GENERAL MEETING WORKSHOP TUESDAY, MARCH 30, 2021 (Online Meeting) (These Minutes Approved by Floor Members)

GENERAL MEETING WORKSHOP TUESDAY, MARCH 30, 2021 (online meeting) (These Minutes approved by Floor Members)

The meeting convened at 8:00 p.m. with a moment of silence followed by the Serenity Prayer. Graham D. (Markland Wood) read the Twelve Traditions.

CHAIRPERSON’S OPENING REMARKS/ANNOUNCEMENTS: Nina L. (Sisters in Sobriety), Operating Committee Chairperson Nina outlined the Agenda for tonight’s Workshop.

MEMBERS PRESENT: INTERGROUP REP/ALT: Anniversary, Aurora, Beaches, Birds of a Feather, Bloordale, Church Street, Deer Park, Dry on Danforth, Erin Mills, Fellowship, Fifth Tradition, Freedom (Brampton), Gay Sober Men, Hadenuffyet, Half Century, High Park, Hill, Keep It Simple (Scarborough), King City, Kipling, Leslie, Long Branch, Markham Village, Markland Wood, Mississauga, Morning Discussion, Mount Royal-York, North Toronto, One Paragraph at a Time, Port Credit, Restoration & Recovery, Rox Glen Traditional, Saturday Morning Discussion, Silverbirch, Sisters in Sobriety, Stepping Stones, Steps to Serenity, Streetsville Action, The Dogs, Twelfth Tradition, Twelve Steps, and Welcome.

DISTRICT LIAISONS: Districts 10, 14, 18, and 22.

OPERATING COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Cam B. (Finance Chair), Gord H. Gord T., Graham D., Kelli T., Marvyn W. (OC Vice-Chair), and Nina L. (OC Chairperson).

SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS: Accessibility, Communications, CPC, Finance, Grapevine, IT Subcommittee, and Self-Support.

HOUSEKEEPING: Nina L. (Sisters in Sobriety), Operating Committee Vice-Chairperson She outlined the following: recording of the meeting.

ADOPTION OF MINUTES – FEBRUARY 2021: Errors/Omissions: No errors or omissions were noted. There was a MOTION to adopt Minutes as presented moved by Jim B. (The Dogs) and seconded by Lee M. (High Park). Motion Carried.

THE 7TH TRADITION COLLECTION:

 As per our literature and the 7th Tradition, we are self-supporting through our own contributions.  The 7th Tradition link is as follows: https://www.aatoronto.org/about/7th-tradition/  It appears on our website Home Page on the top left of the screen: ‘7th Tradition’.  Two icons have been added to the 7th Tradition feature on the website: a) one button for individual contributions; and b) one button for group contributions.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

GRAPEVINE Scott M. (Bloordale), Grapevine Chair, shared the following information: John M., from the Danforth Group in District 18 has an inventory of Grapevine books (now reduced from $13.50 to $10) an assortment of last years’ Grapevine magazines (reduced from $3.50 to $1.00 each) & 2021 pocket planners (reduced to $3.50) and calendars (reduced to $6.50) for a 50% discount. Please contact Scott through the email: [email protected] for any of these sales or further inquiries. There are a limited supply of these materials. First come; first serve!

AREA 83 – EASTERN ONTARIO INTERNATIONAL James O. (Gay Sober Men), Area 83 Alternate Delegate, shared the following:  AREA 83 SPRING ASSEMBLY: Held this past weekend, the Area Webmaster now has a vote and voice. A discussion of same will be held for the Area Archivist. It was also decided that the upcoming Area 83 Fall Assembly will also be held virtually. area83aa.org  PRE-CONFERENCE SHARING SESSIONS: Available to all AA members, there will be six (6) more sharing sessions: Wed. March 31: Accessibility/Treatment (Districts 02, 30, 48)

Tues. April 6: Corrections (Districts 34, 36) Wed. April 7: Cooperation with the Professional Community (Districts 06, 28, 50) Thurs. April 8: Finance (Districts 26, 74, 82) Sun. April 11: Public Information (Districts 12, 14, 54) Mon. April 12: Archives (Districts 22, 66, 42) area83aa.org  UPCOMING AREA COMMITTEE MEETING: Sat. June 5 at 10 a.m. Visitors Welcome! area83aa.org

 GENERAL SERVICE CONFERENCE: The annual Conference will be held on April 17-25. Our current Area 83 Delegate, Kimberley M., will be in attendance. If any member of your group has concerns, please ask them to email Kimberley at [email protected]

WORKSHOP The GTA Intergroup Workshop covers the following topics:

.Finance Report .Your Home Group Is Not Alone .AA Service Structure .Intergroup Reps .Motions (Voting Process) .Subcommittees .Procedures and Guidelines

INTERGROUP’S MONTHLY FINANCE SUMMARY Cam B. (Deer Park), Finance Chairperson

EXPLANATIONS ON THE FOLLOWING ITEMS  Year to Date (YTD) vs. Budget and Last Year  Variance and % Variance  Revenues: Contributions and Literature Sales  Expenses: Cost of Sales and All Other  Surplus and (Deficiency)

10.

YOUR HOME GROUP IS NOT ALONE! (Nina L., Operating Committee Chairperson)

GTAI provides essential AA services common to all groups; it is a point of contact between individual groups, the public, and the still suffering alcoholic:

 Keeping the meeting list up to date, both on the website and in print  Responsible for the Telephone Help Line, and members’ inquiries  Literature Storage and Distribution  Meeting space for Board Meetings and Subcommittees  Providing a Local Website  Publishing the monthly Better Times Newsletter  Providing Group Liability Insurance

Your group’s 7th Tradition Contributions help make these things happen. Without Your Support, Intergroup could not be self-supporting. Because of your support, it is!

At Intergroup, members work TOGETHER to carry the message of A.A.

AA SERVICE STRUCTURE (Nina L., Operating Committee Chairperson)

 Ontario is divided into Areas (General Service Office, New York, USA)

 We fall under Area 83 (see map pictured)

 Within Area 83, there are 4 Intergroup Service Offices: the GTA, Ottawa, Peterborough, and Lakeshore Intergroup (Oshawa)

 The Area 83 Alternate Delegate helps facilitate a quarterly meeting with the 4 Area 83 Intergroup Chairpersons in order to exchange information and experience to help better service the areas 6

 Each Area are divided into Districts – the Districts conveying information to and from the General Service Office via the Area  Each Intergroup Office has designated Districts that they support financially & exchange information with

General Service Districts of Alcoholics Anonymous Part of AREA 83 – Eastern Ontario International 8 Service Districts of the GTA (Zone 1)

District 02 Malton District 06 Mississauga District 10 Toronto District 12 Toronto -north to Hwy.7 -north to Eglinton Ave. W. South Central South West -south to Eglinton Ave. W. -south to Lakeshore -north to Eglinton -north to Eglinton Ave. W. -west to Mississauga -east to Scarlett Rd./ south -south to Lakeshore -south to Lakeshore -east to Keele St. Kingsway -east to Don Valley -east to Avenue Rd. -west to Sixteen Mile -west to Avenue Rd. -west to Scarlett Rd./ south Creek/Kerr St. Kingsway

District 14 Toronto North District 16 Distrito District 18 Toronto City District 22 Scarborough Central Hispano De Toronto East -north to Hwy 7 -south to Eglinton (Spanish) -north past Major Mack -south to Lakeshore -east to Bayview NO DISTRICT BOUNDARIES -south to Lakeshore -east to Port Union -west to Keele -east to Kennedy -west to Kennedy -north past Major Mack. -west to Bayview includes Aurora, Keswick, Newmarket, Sutton, Thornhill, -all the way to Lake Simcoe Richmond Hill, Woodbridge

GTA Intergroup Services 8 Districts:

 District 02 - Malton  District 06 - Mississauga  District 10 - Toronto South Central  District 12 - Toronto South West  District 14 - Toronto North  District 16 - (Spanish)  District 18 - Toronto East  District 22 - Scarborough

HOW DOES GTA INTERGROUP COLLABORATE WITH ASSISTING THE DISTRICTS? (Gord H., OC Member)

GTA Intergroup provides many of the products and services offered by A.A.’s General Service Office (GSO) in New York, such as Pamphlets and Literature.

 It does this within the A.A. structure, under A.A.’s 9th Tradition

 Intergroup provides financial support to the Districts to help support the committees in servicing the communities in getting the message out to the still-suffering alcoholic through the District Subcommittees

 Provides a boardroom space for subcommittee meetings, and facilitates a sharing session on a quarterly basis

YOU ARE A TRUSTED SERVANT (Marvyn W., OC Vice Chair)

WHAT TRUSTED SERVANTS DO WE NEED?

INTERGROUP REPRESENTATIVE:

 The Intergroup Representative (‘Rep’) is the voice for their group. The have the right to vote at the Intergroup General Meeting on behalf of their group

 Each Rep participates in Intergroup Monthly Meetings with other such Representatives to share their groups’ experience in carrying the A.A. message.

 The Intergroup Representative tries to keep their Home Group well-informed about GTA Intergroup activities

YOUR ROLE AS AN INTERGROUP REP

-Reps attend GTAI Monthly Meetings (last Tuesday of every month) and participate in discussion and votes on matters on behalf of your Home Group

-Report back to your Home Group about the meeting(s) and upcoming Intergroup activities and events

-Obtain advance guidance from your Home Group about matters to be considered at the GTAI Monthly Meeting

-As the voice of your group, you may present a Motion, second a Motion, and participate in the voting of a Motion

-At times, information may arise at a meeting, and you are allowed to vote your own conscience as a trusted servant for your group

-Nominate candidates for and/or stand for election to the Operating Committee

WHAT IS THE VOTING PROCESS AT THE GTAI GENERAL MEETING? (Nina L., OC Chairperson)

MOTIONS are a process used when the group conscience decision is needed to be made

MOTIONS can address anything except a change of Policy in the GTAI Procedures And Guidelines manual

An Intergroup Rep, Alternate Rep, and an Operating Committee Member have the right to bring a Motion forward on the Intergroup Floor

COMMITTEE FUNCTIONS (Gord T. and Graham D., Operating Committee Members)

ACCESSIBILITY Raises awareness and continue to ensure alcoholics with special needs have access to meetings & materials

ARCHIVES Preserves the history of A.A. in the GTA. Receive, classify, index, and preserve all relevant A.A. materials from the GTA

COMMUNICATIONS Responsible for GTAI Website, Better Times Newsletter, and the GTAI Meeting Directory. Utilizes a variety of communication channels to communicate with the A.A. fellowship in the GTA

COOPERATION WITH THE PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY (CPC) Actively seeks ways to reach out/ educate the professionals on how A.A. may be helpful to the people they serve. Professionals are one of our best allies in getting the A.A. message to the still suffering alcoholic

CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES Provides correctional facilities with access to A.A. meetings, materials, and Bridging the Gap services upon release. Currently the committee facilitates meetings in Toronto South Detention, Toronto East Detention, and OCI (Brampton)

FINANCE: Composed of 5 voting members, Finance is responsible for the financial soundness and well- being of the operations of the Intergroup Office. Finance presents a yearly financial budget to the OC and GTAI members for approval. They obtain audited financial statements by independent external accountants, and help with the operation of the GTAI Central Office (Intergroup)

GRAPEVINE Promotes and distributes Grapevine magazines and books in the GTA

INFORMATION A.A. DAY EVENT Organizes a yearly Information A.A. Day event for the GTAI, in the hopes of encouraging service in the fellowship

OPERATING COMMITTEE: Composed of 10 persons: Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, Treasurer (a.k.a – the Chair of the Finance Committee), a Secretary, and 6 committee members (who serve as OC Liaison to a subcommittee). OC Liaisons are required to attend the subcommittee meeting they are assigned to. The OC Chairperson shall be the Executive Officer of the Intergroup Office and shall perform such other duties as are incidental to the Intergroup Office. The OC is responsible for the GTAI Monthly General Meetings, and attends the Quarterly Joint Meetings along with the Districts and Subcommittee Chairs

ONTARIO REGIONAL CONFERENCE (ORC) Responsible for organizing the annual Ontario Regional Conference, sponsored by GTA Intergroup

PUBLIC INFORMATION Conveys A.A. Information to the general public, including the news media

TREATMENT Liaises with hospitals and treatment facilities to provide A.A. meetings and literature

TWELFTH STEP Helps connect newcomers to A.A. – phones/in person

WINTER SEASON OPEN HOUSE Organizes a fellowship event where A.A. members serve & are served in the spirit of the season

GTAI PROCEDURES AND GUIDELINES

PURPOSE

Greater Toronto Area Intergroup This document describes the Operating Procedures and Guidelines put in place to facilitate the smooth and efficient operation of the GTA Intergroup organization Operating Procedures and Guidelines and its committees.

The continuing successful operation of a united Intergroup effort in the Greater Toronto Area to further the reach of passing on the A.A. message to the still suffering alcoholic in accordance with the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous. EFFECTIVE DATE: October 2019

This Procedures and Guidelines document “sets out what the groups have agreed upon, not what has been imposed upon them”.

A downloadable PDF of the Procedures and Guidelines Document is available on our website www.aatoronto.org . On the Home Page, go to ‘About’ and use the drop down to ‘Procedures and Guidelines’.

After the Workshop, Nina entertained questions from Floor members.

Gerrad S. (Welcome): for the Subcommittees, how do I direct members of my group to volunteer?

Nina: ask them to email [email protected]. The administrator (Alexx) will submit their contact information to the appropriate subcommittee.

Steve C. (Rox Glen Traditional): Seeing as there are 8 local service districts, how do the various subcommittees fit in to the district/Intergroup structure?

Nina: Service committees – whether District Committees or Intergroup Committees [see graph on page 4]--are locally under the ‘umbrella’ of Intergroup, as we support these committees in various ways [see explanation on page 4]. Gord H. (OC member) added that there are 25 districts in Area 83; 8 of which are in the GTA. All districts have the following subcommittees: Accessibility, Archives, Correctional Facilities, CPC, Public Information, Treatment, and Self-Support. They meet once a month. Group GSRs (General Service Reps) give district subcommittee information to their group. GTA Intergroup also has subcommittees (Communications, IT Subcommittee, ORC, Twelfth Step, and Winter Season Open House). Intergroup Reps give information on these committees to their group following the GTAI monthly General Meeting.

Albert F. (Fifth Tradition) asked is a copy of the Workshop Power Point presentation could be emailed to each of the Reps.

Nina shared that a copy will be posted on the GTAI Website for members’ edification.

Dale W. (Hill) inquired as to the various service positions now open to volunteers.

Nina answered that members can find available service positions on the GTAI website, on the Home Page under ‘Announcements’.

Tom D. (Mount Royal-York), Accessibility Chair, asked if the committee can secure an Operating Committee Liaison; Nona stated she would pass this on to OC members for consideration.

RECEPTION Marvyn W. (Mississauga), OC Vice-Chairperson Attending tonight’s Workshop were 32 Reps, 4 Alternate Reps, 4 district liaisons, 7 chairpersons, 7 OC members, and 7 visitors for a total of 60 members.

CHAIRPERSON’S CLOSING REMARKS “On behalf of the Intergroup Operating Committee, thank you all for attending and continuing to be interested in providing service to our fellowship; a fellowship that has given us all our lives back…and then some!”

A Motion to adjourn was moved by Randy C. (Freedom, Brampton) and seconded by Jeff C. (North Toronto). The Motion was carried.

The meeting adjourned with the Responsibility Declaration.

NEXT GENERAL MEETING: A General Meeting via Zoom will be held on Tues. April 27 at 8:00 p.m.