DAKOTA ALANO BOARD MEETING NOTES
November 16, 2014
The meeting opened with the Serenity Prayer at 6:01pm. The Twelve Traditions were read by Mary Jo. Introductions were made.
Board Members Present: Lonnie L, Mary Jo C, Dan W, Martha D, Lee G, Mike F, Rusty S, Michon P
Board Members Absent: Mark L
Guests: Rob M, Ping S
Secretary’s Report: Martha reported that she added the Squad Leaders' list and the Church Emergency Contacts to the archives. Lonnie asked if there are any questions or modifications to the October Board Meeting Minutes. Rusty made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Michon seconded the motion and the motion passed.
Treasurer’s Report: Mike reviewed the October 2014 Meeting Donation Summary, Profit & Loss Statement, and Balance Sheet. Michon made a motion to accept the financial statements as prepared. Mary Jo seconded the motion and the motion passed.
Visitor Questions and Concerns:
Ping, the trusted servant from the 6pm Tues group, asked for information on how quickly checks written to the Alano are processed. She said she had written a check in August and it was not cleared until October. Mike said as soon as it is in the Treasurer's box, it is processed within two weeks.
She also asked for guidance on how to handle a situation when someone is causing disruption during a meeting; perhaps due to mental health challenges. Lonnie said meeting disruptions will be discussed later in the meeting as a follow up to discussion at the October Squad Leaders’ Meeting and October Board Meeting.
Squad Leader Reports:
None
Committee Reports:
Literature& Medallions (Mary Jo C): Mary Jo reported that she needs to make a trip to Intergroup for medallions and hard cover Big Books and will do so soon.
Facilities Maintenance (Rusty S): Rusty reported he fixed the loose board on steps.
Publications& Public Relations (Dan W): Lonnie asked about website hits. Dan said that Google Analytics had been installed and that there is some activity on website, but not much.
Supplies (Michon P): Michon reported she is keeping up with soda sales; some flavors are not selling well; she will replace with alternatives.
House Security (Lee G): Lee reported he believes all keys have been exchanged; all current trusted servants should have current key.
Archives (Martha D): Archives are up to date.
Old Business:
Weekly amount of recyclables -- Rusty reported quite a bit of Styrofoam has been present in the recyclables bin (styrofoam is not acceptable). He said the amount of cans is low; perhaps someone else is removing them. Lonnie asked that Rusty continue to monitor.
Wells Fargo CD -- Mike reported that the window during which a change could have been made to the Certificate of Deposit has closed and it had automatically renewed itself for another two years.
August Rent Payment -- Mike was able to provide all rent check documentation to church; which cleared up issue of whether August rent had been paid (it had).
New Business:
Certificate of Insurance -- Lonnie provided this to the church and signed new lease agreement. Rent will not increase until 2017. Lonnie will send to Martha for archives.
Draft Policy Statement -- Martha provided an overview. Two issues were discussed last month – trusted servants’ reports (corroborated by others) about disruptions at different meetings due to presence of child and also 2 members who behave in manner which makes it difficult for others to focus on meeting content.
Discussed again what should be handled via Board-issued policy vs directly within each group and individual in question (or other individual meeting decision). Lonnie mentioned that although we might have a policy statement, that doesn’t necessarily effect change with such individuals. Mike suggested maybe best to let it play out and have tolerance
Ping said she is concerned others don't want to come back to the meeting due to one individual’s distracting behavior. Mary Jo said it might be a good idea for squad leaders to read a suggested statement. Martha clarified that this statement would be a tool available to squad leaders to use if their groups wish; the Board isn’t telling individual groups what to do. Rob suggested someone call Intergroup and ask if other groups have had this situation before and how it was handled. Lonnie will call Intergroup. He also suggested the Board put a suggested policy statement forward for squad leaders that pulls together the two issues (children at meetings and other forms of distractions in general). Using the sample verbage Advisory Board member Susan had written, the Board members then modified it.
Ping suggested that once a statement is drafted, it be included in the newsletter. Rob mentioned we need to keep the newcomer in mind. In addition to giving language to groups for their own consideration, Lee said everyone deserves to be talked to face to face, if they are causing distraction for other members. Rob concurred. The three situations will be handled face to face by Lee, Martha, and Lonnie. Lonnie suggested we keep in mind we are talking about the health of AA as a whole and the environment our meetings present to the newcomer.
Lee made a motion and Mary Jo seconded the re-worded policy statement that will be distributed to groups for use at their discretion. Martha will print and put in each groups’ mail boxes.
Lonnie made a motion that we approve the Operations Journal revisions as emailed by Susan earlier in the month. Dan seconded the motion and the motion passed.
Motion to Close:
A motion to close the meeting was made by Mary Jo. Michon seconded the motion and the motion passed. The meeting closed with the Lord’s Prayer at 7:06 pm.
Yours in service,
Martha D