Monthly EC Teleconference
September 1st 2018
14:00 CEST
Please notify the secretary at [email protected] with changes, additions, or motions for this meeting.
Meeting opened at 14:01
A. Call to Order: Please be sure that any background noises in your area are eliminated since the sounds make it difficult for participants to hear. When speaking, please say your name first. This will help us record your name with your input. Thank you.
1) Open with the Serenity Prayer
2) Tradition Eight: ACA should remain forever non-professional but our service centers may employ special workers.
B. Roll Call of European Countries:
Chair of TC - Jeffrey
European Committee Present:
Majbrit – EC Chair & WSO Board Member
Charlie C - EC & WSO Board & Chair of Literature
Tanya M - Secretary- apologies
WSO
Jim - Brooklyn, NY, Chair WSO - ABC & AWC
Roll Call of Country Representatives & Guests:
Frederick - Sweden - IG & Chair ABC/AWC
Beryl - UK - International Rep & Chair of Conventions Committee
Marc - Netherlands CR & Dutch Translation committee
Salanki - Hungary - ???
Marty - Netherlands - guest
Kadri-Liisa - Estonia - non-elected - Translation team member & Treasurer
Reminder Non-committee members are welcome to listen to this teleconference but are requested to remain silent unless asked to participate. We respectfully request that guests hold their questions and comments until later in the call when we open it up for discussion. If someone needs to talk further, arrangements can be made after the end of the call.
When the call is opened for discussion, this will be your chance to have direct contact with the WSO and ask questions about anything related to our fellowship such as service structures, translations, literature, etc.
WSO News
Majbrit - Vice-chair
- Nothing particular - service call on Sponsor Channel - Charlie
- Unusually quiet with emails in August
- Invites Frederik to report on ACA Malmo 2019
Charlie
- Sponsorship working group will be at 9pm for 90 mins; looking at all sponsorship issues and how we can help make effective sponsorship more available. - ways to increase sponsors & resources. We welcome anyone who’d like to participate regarding these issues to help newcomers. It will be on 1st Sat of the month at more European-friendly times… contact [email protected] or [email protected] www.freeconferenceCall,com 712 775 7085 (check your national number) 690690# & sincerely hope we have people in Europe to share ESH and needs for helping more people get good sponsorship.
- Marc on this call yesterday from Netherlands regarding Trifold targeted to AA. Lots of people in other 12 step programs also grew up in dysfunctional homes & may not have yet identified that. Letting them know how/why to deal with unresolved childhood trauma. Marc explained some things lacking in it. But was overall very appreciative.
- End of a fellowship comment period and will probably extend this.
Jeffrey -
* visited Hungary Annual National Convention of 20 years of fellowship; approx. 30 groups nation-wide. Held in a tourist town 2 hours SE of Budapest from Friday pm to Sunday am with lots of great sharing and productive business meeting. EC finally got a Country Rep - now on call & welcome Szabolcs
Noticed Hungarians are closer to finishing translation of their BRB. Challenging. Can get recovery quicker if they do YWB first - best for most new fellowships starting out. Good to see that literature coming out soon - hopefully for 2019’s convention.
- Russian fellowship has nearly completed Russian YWB and hope to have at annual convention in mid-Oct in Moscow. Large event with several hundred people year after year from all over Russia. Working with Russian fellowship.
* Designing Meditation Book in Danish - discussing different offers.
Considering templates in Europe using European formats.
Szabolcs - Hungary - Thanks to Jeffrey for attending. Feels new friendships were made at the convention. Hopeful of working together.
Frederik - Sweden re 2019 ABC & AWC update
Team have decided theme - Courage to Change.
Website live next week - www.acaworldconvention.org
You can register for a newsletter to get updates
Booking not yet available for hotel, accommodations etc
Hotel & conference already booked
A separate hostel will also be available.
A flyer will be sent to fellowship globally.
Program will provide a meeting per country in their own native tongues. at a specific conferencewroom so If you want to host a meeting in your language please send an email to [email protected] to request this.
Are looking for speakers for both -
Sweden has 20-25 people who have expressed interest to attend the ABC. And we expect 100-150 people to attend the convention AWC.
If you are willing to do service you can contact us on this email address
These email addresses will be posted in the EC Slack channel
Another email is about accommodation for large groups - [email protected]
Trifold about Emotional Sobriety -
Marc - Netherlands - glad it’s available however feels it doesn’t cover what’s in YWB with 2 passages from What Does ACA Recovery Look Like? Pg ix before Part 1 & pg 1.
To understand emotional sobriety, we must first understand emotional intoxication,,which is also known as para-alcoholism. Para-alcoholism represents the mannerisms and behaviors we developed by living why an alcoholic or dysfunctional parent. As children, we took on the fear and denial of the alcoholic or non drinking parent without taking a drink.
Emotional intoxication can be characterized by obsession and unhealthy dependence. There can also be compulsion. Even without drugs and alcohol, we can be “drunk” on fear, excitement or pain. We can also be drunk on arguing, gossip or self-imposed isolation.
Marc - best passages he’s ever read. ACA is only in 12 step who try to understand emotional intoxication. It’s missing in the trifold. We must first understand it. Needs to be made stronger for the other programs. In AA there are sponsor lines who also deal with trauma. They do it in a difficult way, controlling sponsees. ACA doesn’t control sponsees. If this passage was included, our trifold would be stronger. It would make them more curious. ACA moves member from despair to inspiration, scarcity to abundance and delusion to reality. These three are the core of our emotional sobriety and completely different to all other 12 Step programs. Especially in AA, its the delusion, illusion and manic obsession that they try to move from. ACA emotional sobriety is stronger and deeper than other fellowships.
However, as we’re the only fellowship talking about Emotional Sobriety, it’s already great.
Charlie’s response - thank you. Trifold was commenced July 2017 in MPS for a presentation at an AA Convention in Florida. Always knew it & did a first draft of the flyer an intended to get more fellowship feedback. At 2018 ABC had an evaluation group read and gave to AA ACA’s who didn’t go to ACA meetings and then presented at Toronto.
Process for new literature is to post online and invite fellowship feedback. Feedback deadline was yesterday and Marc’s comments potentially quite helpful. Can you put those in writing to [email protected] and also to [email protected]
As Jeffrey mentioned, the A4 version is now on EC website and invites feedback from European members.
Challenge of trifold is minimal wording and Charlie very interested in Marc’s feedback.
Getting the message across speaking in terms of AA recovery but keeping it in a trifold version instead of a mini-booklet.
Please, take time to read the trifold at http://acawsoec.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Emotional_Sobriety_A4-1.pdf
Marc - thanks for this & keen for it to make our fellowship more available to other 12 stop fellowships.
Questions form CRS
Beryl - UK - re sponsorship meeting?
Charlie - 3pm EST. Goals are
- people come into ACA used to isolation and used to leaving quickly before understanding what it’s about. There’s a shortcoming of people available for newcomers. Lots of issues relating to the ACA condition. Potential sponsors have self doubt, afraid of authority figures, giving control to a sponsor. Goals are to talk about what would help more people be ready to ask for help when they’re new to the program and would help people who’ve already found recovery be available and confident they can give help. How can we create a mentorship or guiding or sponsorship that works for people in ACA recovery. We know that in Europe people haven’t reached out. In 2 years we’ll have more resources and tips on ways that respects boundaries. This is first call looking at these issues. We’re also looking at ways to improve papers about sponsorship. Also hoping to have some papers in Sweden. This is first call on first Sat of the month. If you’re in a country where there aren’t enough sponsors or people are confused about how to ask for sponsorship, you will be able to help.
- 3pm EST USA for the first month - check your dial in for your country unsing www.freeconferencecall.com/international phone numbers- 712 775 7085 access 690690#. 2nd call October 6th and we’ll have a number fully accessible and a better European-friendly time
Beryl - I often call US and use 001 in front of the calls.
My second question is regarding UK Convention on 28-29th. Would like 2-3 members to participate in Sponsorship Panel.
Charlie - Majbrit and I gave a talk in Toronto. Thanks for invite. Can I suggest you proceed with your program and we come back to you within a week and keep that space open. Please include Majbrit as we’ve talked about this and she has good ideas.
Beryl - If 2-3 it would be good to have you there.
Majbrit - one of the greatest experiences I’ve had is to have foreign sponsees. It has given me a new dimension on what recovery taught me to be specific and clear because of cultural and language differences. Keeping things simple and clear and short as possible. That’s been helpful to my own recovery and taught me being better centered in our program. We are doing the steps in English but warmly recommend to get a sponsee in another country as it takes your recovery to another level.
Marty - Netherlands - thank you for Sponsorship working group. About intoxication, glad of Marc mentioning it. I’ve done almost 1500 meetings in 3 years as I’m also an addict and used to drink alcohol. My inner drugs - it helps me to talk about it. In my understanding it helps to talk about it so I practice it a lot to work out my inner drugs so I’d like the flyer to be simple.
Marc - Netherlands - we have a retreat in Voeren in October. Maybe we could have a sponsorship in that program too? If you’re going to UK doing Sponsorship, it would be useful in Belgium. I will ask organizing committee. Many old-timers seem to be walking out. We need suggestions on how to sponsor and how to be helpful to our sponsees.
Majbrit - I am coming to Voeren again. I would be interested to help and do service.
Marc - also have an ACA Day next week.
Kadri-Liisa - is this more like outreach for ACA for AA people?
Charlie - that’s correct. This started as many in ACA grew up in alcoholic families and in adulthood we became alcoholics, married them or found another compulsion. In my observation, many people in AA often talk about growing up in an alcoholic family but don’t treat it as a separate issue. They’re often frustrated as their AA recovery only goes so far … somehow I’m not feeling happy. Bill Wilson wrote about it - they’ve not found emotional sobriety. Many in AA have an Adult Child background, we want to reach that community in language they’ll understand. Goal is to familiarize them with ACA and have them think that maybe there’s more they need & want to do. Maybe it’ll also help them from an alcoholic relapse further down the track. It’s a population already familiar with 12 step. If it works, we’ll come up with flyers for other 12 step fellowships.
Marc - Netherlands - glad there’ll be different trifolds as many in CA and NA, often come from alcoholic backgrounds but were anti-alcohol and thus started to use drugs. NA is stronger here than AA and CA is really growing. Its not yet seen as emotional intoxication.
Beryl - UK - 28-29th September in London. All are welcome. Email [email protected]
Marty - Netherlands - about Marc’s comment, AA’s are often much older than cocaine users in Holland. In ACA we talk about alcohol, maybe the flyer could also include word “drugs”.
Charlie - thanks; we’re thinking longer term. Starting with AA (oldest & longest) but all the issues are the same. We see similar trifolds.
Majbrit - we have a Public Service Announcement addressing ACA as a whole - if you think you’re an adult child of a family affected by drugs or alcohol. PS can be used on any local radio station as a public announcement.
Jeffrey - adding to points above to make trifolds. My experience in program is that many people could use ACA but don’t yet identify and sometimes we need to reach people to get their ACA. The Bill W quote from 1958 Grapevine may cause an AA member to get curious and start reading the trifold. Often people coming in from AA are in denial. Sometimes they come in to ACA and they we’re hopeless and then they start breaking down and their defenses come down. I find wisdom in a general trifold but also sometimes you need to speak specifically to different markets/people in different ways.
Charlie - I think that’s the direction we’ll go. It’s exciting it’s available now on the websites. Stay posted. We’ll complete comment and revision process. Then we’ll have the AA version and then move on to other fellowships.
Motion to close meeting 15.00
Closed with ACA Serenity Prayer.
NEXT MEETING: Sat 6th October 14.00 CEST
