Minutes
Guilford AA Happy Hour Business Meeting
11/1/2024 at 6:30pm
Attendance:
Officers Present: Dan A-Chair, Jo-Treasurer, Herb-GSR & Website Chair, Ann Z-Secretary
Officers Not Present: John D- Service Chair, Pam D-Coins and Books,
Others: John R., Yvonne, Stephen, Denise, and Lisa
Dan A. opened the meeting with the Serenity Prayer.
Old Business: none
New Business: Yvonne raised her interest on the group sharing members’ snail mail addresses for the purpose of sending holiday greetings. Dan recommended bringing the suggestion up as new business for a vote at the December meeting. After some discussion, Yvonne withdrew her suggestion from the groups’ conscious – recommending that individual members exchange address information privately if they wished to do so..
Secretary’s Report: Ann Z. reported that the minutes for the 10/4/2024 Business Meeting had been posted on the group’s Website and Dan A. asked for any comments. None were asked.
Service Chair Report: Report deferred to December meeting.
Coins and Books Report: Report deferred to December meeting.
Treasurer’s Report: Jo reported that in October, 7th Tradition donations of $265. Total 2024 year-to-date 7th Tradition donations are at $2,024.67.
The current balance for the JOL Happy Hour Meeting is $431.22 (not counting the reserve of $400). $942.99 was deposited into the GSB account. Total expenses reported for October were $-34.01 for the groups’ Zoom subscription. Jo said that all donation checks for area groups have cleared (District 20, Area 11, and GSO). Dan A. asked for any comments. There were none.
Herb noted that since the group’s budget was more than $400 above the prudent reserve, that we make a decision in this meeting, to make a donation to this year’s Thanksgiving Alkathon in Clinton. Herb made a motion to donate $100 this year to that event. Dan and Jo seconded the motion and the group voted to unanimously move forward with the donation. Jo said she would handle the logistics of the donation.
GSR Report: Herb reported that his term as our GSR representative ends at the end of December 2024 and is seeking a volunteer to replace him as the representative for District 20 (the town of Guilford). He noted that this position needs to be announced at all Guilford meetings. The GSR meeting is held monthly on the 3rd Thursday from 6:30 to 8:00pm in the Guilford Community Center. Dan noted that the position usually involves a 2-3 hour commitment per week – sporadically – depending on the running agenda. Herb said the qualifications for the GSR position are a suggested 2 years of sobriety – though not a requirement as some GSRs have less time.Herb said that all are welcome to attend to get a feel for the “vibe” of the meeting. He also volunteered that he would stay involved and train the new representative until that individual was comfortable with the position.
Herb also brought up the fact that the Booklets of physical meetings in CT and their schedules had not been reprinted since 2019. He wanted to see what the group thought of going forward with a new print run – especially as it would require special funding. The group noted that most meeting attendees now rely on the online reference resources. Herb said there were more details in the most recent GSR report. Herb reminded the group that all GSR minutes are posted on the district web site at: https://d20a11.org.
Web Server Report: Herb reported that Area 11 Web administrators are looking to redesign the Area 11 website- to make it more comprehensive and easier to access and navigate. He is specifically looking for input on content and volunteers to help. There will be training for any volunteers on how to make changes to the website.
Herb also noted the abundance of users on our group’s JOL website – up to 2,000 visits per Day. He said people go to our sit most often for access to the daily readings. He would appreciate any technical support that could be offered and would be happy to train volunteers. Dan remarked that the high volume of outsiders coming to our site is a testament to how good the site is. Dan asked if there were any questions regarding the Website – there were none.
Chairman’s comments. Dan A. noted that the minutes had already been approved and made a motion to approve all other service reports at once at the end of the meeting. Denise seconded this motion and it was unanimously accepted and the reports were approved.
Adjournment: Dan A. asked if there was any new business – no new business was mentioned. The meeting was also unanimously called to adjournment.
