Steering Committee Minutes

Laurel Recovery Steering Committee Meeting Minutes August 17, 2024 MINUTES

Agenda: Steering Committee Monthly Meeting

The meeting was called to order at: 10:02 a.m., opened with the Serenity Prayer

Attendees: John R., Jeanne O., Nettie T., Jeff K., Brian D., Shawn G., Lisa M., Courtney M., Mike O., Andrew F., Rich C., Bruce D., Suzy Q., Susan M., Jess R., and Gianna

Approval of Meeting Minutes from July 20, 2024 :

A motion was made by Shawn G. to accept the meeting minutes from July 20, 2024, seconded by Brian D., and the minutes were accepted by the Steering Committee.

REPORTS

Chairperson–Suzy Q

  • The carpets have been cleaned and Shawn G. has cleaned most of the chairs.
  • Regarding the LRG September 15th Cookout, trying to reach out to Joanna and pay the balance due for the cookout. There will not be T-shirts made for the occasion.

Vice Chairperson–

  • Not present.
  • No report

Treasurer Report: Jay F.  

  • Lisa C., Assistant Treasurer not present.
  • Jay F. gave report for July 2024.
  • Reviewed the bank statement.
    • Question about two debits on one day for Sam’s Club– outcome was that the bank had processed transactions that were three days apart on the same day.
    • Explanation about high deposit activity was that money to be refunded from the June 21st dance had instead been contributed by the buyers to Laurel Recovery.
    • Response to whether bank deposits are reconciled with the deposits listed in the Secretary’s Book: not as a regular practice. The Assistant Treasurer will be asked to do a reconciliation, though it must be taken into account that the electronic/Zelle contributions would not be reflected in the Secretary’s Book.
    • There was discussion about a uniform procedure for putting each meeting’s collection into the same box, then have it deposited at night. Use envelopes? Notes?  The Secretary Coordinator will write the protocol, so all secretaries use the same procedure.
  •  A motion was made by Jeanne O.to accept the Treasurer Report from July 2024, seconded by Brian D., and the July 2024 Treasurer’s Report was accepted by the Steering Committee.

General Services Rep (GSR) Report—

  • No GSR yet.
  • Jeanne O. reported that the WAGSA Committee Meeting was August 12th, and they had not met in July.
  • The primary topic was Proposed Agenda Items (PAIs) that Area 13 would develop to submit to the General Service Office (GSO) for the 2025 General Service Conference (GSC).

Washington Area Intergroup Association (WAIA) Report–Lisa M.

  • WAIA is always looking for volunteers–contact Lisa if you are interested.
  • Prince George’s County Corrections has asked WAIA to do five meetings a week, and one is a women’s meeting, A lot of volunteers are needed. The process will involve a background check. There are also online meetings, but there is a struggle to provide the in-person meetings. Lisa can provide the WAIA address, etc.

Hospitals & Institutions Report:

  • Jamie not present.
  • Shawn G. continues to facilitate visits to Howard County Hospital two Wednesdays per month.
  • Shawn is in communication with someone about the possibility of getting 10 to 12 women to visit/outreach to Jessup’s Women’s Jail.
  • Jess R.: Anyone interested, there are 7PM women-only visits on designated Thursdays to Jennifer Road. Contact Jess,
  • Interested males can contact Jay F., who is facilitating, if interested, Twelfth Step visits to Ordinance Road Correctional Facility on 4th Thursday of the month at 7:45PM.

Chips—

  • Vincent C. not present, John R. provided his report.
  • The chips are good.

Publications Report–Jeff K.

  • Got a case of Big Books.
  • Took inventory of the pamphlets, got 10 Introduction to A.A. pamphlets.
  • In response to inquiry from Suzy, Jeff will check stock for the Jack Alexander pamphlets.
  • Brian commented that Howard County Hospital had very little literature. Shawn will check with the contact to discuss if the hospital will purchase literature.
  • Andrew suggested an H&I “kit” be developed for the H&I visitors and he will research and create a sample and bring it to the next steering committee meeting.

Supplies–Jess R.

  • $158.94 was spent this month on supplies.
  • Appreciates the texts that give her advance notice of the need for supplies. They allow her to phone ahead, then pick the supplies up.
  • Needs list of items needed for the September 15th cookout. John R. will text the list to Suzy and Jess.

Secretary Coordinator–Shawn G.

  • All is going well. New Friday 5:30 PM secretary Carrie began, aided by Brian G. In answer to a question: The training was facilitated by the steering committee   Secretary Coordinator due to no incumbent to carry out the responsibility.
  • Jeanne O. virtual meeting report: There is a new online Monday 5:30 pm meeting secretary. No tech changes.
  • The Monday 7PM “CAME TO BELIEVE” meeting needs support.
  • Question: Is there still an Al-Anon meeting? Answer: No. There was not enough support for the Sunday 5:30 PM meeting.

Website–John R.

  • All is well; the report was sent out to the Steering Committee.

Old Business:

New Business:

  • A large cockroach was seen last night. Secretaries please be conscientious about sealing food.
  • Jeff K. has researched 501C3 for Laurel Recovery.
    • If LRG is below $50,000, there would be a $275 application fee, and complete 990EZ.
    • LRG would save on sales taxes; contributors could claim tax deduction.
    • Jeff and Jay will prepare a presentation for the next steering committee meeting on what it means.
  • Susan says Hope House comes on Thursdays. The meeting secretary has been bringing in a full Spaghetti dinner for the last Thursday of the month. They would like to expand it to every Thursday. The Secretary and volunteers do all the clean-up. If anyone has a problem with this, let Susan know. The provisions are donated by some LRG members out of pocket. In response to the question of whether this is in keeping with the singleness of purpose of A.A.: This is still an A.A. meeting, it is simply an eating meeting.  No opposition came from the steering committee.
  • Discussion was initiated about an apparent “seat of power” influencing changes in the meetings that are not the choice of all the meetings. Specific examples would be the enforcement of time limits for shares and the reading of the Laurel Recovery Safety Statement–both in the script in the Secretary Book. After discussion, A motion was made by Jeff K that the two readings would be left in the book as OPTIONS that each meeting could choose. Seconded, and motion passed by the steering committee.
  • Brian says that ALL the steering committee positions should be rotated. Laurel Recovery Group holds annual elections for the steering committee positions. There was no further discussion.
  • Gianna would like a Traditions Workshop. She will organize a proposal/outline plan for the next steering committee meeting

The meeting was closed with the AA Responsibility Statement at 11:13 a.m.

Respectfully submitted, Jeanne O’, Secretary

MINUTES ACCEPTED BY STEERING COMMITTEE ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2024.

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