Greater Toronto Area Intergroup

GENERAL MEETING TUESDAY, MAY 26, 2009

The meeting convened at 8 p.m. with a moment of silence followed by the Serenity Prayer. Elaine G. (Port Credit) read the Twelve Traditions. THOSE MEMBERS PRESENT: A Place to Share, Amazing Grace, Anniversary, Aurora, Bayview, Beaches, Bellamy, Beverly Hills, Birds of a Feather, Church Street, East York, Erin Mills, Fellowship, Glenholme, Golden Mile, Half Century, High Park, Hill, K.F., Keep It Simple (Scarborough), Kipling, Leslie, Long Branch, Markland Wood, Meadowvale Fellowship, Miracle, Mississauga, Mount Dennis, New Anchor, Newmarket, Open Hands, Orleta (Polish), Parklawn, Pine Hills, Primary Purpose, Prince Edward, Restoration & Recovery, Richmond Hill, Rox Glen Traditional, Saturday Morning Discussion, Streetsville, Sunday Northwestern, Thornhill, Twelfth Tradition, Twelve Steps, Unionville, Welcome, Weston Sunday Open, Woodbridge. District Liaisons: Districts 02, 04, 14, and 18. Subcommittee Chairs: Access Ability, Archives, CPC rep, Information AA Day rep, ORC 2009 rep, Public Information, Treatment rep, Website/Newsletter, and Twelfth Step.

MOTION TO ADOPT MINUTES – April 2009: MOTION to adopt Minutes as presented moved by Wayne O. (Anniversary) and seconded by Patrick (Glenholme). MOTION CARRIED.

CHAIRPERSON’S OPENING REMARKS – Florence B. (Noon Rap): Florence welcomed the new OC members; all have been assigned their subcommittee liaison commitments. She mentioned that at the last OC meeting, “friendliness at meetings” was vigorously discussed. Florence also shared that “…we are challenging ourselves to welcome others into service”.

COLLECTION OF THE 7^TH TRADITION, which totaled $161.66.

FINANCE REPORT – Bruce L. (Back to Basics): Finance report for the month of April: In the month of April, donations were $4,883: below budget by $1,886, mainly due to group donations being lower than expected. Year-to-date donations were $30,627, which was $4,505 over budget due to group donations in January and February.

April Income before Operating Expenses was $13,028 (under budget by $1,185; mainly due to the shortfall in donations). YTD Income before Operating Expenses was $60,703, in line with the Budget.

Total Expenses for April were $14,900, on budget because a slight under-run in most expense categories which was offset by delayed receipt of the property tax rebate. Also, insurance payment was budgeted over 2 months and expensed in April. Year-to-date total expenses were $49,782, which was $28,758 under budget. In addition to deferred telephone and legal/audit expenditures, there has been a general under-run in payroll, operating, and committee expense.

Net loss for April was $1,872, close to budget, and year-to-date net income was $10,921, over budget by $29,390, due to deferral of telephone purchase and lower than expected operating expenses.

Prudent Reserve as of April 30: Book Value + accrued interest: $124,644; an increase over last month due to dividends paid by the Bank of Nova Scotia preferred shares ($455).

AA Literature price increases in July: the Finance Committee is attempting to ‘soften’ these increases somewhat; more information will be provided next month.

SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS________________________________________

ACCESS ABILITY – Donna MacQ. (Sunnyside): The committee has two new volunteers (one from Dist.06). At the recent Mayfest (Cultural Festival for the Deaf), Access Ability had 4 ASL volunteers present at their table (all from George Brown College). It was a busy day; a highlight being that a deaf man with 3 months of sobriety has been attending AA meetings 5 times a week (using an ASL Interpreter for each). Donna thanked those groups who allow ASL Interpreters for the Deaf at their closed meetings. Buddies List at 234: This list is located in each of the 12-Step Volunteer books on the Greeters Desks. Although the list was originally for members willing to escort blind/disabled folks to meetings, it now includes columns for volunteers willing to call/e-mail these individuals. Anyone willing to volunteer for this service can call and leave their contact information at 234. Next meeting: Sun. June 21 at 11 a.m. at 234.

ARCHIVES – Roy R. (Trial and Error): This committee will be present at the upcoming Info AA Day with a display and presentation. The 25^th Annual Archives Breakfast will take place on Sun. Nov.8 at the Oasis Convention Centre. Tickets (which are $25) will be available only through Archives Committee members. The number of tickets available will total 250, due to bad debt problems in the past. Speakers at the event: Joy from St. Catherines (45 years of sobriety) and Father Peter W. (who was past Chair of the ORC in 1965). Flyers will be available next month. No meeting of Archives in June.

CORRECTIONS – Phil G. (Mississauga): chair not present. Here is the report he provided: I am an alcoholic, my name is Phil G.; I am the Chair of the current GTA Corrections Committee. Meetings are held the first Monday of the month at 234 at 7:30pm and are fairly well attended. There is also a continuous electronic rapport between all members and information seems to be flowing back and forth to all. Finding volunteers and collecting Grapevines for going inside the “walls” is ongoing and we are having some successes with both. I will give a more detailed account (once I receive one myself) of Murray O’s presentation to an assembly of Probation & Parole Officers held at OCI recently. All indications are, that it was not only well received, but some Officers are now having second(positive) thoughts as to how to get meetings up and running in the various P&P Offices. Finally I wish to assure all that GTACC will be in attendance at Info AA Day and will have a display, if there is space, and members on hand to answer any questions. YLS, Phil G. Next meeting: Mon. June 1 at 7:30 p.m. at 234.

CPC – Debbie (Beaches): chair not present; he had Debbie read the following report: My apologies for not attending in person…I have a previous commitment which I need to attend. Thank-you to Debbie from my Home Group for presenting this report. This is a brief summary of what the CPC committee has been involved with for the past two months. CPC put on two meetings at the Sheraton Centre (April 23 and 24) for members of OPSEU at their Convention. Attendance was less than expected, but overall the effort was well worth it, as we were there when a still-suffering alcoholic reached out for help. Ann D. (Dist.12) has 2 subcommittee members connecting to 2 first-year med student professors at U of T, with the goal of having a talk about AA, and another member who is connecting with M.A.D.D. The CPC committee will be participating at the May 30 Info AA Day, with a display and literature. We will also be participating at District 22 Service Day (September 12 at Oakridge Community Centre, at Danforth and Pharmacy). Yours in Service, Peter B. Next meeting: Mon. June 8 at 7 p.m. at 234.

INFORMATION AA DAY –Jim A. (Leslie): This event is a joint venture, sponsored by both Toronto Intergroup and the 9 Service Districts. The event will take place on Sat., May 30 2009 at the Lansing United Church, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Theme of the event is ‘Service with Gratitude’ and is celebrating its 30^th year. GSO Speaker will be Mary D. (she is in charge of CPC), and the day will also feature an address from our Area 83 Delegate. The event includes a potluck luncheon. Tickets: $5. Flyers and tickets were made available for reps at this meeting; members can also get tickets through their GSRs. Next meeting: Mon. June 29 at 7:30 p.m. at 234.

ONTARIO REGIONAL CONFERENCE 2009 – Wes B. (Longbranch): chair not present. Wes read the following report on her behalf: Hi Everyone! I apologize for not being able to attend tonight. I have asked my Service Sponsor, Wes B., to report on my behalf. My name is Kathleen M. and I’m an alcoholic. I am honoured to have served as the Chairperson for the 2009 Ontario Regional Conference. The Conference was a great success, with a total number of 3,109 registrants. We have since turned over to the Toronto Intergroup treasury a cheque in the amount of $18,519, being the proceeds of our event. In addition, there will be [a] GST summary prepared by Loreen T. for the past two years. This will amount in an additional amount of approximately $4,000. Further, I would like to note that the ORC prudent reserve we received was in the amount of $15,000. In June 2008, a Motion was made and passed on to the Intergroup Floor to increase the amount of the ORC prudent reserve by $5,000. Therefore, the reserve we received was short by $5,000. I would like to recommend that the Motion that was passed in June 2008 be put into practice, and the ORC reserve immediately be increased to $20,000, for the benefit of future Conference committees. Thank you. Yours in Service, Kathleen MacD. (Rox Glen Traditional)

PUBLIC INFORMATION – Bryan W. (Rox Glen Traditional): Bryan received a call recently from Global TV, asking for his comments on the fact that their research showed that there are more alcoholics in Canada than in the U.S.; as per our Traditions, Bryan answered that “we have no opinion” on these statistics. The committee has circulated a letter to the Toronto District School Board. Big Books have been placed in all the Toronto School libraries. This committee also gave a 4-week seminar to first-year U of T med students; 18 students attended this year. Bryan also mentioned the Folder/Holder campaign which brings the Beginner Pamphlet s in a Holder which is circulated to Police Stations, Doctor’s Offices, etc. There is a budget for this initiative on the P.I. Committee budget. Bryan directed interested members for participating in this campaign to visit their district table. Next meeting: Mon. June 15 at 7:30 p.m. at 234.

RECEPTION – Rick McC. (Six Points): 64 members (reps/alternates/district reps/chairs) were present tonight.

TREATMENT FACILITIES – Steve: chair not present; Steve read the following report of Elaine’s behalf: Good Evening, my name is Steve; I am an alcoholic and TF Chair for Dist.06. Our committee meets on the third Thursday of every month at 7:30 p.m. at 234 (next meeting: June 18). Treatment Facilities Chairs for Districts 04, 06, and 12 have been regular attendees. District 22 was represented in April. If you are from areas 02, 10, 14, and 18, please contact your GSR or DCM, and encourage your District to send a representative to the meeting. Also, if you or someone you know wants to find out more about TF, we look forward to seeing you on the third Thursday of the month. Our committee had a table at the ORC, and look forward to seeing you at the Info AA Day this Saturday. In Districts 04 and 12, meetings in treatment centres are generally going well. In District 06, we are waiting to learn Peel Region’s plans for its women & family shelter, as well as the men’s shelter. The committee posted information about [the] Bridging the Gap program by the telephones at 234. We are trying to ‘promote’ this program, and are always looking for volunteers to act as an AA contact for patients leaving treatment. We are trying to contact CAMH regarding their recent request for a meeting at the Medical Withdrawal Unit. Yours in Service, Steve

TWELFTH STEP – Jim O. (Markland Wood): In the past month, the phones have been well-attended. Jim thanked Floor members for going to their groups and generating interest in service on the phones. As a result of these efforts, the committee has received new ‘recruits’ in addition to new Twelfth Step Committee members. This committee will have a table at Info AA Day. Jim commented that work regarding the new phone system implementation is still in process. Next Phone Training Session: Sun. June 21 at 1:30 p.m. at 234. Next meetings of this committee: Wed. June 10 at 7 p.m. and Fri. June 26 at 7 p.m. at 234.

NEWSLETTER/WEBSITE – Aaron K. (Yorkville): Aaron read the following report: On the Website, Volunteer Forms are up and new volunteers are arriving. The desired subcommittees can be forwarded via the e-mailed volunteer information. Are the subcommittees checking their incoming messages [on the website]? If not, please speak to us. For the Newsletter, we will need [to find] another Co-Editor, as Elaine G. will be rotating off in July. We continue to look forward to your submissions; please have these submitted by the 10^th of the month for inclusion in the following month’s BT. An idea for submission would be on Traditions 7 and 8. Another idea would be to interview a member(s) about “A View of Service” article. My apologies if we’ve missed some announcements in the past; we’ll do our best to get your inclusion in the next Edition. Next meeting: Sat. June 13 at 1 p.m. at 234.

IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE – Dee T. (Streetsville): The committee has reduced from 12 to 5 members; however, extra meetings have been added so that this initiative can be completed in due course. The next meetings will be held on Sat. June 6 at 2 p.m. and Sat. June 13 at 3 p.m. The committee will also be present at the June 9 Joint Sharing Session to get input on this project from the Districts. There will be a presentation to the Floor when completed.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: No Unfinished Business.

NEW BUSINESS: No New Business.

CLOSING REMARKS: “Yahoo!”

NEXT GENERAL MEETING: Tuesday, June 30 at 8 p.m. at Glebe Rd. United Church.