District 24

What the HECK is a GSR?? and What the HECK does District 24 have to do with MY Sobriety? The following appeared in the March 2011 District 24 Newsletter. It may be of interest to anyone who is wondering about D24 or thinking of becomeing of service outside their Group.

 

Hi! My name is Vicky and I am an Alcoholic,

 

I am a fairly new Group Service Representative (called GSR for short) for my AA Home Group, Chaska Monday 7pm, which meets at the Chaska St. John’s Lutheran Church. Yes, I am often asked the questions in the title of this writing. Here is my story and my answer to those questions.

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Before I became a GSR, I would hear District meeting announcements and see the District newsletter as it was passed around the room and, truthfully, I didn't really think twice about them. I ignored basically anything related to “District!”

 

You see, since I became sober, my Home Group never had a GSR and no one really seemed too concerned about it either. Also, I didn’t understand how these – what I thought were “non-AA District meetings” could have anything to do with my program of recovery. I was basing my judgment mostly on hearsay – usually from some of the old-timers who were folk that had been around for a while. They said that “District” was just politics and people who thought they were in charge of spending our AA money (even though our Group never contributed to District) on whatever they wanted!

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One morning in October, I was having coffee with a friend and I mentioned to her that I was troubled – I felt that I needed to take my Program to another level and I had no idea what to do. I was sponsoring women, giving rides, doing service! But I felt empty. I needed a new level to my Program. For some reason, what I was doing just didn’t seem enough. My friend threw a suggestion out to me, “Why don’t you ride along with me to the next District meeting and check it out? Maybe you will find that “something more” there.”

 

Well, I tell ya, I left my first District meeting completely astounded... and surrounded by a new awareness that God had sent me there for a reason. I was exactly where I needed to be! I learned that so much of my journey in recovery in Alcoholics Anonymous had come to me by way of District service work and I didn't even know it !I had no idea.

 

It wasn’t too hard to figure out that I needed to share this new information with my Home Group because they had been missing out all this time! I met a lot of people from our neighboring AA groups. During the GSR sharing session, I learned what was going on at their meetings and the different service commitments their Groups had – outside of their meeting rooms – out in their community! There were a lot of laughs, I tell you! I still couldn’t figure out where the “political” stuff came in that the old-timers told me about.

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At some of the District meetings, there were some interesting presentations. One month, a guy by the name of Paul, who knows a lot of interesting AA history, told us about his service with Archives. At another District meeting, Doug C., our Treasurer for Southern Minnesota AA, came to discuss questions that the Groups had about getting checking accounts, how to deal with bad checks, and examples of how to divvy up the basket money to the different AA entities. The next month, Angie E., our new Delegate for Southern Minnesota AA talked to us about her journey through AA and how service work played such an important role in her sobriety. Angie will be heading to NYC in April/May to represent us (you and me) at the upcoming 61stAA General Service Conference.

 

I now have a better understanding of our AA Traditions and why they are so important! In the past 5 months, I have learned so much on how all of this comes together as a Whole. I learned that we need to take the time to inform the professionals in our community what AA is and what AA isn’t. These folk see our suffering alcoholics long before we do – if we do – in our meeting rooms. Did you know that we have an Adopt-A-Hotel program in case there is a traveler that needs to find an AA meeting? Have you heard about the new AA Young People’s videos? They are phenomenal! They were written and produced by young people in AA! I sure would like to see these played on our local cable station! Maybe the message will be carried to the young folk who are experiencing troubles because of their drinking.

 

My Group now has a service commitment of filling literature racks at 4 places in Chaska with AA brochures. They are at the jail and in the waiting rooms of the probation officers. I never knew the need or purpose of doing this until I started to do it myself. I always figured someone else did it. I got to talk to the lady in the law library at the jail. She didn’t even know what AA was about! We had the opportunity to do an AA info. talk with her. And she took stuff and was reading it.I always expected that the professionals in the probation offices, social workers’ offices, etc. already had the education and knew about AA – but, they weren’t even trained at all about AA! This is where we come in.

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Maybe what I share can help – at the very least - just one person and save their life. Kinda like planting a seed.

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My passion has always been for the Newcomer. The District has helped me learn how to focus on that primary purpose of our Program. If our Group isn’t healthy and constantly growing in Spirit, how can we be of any help to the suffering and frightened Newcomer in the best way that we can?

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In loving service,

Vicky L., GSR for Chaska Mon 7pm