suggested to me at the delegate’s workshop to make an addition to the group history form. It now includes an option to send a picture of the groups meeting rooms. As we know, and it is stated, no faces can be in the picture. There is a link to Area 75 Archives now on our web site with these forms and more archives information will be added in the future. I did bring the updated form in English and Spanish with me today.
There has been a lot of time and work in the past few months dedicated to organizing, cataloging, and indexing our materials. Much of it is under the classification of confidential because the documents are reports that include names and addresses. Many are not confidential but would not be taken to conferences for the simple reason that there just isn’t enough space.
An addition to our display is a refurbished binder titled “AA in Pictures” please take a look at one of the two copies that I bought with me today. I also have copies of the 2002 Archives Guidelines that you may take with you. If there are not enough let me know and I will get a copy to you. With the suggestion of an AA member I made business type of cards that some of you may be interested in on the table or I can send you one. The card reads: “At the Time of my Death Donate this Item to Area 75 Archives.” I hope that there isn’t anyone that finds this in bad taste or rude. They do have bookmarkers at GSO with this type of statement written. Being realistic it is a preventive measure to prevent archival materials from being considered garbage and tossed.
Thank you for allowing me to serve you,
Nancy S Area 75 Archivist
Area 75 Ad-Hoc
Archives Committee Report
Pre-Conference
April 10, 2005
We received a list of the Archivists and Archive Chairs within the United States and Canada from GSO in March. A letter was sent out in March to all Area’s totaling 88 mailings. The letter asked if their Area rents a facility to house their Archives or if they intend to in the future. It requested information about their experience including any pitfalls. As of this time we received a total of 12 replies.
Thank you for allowing me to serve you,
Nancy S
Area 75 Archivist
DCM Report
District 13
4/10/05
We currently have 15 groups in our district. About three-fourths of those groups have GSR’s that are active at the District level, regularly attending District meetings and about one-fourth of the GSR’s and/or other committee members regularly attend Area meetings.
Over the next several weeks, I plan on attending all groups in our District to encourage them to get involved in service work at the district level and let them know what our district is currently involved in.
Our P.I. chair recently resigned and we are looking to fill that position. All other positions in the district are filled. We are encouraging the chairs to form their own committees in order to encourage other people to get involved.
We also started a carpool for our trips to Area meetings in Madison. We meet at the Park N Ride on Hwy 67 and I-94 in Oconomowoc at 7:45 a.m. when traveling to Madison. If anyone in the area wishes to join us, you are welcome to.
Our district is hosting the Fall 2005 AREA 75 Conference.
DISTRICT 17 covers eastern Racine County.
All chairs with the exception of Bridging the Gap are filled.
We have a new chair for men's corrections that is very enthusiastic and has done a great job of getting more meetings going in the men's section of the county jail. Our new chair for women's corrections is just as enthusiastic and doing a good job. There is a Department of Corrections facility in Racine for women and there are currently meetings going on there as well.
Our PI and CPC chair is combined into one. That committee will shortly be doing a semi-annual mailing to community professionals (doctors, judges, dentists, school social workers and counselors, probation and parole officers, hotels/motels and corporate human resource departments). A cover letter providing an e-mail address, phone number and street address is included to allow any professional to contact the PI/CPC chair to obtain further information about AA or to request a speaker at a professional gathering. Included with the cover letter is the current district meeting list. This mailing goes to approximately 900. We have found this to be the best way to communicate to community professionals that AA is available. We have previously tried meetings or workshops but those were not successful.
Our new Special Needs chair has a disability of her own and feels that more than qualifies her for the position! She has gathered a list of many volunteers that are willing to go to homes and hospitals, etc. to bring a meeting to someone. She has taken the survey form and plans to use it to determine the availability of some of the meeting sites in Racine for disabled persons.
The Area BTG Chair, Ken, attended our March 20th meeting and provided information to our GSRs about bridging the gap and how that work interconnects with corrections and jail meetings.
Our district meetings are held the 3rd Sunday of each month at 1:00 PM. We usually have approximately 10-15 GSRs in attendance in addition to the district officers and committee chairs. I will be inviting area chairs to visit our district meetings.
Respectfully submitted
Carol Mc DCM, District 17
DISTRICT 20 REPORT
FOR APRIL 10, 2005 DAN K - DCM
District 20 meets at the Atwood Community Center, located at 2425 Atwood Avenue, Madison Wisconsin. The meetings take place on the last Tuesday of the Month, at 6:30PM and everyone is welcome. We typically have about 30 people in attendance, which includes our committee chairs, GSR's and interested members.
Since taking office in January I have been focusing on staffing all of our committee chairs. The two remaining open are "Special Needs" and "Archives". John C. our Vice Chair as agreed to chair special needs until we find someone who would like to chair the position. Also Florian D. has expressed an interest in Archives, so I expect have chairs for all of our committees shortly.
The Wisconsin Association on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse is holding its annual conference in the Sheraton in Madison May 9th - 11th. The area voted to provide $400.00 for an AA information booth at the conference with the understanding that Area 75 would reimburse the District $200.00 We feel this can be a significant way to share AA information with a group of state wide Health Care Professionals.
53rd
Annual Area 75 Fall Conference: FINAL Report to Area 75 Preconference
Assembly
April 10, 2005 Hosted by District 30; Janesville, Wl
1. Conference Dates: October 22-24, 2004___________
2. Theme: "Stepping with the Big Book"___________
3. Location: Holiday Inn Express; Janesville, Wl_______
4. Registrations and Attendance:_____
Pre-registrations 343
On-site registrations ___266
Total registrations 609
Included in registrations totals:
AI-Anon 81
Alateen 16
Total banquets served 231
Total breakfasts served 107
5. Conference Committee:
a. Committed and dedicated group; working since May 03 b. Very low turnover
6. Conference Advisor: Bill H.; Racine; Brought experience, patience, friendship_______
7. Financial: Sent check to Barb W., Area 75 Treasurer, on 12/10/04, In the amount of $3,174.86
Return
of seed money 500.00
Excess of conference revenues over expenses
2,674.86
Total 3,174.86
In addition, one check did not clear the bank. We closed the conference bank account during the week of April 4, 2005. Balance of check not cleared is $42.00. Had bank prepare a closing check in the amount of $42,00. The check is payable to Area 75 and we are turning over to Area 75 Treasurer today.
We budgeted the conference using projected attendance of 500. We had paid registrations of 609. In addition, conference expenses came in less than projected due in part to lower printing and travel costs.
8. Involvement of Host District 30 AA and cooperating District 25 AI-Anon_____
There was good support and involvement in the hosting District, and the cooperating AI-Anon District 25. The committees and activities were properly lead, staffed and scheduled.
9. Participation in Area 75_______________
Broad Area 75 participation in panel moderators and panels and in alkathon coverage. The same was true for AI-Anon participation as many participants came from the entire State of Wisconsin.
10. Conference Committee Wrapup meeting November 14, 2005_____
We enjoyed one more opportunity to meet following the conference as we returned to our "civilian" lives. At that point we had worked together for approximately 18 months in the planning effort. One item we wished we could have been more effective at was creating conference awareness to those who cooperate with AA. These include professionals and workers in treatment, corrections, medical, religion and education. We asked for and received comments and inputs from the Area 75 PI Chair, Delegate, GSQ and general print media. We developed an appropriate general media release. Also, the PI Chair shared this piece with District PI Chairs for possible use in future conferences.
Respectfully submitted, Bill P.; Fall 2004 Conference Chair; 4/10/05
file: \fall 2004 conftarea 75\preconf assembly 041005.xls
AREA 75
SPRIN6 2005 CONFERENCE REPORT
Our Conference is quickly approaching. May 13th, 14th, and 15th will be here before we know it. District 25/Fond du Lac County is hosting the Spring Conference. It will be at the Holiday Inn in Fond du Lac. Just a reminder that there is road construction on the interchanges in the Fond du Lac area. Watch for the detour signs. If you are coming from the South, your exit to the Holiday Inn will be before the Hwy 151 exit, so watch for the signs.
We have worked very hard on this Conference and we are really getting excited as the Conference gets closer. So far, our committees are on schedule and everything is moving along smoothly. The Holiday Inn has reported to me that they have received around 100 lodging reservations for Friday night and 100 lodging reservations for Saturday night. Our contract goal was 75 for Friday night and 110 for Saturday night, so we are right on target there. We currently have 131 conference reservations. We have 105 banquet tickets sold and 71 breakfast buffets sold. We are short about 20 banquet tickets on our food commitment, but we have 4 more weeks to go and I am confident that we will meet that goal also.
If you have any questions between now and the Conference, feel free to call me at 920-923-1930 or George B at 920-923-1592. Both of these phone numbers are listed on the Conference Flyer on the back page. Also, you can email questions to: spring2005conference@hotmail.com.
Yours in service,
Cindy H
Spring 2005 A.A. Conference Chairperson
Fall 2005 Conference Committee Report
The Fall 2005 Conference is being hosted by District 13. It will be held October 14-16, 2005 in Waukesha at the Marriot Hotel. This is a new hotel and it’s the first time that an AA event has been held there. We’re looking for a lot of people to register.
We have all of our speakers lined up and panel topics have been decided on.
Brochures have been printed and will be ready to be handed out at the Spring Conference.
Registration will be $13.50.