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Third Quarter 2005 |
Volume
15, Number 3
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IN THIS ISSUE
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WSBC 2005 Wraps Up Deliberations
Delegates Focus on Singleness of Purpose
 Nearly 200 delegates from around the world met in Albuquerque, New Mexico USA, April 25–30, for OA’s 44th annual World Service Business Conference. They explored this year’s Conference theme, “Singleness of Purpose,” through numerous workshops, committee meetings, and spirited discussion on a variety of motions.
In concert with the theme, delegates examined carrying OA’s message of recovery, attending workshops such as “Singleness of Purpose: Individual Responsibility” and others that focused on carrying the message through intergroup activities and to professional organizations, the community, the media, members in relapse and newcomers. They also took part in an excellent forum, “Carrying the Message through the Internet,” at which they enjoyed a tour of OA’s Web site and participated in an online OA meeting with members from around the globe (see “Forum a Huge Success”).
Motions adopted at this year’s Conference include:
- Granting the Conference Seal of Approval to a new pamphlet titled OA Members Come in All Sizes: Welcome, Whatever Your Problem with Food, available for purchase in late August.
- Approving revisions to the OA Handbook, also available in late August.
- Establishing a matching Grant Fund to enable service bodies to receive financial assistance from the WSO for public information, HIPM and Twelfth-Step projects (watch for details in the next issue of A Step Ahead).
- Approving telephone groups for inclusion in the online-groups policy, enabling telephone groups to register as OA meetings.
- Amending Conference Policy 2000A to read as follows: “No OA member shall be prevented from attending, sharing, leading and/or serving as a speaker at an OA meeting due to choice of food plan. Groups sharing food plan information must adhere to OA’s policies on outside literature, as well as copyright law.”
- Deciding that regions now must ensure that their bylaws conform with OA Inc. Bylaws if they wish to have delegates represent them at Conference.
To read a detailed report on all Conference motions, go to the 2005 WSBC Wrapup Report.
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Forum a Huge Success
Reach Out!
The World Service Business Conference (WSBC) forum, “Carrying the Message through the Internet,” amazed and delighted 120 delegates at the 2005 WSBC in
Albuquerque, New Mexico USA.
 Led by general service trustee Dodie H., Region Eight trustee and Technology Committee chairman Charles A., WSO managing director Naomi Lippel, and WSO publications manager/webmaster Jeanne Hendrix, the forum gave delegates a comprehensive understanding of the OA Web site and an exciting opportunity to participate in a live, worldwide online OA meeting.
Dodie outlined the scope of the forum for delegates, who had received copies of the April 2005 Lifeline (“Working the Program and OA in Cyberspace”) and an online-meeting information sheet to help them follow the live meeting later in the session.
Naomi and Jeanne gave excellent presentations on the features of the OA Web site and answered delegates’ questions.
Two OA members shared their experiences with online meetings and the value these meetings brought to their recovery. Both speakers also attend face-to-face OA meetings. The live online meeting followed their presentations.
In the weeks before the WSBC, the meeting leader had announced the special meeting on several OA Internet loops. General service trustee Karen S-A. operated the keyboard for the WSBC, and using “WSBC2005” for her online name, typed questions from the WSBC to about 30 online-meeting participants around the world, some of whom shared their experience, strength and hope. This event gave the true feeling of an OA without borders.
After the online meeting, each table of delegates received a list of discussion questions designed to provide feedback to the OA Board of Trustees and the WSO staff regarding the Internet and OA. Some of the questions and most common responses follow:
What concerns do you have regarding potential Tradition violations that might occur during an online meeting?
- Tradition Seven—How do people at online meetings contribute? How do we encourage contributions? How is service for a chat room paid for?
- Tradition Twelve—How do I protect my anonymity and avoid spam when my ID comes up?
Have you ever participated in an online meeting? If no, why not? If yes, what has been your personal experience at the meeting?
- No—not computer literate, impatient with speed of sharing, supports isolation, no opportunity for after-meeting feedback and discussion, intimidated by the process, have enough face-to-face meetings
- Yes—useful for traveling members, helpful in getting members to face-to-face meetings; helpful to those who have few meetings in their areas or have small children, or are disabled, severely obese or ill. (Most forum participants had never signed on to an online meeting. After seeing the demonstration, many said they would try.)
What information could a region put on a Web site that would be useful to OA members?
- Contact information, information on region events, newsletter
What topic/information on the OA Web site is most helpful to you?
- Current events such as WSBC, meeting information to check when traveling, literature catalog
Do you think members need face-to-face meetings in addition to online meetings? Why or why not?
- Yes (unless physical disability or rural location prevents one from attending face-to-face meetings)—Face-to-face meetings prevent isolation, allow for more than just “talk the talk,” encourage recovery by walking through fear to attend face-to-face meetings. (Responses were poor because most attendees had never attended an online meeting. None of the four responding groups thought online meetings were sufficient unless for good reason.)
How might an OA meeting use the Internet to carry the message?
- Become listed on the OA Web site, tell about special events, email members who have been absent from meetings
How can the Internet be used for personal recovery?
- Stay in touch with others in recovery, sponsor online, keep in contact with sponsor when no longer close, access www.oa.org anywhere in the world, read e-Lifeline online
How could your intergroup help members learn to use online meetings?
- Provide written step-by-step directions, create a service position to train members to use online meetings, put a column in the newsletter on using the Web site, develop more forums like this one to diminish fear and spread knowledge, distribute URLs for online meetings, add online-meeting list to intergroup Web site as well as a link to WSO site
What other OA service would make your use of the Internet more effective?
- More instruction, demonstrations at intergroup meetings
How could an intergroup use the Internet to spread the OA message?
- Send minutes by email, announce upcoming events, have links to other OA sites, have a designated downloader (DD)
How can an individual OA member use the Internet to carry the message?
- Sponsor online; share experience, strength and hope; communicate with sponsor and sponsorees; show other members how to attend online meetings; keep an online journal
What problems have you encountered when participating in an online meeting? How was the problem resolved?
- Being knocked off the meeting, encountering negative and depressed members (be positive in sharing), finding people isolating and not going to face-to-face meetings (encourage face-to-face meetings), not knowing how to get online to the meetings
Watch the OA Web site for a comprehensive report on the results of the discussion feedback.
— C.A., Region Eight Trustee, and D.H., General Service Trustee
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Professional Exhibits Fund Guidelines Established
 A major focus of OA’s outreach efforts in 2005 is to participate as an exhibitor in large, national professional conferences whose attendees work with people who suffer from compulsive eating. The Board of Trustees has selected four meetings in which to exhibit, but wouldn’t it be wonderful if OA could exhibit in more?
The Board of Trustees, at the request of the Region Chairs, established a Special Fund to assist service bodies to exhibit at professional conferences and conventions if the service bodies lack sufficient resources to do so. The board approved the fund at its November 2004 meeting, and OA members, groups and service bodies may now make donations. The board will distribute the funds on an application basis and has developed procedures to evaluate applications.
The BOT will establish an evaluation committee, which will consist of the HIPM trustee co-chair (chairman), the BOT treasurer and the public information trustee co-chairman, with the BOT chairman of the board as ex officio. The committee will do the following:
- Review applications monthly
- Consider national/international and regional exhibits, with national/international exhibits receiving first consideration
- Give preference to service bodies that have not applied for Grant Fund monies or were not awarded Grant Fund monies if they did apply (see “WSBC 2005 Wraps Up Deliberations").
- Within three days of meeting, notify applying service bodies of the committee’s decision via email or telephone (if email is not available)
The committee is developing an application form that will be available on the OA Web site.
If your service body would like to donate to this important effort, please indicate “Professional Exhibits Fund” on the memo line of your check. If the money is sent as part of a regular donation to the World Service Office, please indicate the amount intended to be directed to the Professional Exhibits Fund.
If you know of a professional event that would benefit from an OA exhibit, please consider applying to the Professional Exhibits Fund to help your intergroup, national/language service board or region participate.
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WSBC Delegates Elect New Board
At the 2005 annual meeting of the World Service Business Conference, delegates elected four regional and two general service trustees to the OA Board of Trustees, and the new board then elected officers.
Officers
Chairman: Ella A.
First Vice Chairman: Dodie H.
Second Vice Chairman: Michael B.
Treasurer: Kayla W.
General Service Trustees
Ella A.
Michael B.
Dodie H.
Karen S-A.
Bob F.
Kayla W.
Regional Trustees
Region One: Louise B.
Region Two: Angela J.
Region Three: Debbie W.
Region Four: Connie H.
Region Five: Marilyn A.
Region Six: Dexter J.
Region Seven: Donna A.
Region Eight: Charles A.
Region Nine: Kathleen R.
Region Ten: Jill H.
Committee Chairs
Board-Approved Literature: Kathleen R.
Bylaws: Bob F.
Conference-Approved Literature: Angela J.
Conference Planning: Dodie H.
Consensus Building: Jill H.
Convention 2007: Donna A.
Finance: Kayla W.
Grant Proposal: Karen S-A.
HIPM: Marilyn A.
History and Archives: Dexter J.
Internal Information: Jill H.
International Publications: Karen S-A.
Media Outreach: Michael B.
Public Information: Louise B.
Region Chairs: Debbie W.
Technology: Charles A.
Twelfth-Step-Within: Connie H.
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Continued on page 2
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