2017 EDITION The Happy, Joyous, & Free PressGeneral information about Alcoholics Anonymous and links to the GSO web page. Time and location of AA meetings within HMB Area. The website,

Hudson | Mohawk | Berkshire Area 48 www.aahmbny.org May 2017 Edition

Page 1

"About this slip business -- I would not be toodiscouraged. I think you are suffering a great deal froma needless guilt. For some reason or other, the Lord haslaid out tougher paths for some of us, and I guess youare treading one of them. God is not asking us tobe successful. He is only asking us to try to be. That,you surely are doing, and have been doing. So Iwould not stay away from A.A. through any feelingof discouragement or shame. It's just the place youshould be. Why don't you try just as a member? Youdon't have to carry the whole A.A. on your back, youknow!

"It is not always the quantity of good things that youdo, it is also the quality that counts.

"Above all, take it one day at a time."

Bill W. (Letter, 1958)

2017 EDITION

The Happy, Joyous, & Free PressThe Area 48 Newsletter, published since 1974, is to foster unity and provide communications among AA members, groups, districts & the GSO.

A Letter From Don.............p. 16May Area Assembly...........p. 16NERF Flyer...........................p. 17HMB Convention Flyer.......p. 182017 Meeting Schedule.....p. 19 Order Form

Tradition Five Checklist:

1. Do I ever cop out by saying, “I’mnot a group, so this or that Traditiondoesn’t apply to me”?

2. Am I willing to explain firmly toa newcomer the limitations of AAhelp, even if he gets mad at me fornot giving him a loan?

3. Have I today imposed on any AAmember for a special favor orconsideration simply because I ama fellow alcoholic?

4. Am I willing to twelfth-step thenext newcomer without regard towho or what is in it for me?

5. Do I help my group in every wayI can to fulfill our primary purpose?

6. Do I remember that AA old-timers, too, can be alcoholics whostill suffer? Do I try both to helpthem and to learn from them?

Concept Five Checklist:

• Do we encourage the minorityopinion, the “Right of Appeal”, to beheard at our home group, districtcommittee meetings, areaassemblies and the Conference?

• What does our group accept as“substantial unanimity”?

• Has our group experienced the“tyranny of the majority” or the“tyranny of the minority”?

• Does our group understandthe importance of all points ofview being heard before a vote istaken? - Reprinted with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.

A A Pr i nci ples of t he Mont h

Step 5: - “Admitted to God, to ourselves and to anotherhuman being the exact nature of our wrongs.”

Tradition 5 (long form): “Each group has but oneprimary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholicwho still suffers.”

Concept 5 (long form): Throughout our world servicestructure, a traditional “Right of Appeal” ought toprevail, thus assuring us that minority opinion will beheard and that petitions for the redress of personalgrievances will be carefully considered.

In This Issue:

Calendar of Events.............p. 2Grapevine Photo Contest. .p. 2Archives Report..................p. 3Guideline Proposals.............p. 3-6Inv. Day Minutes.................p. 7-14A Letter From Bill..............p. 15

http://www.aahmbny.org


Page 2

Calendar of EventsDATE EVENT HOST

Sunday May 21 2017 HMB Area Assembly Central Cluster-District 14 (4, 8)

June 2-4 NERF Mars, PA

June 10 Joy of Service Day H. V. Cluster-District 16(3, 7, 11, 15, 17)

August 4-6 NYS Informational Workshop Rochester, NY

September 9 HMB Election Assembly Eastern Cluster-District 2(1, 18)

October 14-16 HMB Area Assembly Oneonta, NY

November 3-5 HMB Convention Fishkill, NY

November 11 Fellowship Day Western Cluster-District 12 (9)

To view all upcoming HMB Area 48 Event FLYERS and District event flyers, as wellas directions and maps, please view the Area website: www.aahmbny.org.

Enter the Grapevine Annual Photo ContestEach year, Grapevine holds a competition for photographers to be featured in our Wall Calendar. We'd

love to see your most striking photographs that reflect the joy of living, serenity, and other sobriety themes.Contributors of selected photos will receive a complimentary copy of the new Wall Calendar in which theirphoto appears and a Grapevine Pocket Planner. Go to http://www.aagrapevine.org/ and click on PhotoContest.

Share YOUR story with Grapevine. Go to http://www.aagrapevine.org/ and click on Share.

AA in the Military (Stories due May 5, 2017)

Did you ever serve in the military sober? Were you ever stationed overseas or on a ship while trying tostay sober? What were AA meetings like in the military? What were some of the challenges? Is that whereyou found AA? Share some experiences about being in AA while serving your country.

Service for the Holidays (Stories due July 5, 2017) December is a great time of year to reach out toalcoholics and do some service. What are some things you do to stay sober? What are the ways you staygrateful during December and New Years?) Share your experience!

See you soon! Cathy P. HMB Area 48 Grapevine Chairperson

https://aahmbny.org/events/NERF2017.pdf

https://aahmbny.org/convention/


http://www.aagrapevine.org/

http://www.aagrapevine.org/



Page 3

8.0 Newsletter GuidelinesPrimary Purpose Statement:

The HMB Newsletter is published to foster unity and provide communications among AAmembers, groups, districts and the GSO.

Subject Matter:

Contents should be written within the guidelines presented in the AA Service Manual,2010-11 Edition, page S41.

It is the Area conscience that no personal emails or phone numbers be published in thenewsletter.

The Newsletter may include:

-- Committee reports from Committee chairpersons pertinent to AA activity.

-- Flyers for Area Functions: i.e., Assemblies, Elections, Days of Sharing, Inventory, andFellowship Days, State and Regional Forums, State Workshops, NERAASA, State andArea Conventions, including the International Convention.

-- District activities will be listed in a calendar of upcoming events. Information requiredfor inclusion is name of event, date, time, location, address, and contact person.Ideally, an anonymous email will also be included. District event flyers will not beincluded in the Area newsletter.

-- Event submissions from the Capital District Central Office (CDCO) can be included inthe calendar with district events. Information required for inclusion is name of event,date, time, location, address, and contact person. Ideally, an anonymous email will alsobe included.

-- The Capital District Central Office can submit articles to the newsletter, followingthese same guidelines.

-- The Area Newsletter is published 11 times a year.

-- Monthly, February through November

-- December/January, in which a single “Winter Issue” will be published.

-- The Area Newsletter will be delivered primarily via posting on the Area Website andthrough email distributions, with postal delivery to those with no email address inFellowship New Visions and available upon request. Email distribution will be thoseemails listed for the GSRs or group contacts in FNV, all committee chairs and any othermember upon request.



Page 4

-- Proposals to be brought for consideration and vote at an Area Assembly must bepublished in the Area Newsletter and/or the Website three months consecutively prior tothe date of the Assembly.

Member Participation:

-- All members are encouraged to submit articles for consideration for inclusion in thenewsletter.

Authority:

Newsletter Editor and the Newsletter Committee will resolve all questions and commentsand will approve all drafts before printing.

9.0 Technology Committee Guidelines

Technology Committee

The Technology Committee shall have direct oversight of the Area’s technologicalcommunication tools, including but not limited to Area Website/s, District Websites,emails, and electronic meeting information.

The committee shall be a Standing Committee of HMB Area 48, with a Chair andAlternate appointed by the Area Chair. The Technology Committee will assist the Areachair by identifying the qualifications necessary for the committee positions.

Website

The HMB Area maintains a website at www.aahmbny.org

The Hudson-Mohawk-Berkshire (HMB) Area 48 AA Website is built as anothermechanism to inform people about Alcoholics Anonymous in the HMB Area. The web siteprovides:

Information about Alcoholics Anonymous in HMB Area 48, such as general structure andan events calendar.

www.aahmbny.org



Page 5

Intra-Area communications between Area 48 representatives and the fellowship.

Service information in the form of a service calendar and web pages for each of theservice committees.

General information about Alcoholics Anonymous and links to the GSO web page.

Time and location of AA meetings within HMB Area.

The website, its name, content and all related computer hardware and software, with theexception of the Web hosting service and the Internet service provider, shall be ownedand supported by Hudson-Mohawk-Berkshire Area 48 of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Content

In keeping with anonymity, no personal telephone numbers or emails will be publishedon the Web site. We do use anonymous email addresses such as:[email protected]

No paid advertisements will be posted to the website.

Use of support services such as maps for directions to meetings can be used. Someevents may have registration or information websites that will link from the calendar.When leaving the HMB Area Website some indication will be given to the user that theyare leaving the HMB Area Website.

A disclaimer statement should be included on the Website and should read “This websiteis neither endorsed nor approved by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc., or anygiven Internet provider. No copyrighted material shall be purposefully posted hereinwithout the express permission of those individuals or Institutions possessing ownershipof said copyrights. Alcoholics Anonymous, AA, and The Big Book are registeredtrademarks of Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. The Grapevine, and the AAGrapevine are registered trademarks of The AA Grapevine, Inc.”

The website shall conform to The 12 Traditions and The 12 Concepts of AlcoholicsAnonymous and to the Structure and Guidelines of the HMB Area 48.

In keeping with AA Traditions, the internet website shall cooperate with AA entities byproviding references only, including a non-affiliation disclaimer.

There shall be no reference or link to any non-AA material except specific internetsoftware necessary to view the internet web site.

Any use of copyrighted material from conference-approved literature will be attributed toAA World Services, Inc. or The Grapevine, Inc. as appropriate.

mailto:[email protected]



Page 6

Meeting Lookup

The Technology Committee maintains a meeting look-up webpage. This interactiveapplication offers the ability to enter one or several search criteria (city, day of theweek, county, etc.) to find meetings. The committee works closely with the Registrar tomaintain up-to-date data.

District Websites

The area makes subdomain websites available to district free of charge – for example:district12.aahmbny.org. The Technology Committee is available to support the district,but each district should have a webmaster responsible for maintaining their website.

Emails

The area makes anonymous emails available to all area officers, committee chairs andalternate chairs, and district officers and committee chairs free of charge. TheTechnology Committee maintains the hosting of these emails and is available to assistmembers in setting up and using the emails.

Copyright A

A G

rapevine International

A sponsor and a prospectivesponsee meet to talk for thefirst time. After describing hismany bouts with the bottle, thewould be sponsee finally asks,“So, what do you think?”

“I think you’re going to go farin this Fellowship,” thesponsor asserts.

“Wow?” His young chargereplies. “Why do you thinkthat?”

“Because you have such along way to go,” the sponsoranswered.

district12.aahmbny.org



Page 7

HMB AREA 48 Inventory Day

January 14, 2017 , Rensselaer, NY

Minutes - Meeting called to order at 10:08 am by Don S., the Chair.

Welcome to new DCMs and Alt DCMs:

D02 – Mike

D18 – Deb

D04 – Jack

D05 – Andy

D13 – Doris (Alt DCM)

D05 – Jeremy (Alt DCM)

D18 – Mike (Alt DCM)

• Tom (2016 Convention Treasurer) reported a surplus of $6155.14 (includes the $2000 seed money) returnedto the Area, of which half will be sent to GSO.

• Don has visited the following Districts: 18, 2, 5, 4, 12 & 8

Next Month he will visit 3, 7, & 17 – In March he will visit 1 & 11, May visiting District 10.

Don announced that we need an Alternate Registrar. (Filled by William A. later in the Day.)

• Area Inventory - facilitated by Vicky S. Panel 65 Area 47 Delegate.

Explained how the inventory would be conducted, and dispersed groups into their roundtables to discuss theinventory topics.

• Before the Inventory report backs, the Chair asked the DCM from D17 to give a report on the MarchFellowship Day. Don G. reported that on March 4 th D17 will host the Fellowship Day in conjunction with theHudson Valley Cluster D3, D7, D11, D15, D16, & D17.

Flyer here: http://aahmbny.org/events/HMBArea48-FellowshipDay%20-%20201703.pdf

• Report on meeting books:

Thea – There was a little delay due to last minute changes, but will be finished to send to the printer by the end

of the weekend. Ready for distribution by the end of the month.

http://aahmbny.org/events/HMBArea48-FellowshipDay%20-%20201703.pdf



Page 8

• 4 th Tuesday of each month at 7PM is the DCM conference call. To be on the call see Don.

Note: The questions below were put together from last year’s event. Answers and discussion points that cameout of the questions are indicated after each question, with the number for the responding roundtable group.

There were the following committees grouped for the round tables:

a) PI, CPC, Grapevine and Archives

b) BTG and Corrections

c) Treatment and Accessibility

d) DCMs

Questions for the Inventory

How did you first hear about AA?

a) Friends, Family, Treatment Facilities, Lawyers, friends, family.

c) Though Al-Anon, Treatment, Doctors, Family Members.

d) From another Alcoholic.

If the answer to the question above is that someone told you about AA, how did they first hear about AA?

a) Meeting lists, law enforcement, counsellors in recovery, and other Members.

b) Intervention. Probation. Alcoholic Parents. Church bulletin.

c) More since last year due to CPC and PI work. Family, friends, interventions, judges, coworkers, doctors,literature, internet.

Where do you think you would be today if the only thing that AA did was hold AA meetings?

b) Not growing. At a meeting.

c) Dead. In an institution. Nowhere. On drugs.

d) Triple “D”s – Drinking, Dead, or Divorced.

What is the purpose(s) of HMB?

a) It brings Districts together. Getting our opinions to GSO. Sense of Unity and Connection.

b) Ideas to attract people to carry the message. Attraction rather than promotion. The purpose is to be a conduitfrom the District.



Page 9

c) To share and exchange information through fellowship, the experience of others. To share betweenDistricts down to the individual members.

d) To facilitate information for the groups to the Districts, to the Area, and back.

What would you like to see done differently at the Area meetings?

a) Many leave early, and miss the reports. It would be good to have some kind of report on the committeesbefore lunch. When there are breakout tables in the same room, people can’t hear each other.

b) Having workshops.

c) Have a place for people who are not on committees to be welcomed in.

d) Include the record keepers with the DCM groups. Have a training workshop for records keeping.

Do we always allow the minority opinion to be heard?

a) Yes

b) Yes

c) Yes

d) Yes

Do we set realistic short and long term goals?

a) Yes, within the committees, but it’s not understood what the Area’s goals are.

b) Some said yes, and others said no.

d) Didn’t know. Perhaps they should be in our Newsletter.

Is there a frequent need for quick decisions?

a) No, nothing happens very quickly in A.A.

b) No.

c) Yes, but we handle the group conscience when needed.

d) Doesn’t often happen.

When does HMB exercise its Right of Decision?

a) Yes. The Delegate’s questionnaire should be with a broader sense of the issues, and not so detailed.

d) Yes.

Are mundane matters often sent to the groups?

b) Some said all the time, and others said no.

c) No. Concept 3 is used.

Are members given the opportunity to speak freely at meetings?



Page 10

a) Yes.

b) Yes.

c) Yes. Bring back the “Ask-It Basket”.

If we were just creating an Area structure, what would we do differently?

b) Rearrange the geographic area.

c) Feel it’s working.

d) An ad hoc committee to look at restructuring.

Do we have too many meetings within the Service structure or is it just right?

b) Just right.

c) Not enough. More workshops on service committees.

d) No.

Are members of the Area Committee chosen with care and consideration, placing principles beforepersonalities?

Is the spirit of rotation followed in this process?

a) Some people feel that there are popularity contests in selecting people.

b) Yes, with the new voting guidelines.

c) Yes.

d) It’s good.

What changes would you make to aahmbny.org?

a) Two views: email bad, and email is good. Meetings website more user friendly. Some people can’t search byDistrict because they don’t know what their District is.

c) Hard to see on the phone.

d) Online fill-in forms for changes.

Approximately 40 of the groups in Area 48 contribute to GSO. What % of groups contribute to the Area?

c) ? Less than last year.

d) No idea.

What % of groups have GSRs?

a) Don’t really know. Think 70 to 75%. Some think less.

b) Don’t know.

c) Not enough. Possibly 1/3?



Page 11

d) No one knew.

What % of groups participate in area and district activities? How can these numbers be improved?

a) Can be improved by DCMs visiting the Groups and talking about the importance of the GSR. Chairs goingout and making connections to the groups to ask how they can serve them. When there is no GSO, have theChair as the contact to share the information from the District with the members.

b) Information from educational workshops. Announcements at meetings. DCMs going to dark groupsto encourage them to get a GSR.

c) Spreading the word. Sponsorship. Bring a sponsee to an Area event.

Do all groups know about the Area and the service we provide?

a) No.

b) No.

c) Not enough.

Have some groups provided negative feedback about the Area? If yes, what have we done to remedy this?

a) Yes, we do get negative feedback about Area Service, and we try to educate them. A strong approach doesnot work. People feel a sense of non-relevance to the Area. “Did you know” info in the Newsletter.

b) Yes. Explaining the necessity of the Area and GSO is the remedy.

c) Yes. Suggest that people come to find out for themselves.

Do we keep in touch with groups who don't send representatives to district and area events?

a) Individually we feel we do.

b) No, we don’t know about them.

c) DCMs and Alt DCMs go out to the groups to do outreach to dark meetings. Find contacts.

What is our "service" message? How do we express the need for the service structure?

b) To carry the message to the next Alcoholic.

c) Not sure outside of immediate circle of service sponsor and sponsees.

How well do we communicate with the Districts?

b) Well through the DCMs.

c) Always trying to get the word out about the Area events by announcements at the District.

Are district activities fully reported to HMB?

b) Yes, if the DCMs are at the Area meetings.

c) Don’t know.



Page 12

Have all the physicians who practice within the boundaries of Area 48 been given a copy of the pamphlet "AAas a Resource for the Healthcare Professional”?

a) This has been a goal. We have been doing this. Some District are very good at this.

b) No, we need to work on this.

c) Don’t know. Ask our Area PI Chair.

Has each member of the clergy within Area 48’s boundaries been given a copy of the pamphlet "Members ofthe clergy ask about Alcoholics Anonymous"?

b) No, we need to work on this.

c) Not as much.

Do these committees (area and district) establish annual goals?

a) Yes.

b) Yes.

Do they take their own inventory?

a) Not so much.

b) No.

c) Hope so, but not sure. Know we could do better.

Are all of our Districts "fully functioning”?

b) Mostly.

c) No. Looking at the 7 th Tradition they take care of themselves, but not beyond.

if not, what needs to be done differently?

b) Communication. Participation. A GSR for all Groups.

c) DCMs need to get to the meetings and offer them what they need.

Do we have the correct number of districts?

b) Yes.

Should we consider redistricting?

b) No.

Should we use clusters or sections?

b) Yes.

c) We use Clusters. Working fine the way they are.

Do many GSRs attend district meetings but not area assemblies?



Page 13

a) Yes. Some don’t know they have the right to be here.

c) Yes.

Are we making service participation attractive?

a) On individual level we try to.

b) Yes, but we can improve.

c) Yes.

How do we utilize the experience of our Past Delegates?

a) They go to groups. They make themselves available to us.

b) Get them to speak at meetings, workshops and conventions.

c) Ask them questions. Many come to Area events and make themselves available to us.

Are there any other issues or concerns?

a) Talked about the need for enthusiasm in the way we conduct ourselves and Service work, so more peoplebecome interested in it. Some service people feel isolated, but overall most feel they are doing a great job.Encourage newcomers. Bring them to Area events. Have a way to gage performance over the year.

b) No.

c) When is lunch? :-D

The moderator talked about her experience in Area 47. She acknowledged the Past Delegates in the room. Therewere three at the event.

Next Item on the Inventory Agenda – (Open mic)

Specific items to bring back to the Districts and ideas to do in the Area

• DCMs received a packet with contribution information.

• It’s important that everyone uses a service email. This is important for rotation, and anonymity. All Areafolks are available to come to your District meetings upon request.

• Become familiar with the pamphlet “The A.A. Group”.

• How do we get members energized to get involved?



Page 14

• Conduct a Group Inventory. Folks who are not participating may not know how to get up and help. Weshould go directly up to people and ask them to help.

• We have a resource called Fellowship New Vision, which contains the Group information, and points ofcontact. It should be used by service people to make contacts.

• Pass around the announcements and flyers. Use the Traditions Checklist. Fill your car with memberswhen attending events. • GSR get packet. The Alt DCMs should get the DCM packet. Area Chair should meetand orient new Alt DCMs and DCMs. We should ask others why they do not show up and do not participate.Ask the Districts how we can better serve them. Look at modern ways of doing Committee work.

• When a District is dark, the info does not come back. It should be the job of all of us to visit dark groups andgive them information about the Area. Group contacts need to hear us asking for help.

• DCM and Alt DCM should work together and share the duties. We are not here to dictate, but to serve. Weneed to be more transparent in letting people know what the contributions to the Area are used for.

• Every DCM should have a copy of the directory, and be distributing it to their District Service people, as wellas to use it to make contacts with Area Service people. Everyone who has an email address in our database fromGSO gets an email with links to events, and the minutes. If you do not get an email from the Area, you need toRegister with GSO with our Record Keeper. Keep an open source of communication, and accept that noteveryone will want to get involved.

• Area Delegate and Chair will come to show how to do an election. Be proactive in getting volunteers. Weneed to pass around other newsletters.

• Educate the Groups that do not attend District and Area meetings. Use Clusters for events.

• The idea of DCM and GSR School. Educating folks with the NYSIW and NERAASA

Vicky ended discussion at 2:24PM

Area Business – Area Chair

Action Items were noted for March – 4 th Tuesday Conference Call for DCMs and Alt DCMs – 319-527-9020 Access Code-231435. BTG is the next topic. The real purpose of the Area Chair is to ask how he can helpus.

Treasurer report – We are a 501C3 Not for Profit status. If Committee Chairs and Area people need topurchase literature, and need a tax-exempt number, see Tammie.

November 2016 Fellowship Day minutes: approved

Motion made and seconded to adjourn. Carried unanimously.

Meeting closed with the Responsibility Pledge.



Page 15

A Letter From BillAs I am writing this I am also getting ready for Conference. The 67th Annual Meeting of the General ServiceConference will be held in Rye, NY, from April 23-29, with the Delegates all meeting for the first time thenight before, on Saturday, the 22nd. Once we begin at 9:00am Sunday morning, we will be on 14+ hour days.Each day formally begins at 9 (7:30 if you want to have a meeting first) although some Committees, includingPublic Information which I am Alternate Chair of begin earlier, and ends sometime after 10 that night. Yes, it isexhausting. However, it is also exhilarating. Each day is one spent working on AA business with other peoplewho are just a deeply in love with our Program and you yourself are. It is an incomparable experience, and oneI am deeply grateful to all of you for giving me.

I am very sorry that our Annual Delegate’s Day of Sharing had to be cancelled. I was looking forward to it andhad spent a lot of time preparing for it. With 91 different items to consider at Conference I was very excited tohave your input on 10 of the most important and potentially controversial questions. Of course, the weather inthe Northeast in the springtime is very unpredictable and the fact that snow and ice came along is not verystrange. Certainly, the fact that the storm was continuing into the very day of the Area event meant that wecould not in good conscience ask people to drive into the Adirondacks and risk potentially serious accidents.Many of you have risen to the occasion and sent me the completed questionnaires so I am not flying blind here– I do have a great deal of your experience, your thinking, and your discussions, with me.

When I come back, I will have my presentation on the Conference ready to give to you at our May AreaAssembly in Florida. I hope you can be there. I will try to have a full report back that will run for an hour or soand cover the topics we discussed and the votes we took. (A note to DCMS: If there is significant interest inyour District, I can also come to one of your meetings and give this.) The report will include enoughbackground on how Conference works that it should be clear even to fairly new GSRs and others only recentlyin service.

The May Assembly is also a voting Assembly – this means that in addition to Area Committee members,DCMs (or their Alternates), all GSRs (or their Alternated) have a vote. So, if you can make only a couple ofArea events in a year, this is one that you should attend.

Then in June, we will gather in Stone Ridge for our Joy of Service Day. Just mentioning this Area meetinggives me the opportunity to talk about AA service. This September we will holding our Area Elections inDefreestville. What service position are you interested in? Are you thinking of standing for your Group’sGSR? Perhaps being a District Committee Chair… or Alternate DCM … or would you like to stand for anArea position? It is not too early to be thinking about this. Your first step is to talk with your Service Sponsor.If you do not have one, get one. Find someone in Service who seems to be doing a fairly good job and is happydoing it. That’s all you have to do. Speak with that person and get some idea of what the difference jobs entail.Believe me, with a few exceptions they do not take all that much time. They are also – and I am speaking fromexperience here – good for one’s sobriety! Please start thinking about this soon.

And finally please put our Area Convention on your calendar! November 3-5 at the Ramada Conference Centerin Fishkill. I look forward to seeing you there and having a chance to spend more with you.

In Fellowship and In Service, Bill W. Delegate Panel 66, Area 48, HMB



Page 16

A Letter From Don We had a good conference call March 28, 2017. 7 callers as well as the host. We continued adiscussion about trying to get Groups to accept responsibility for one business or one facility into whichthey would carry the message.

In an unfortunate turn of events the Grillin & Chillin could not be held as the driving conditionsthroughout most of our Area were dangerous. I hope everyone could send Bill their informed opinions onthe topics raise in the Delegates questionnaire.

Rapidly approaching is our Spring Assembly – remember this is an Area voting event. GSRs areencouraged to attend and vote on proposals. We will also hear from our Delegate who will share with usthe highlights of the General Service Conference.

MOST IMPORTANTLY OF ALL PLEASE JOIN ME IN PRAYING FOR BILL Ws –AND HIS WIFES – CONTINUED GOOD HEALTH AND WELL BEING!!!!!!!!!

In Service, Don S. Area 48 HMB Chair

May AreaAssembly

Sunday, May 21, 20179am – 3pm

Florida Town Hall167 Fort Hunter Road

Amsterdam, NY



Page 17



Page 18



Page 19


HM

B Area Association (8/2016)Ship and C

opy118 Polar Plaza, #114

Amsterdam

, NY 12010

Documents

2017 EDITION The Happy, Joyous, & Free PressGeneral information about Alcoholics Anonymous and links to the GSO web page. Time and location of AA meetings within HMB Area. The website,