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District 39 Minutes

August 16, 2026

The wording of the motion that passed in July went out by email later than I intended; I apologize for the delay. The Ready, Set, Service flyer went out separately. If you are not receiving these minutes by email, please send your address to admin@d39aa.org and I will check the list.

Treasurer Report (Scotty)

Scotty was not present and there was no report this month. The basket was passed.

Visitation (Rob)

nothing

Workshop (Emily)

Emily brought two ideas and the room chose between them. There was no opposition to the next workshop being centered on the Traditions.

Follow-up

Michelle GSR It is grounded in the Traditions and it is interactive, which gets people involved rather than sitting and listening. That fosters learning.
Patrick GSR A scenario format would be a good way to teach the Traditions to other groups. In this area there is a lot that goes against the Traditions that nobody wants to say anything about.
Emily Workshop Chair Things will go against a Tradition and I will be too polite to find a way to say it. I can talk about how things are going all I want; the question is what I am doing about it. I am responsible.
A member Our home group covers a Tradition once a month. A lot of people in the Fellowship don't understand how the Traditions tie into the workings of an A.A. group, and not understanding them can cause dissension.
Jason GSR Twelve tables means at least twelve volunteers. That is a roadblock. The other roadblock is the appeal: when I first came in I did not want to hear about the Traditions, and if someone told me there was a Traditions meeting I would have asked what else was available.
Dan GSR Anonymity is the one that is constantly broken; people put their five-year coin on Facebook. It should be stressed. Also, December is the middle of the holiday season, and a Traditions workshop is a tough sell on a good day.
Summarized Response from Group Workshops are supposed to be educational, but if we can make it fun, people show up. Hopefully we get both.

Grapevine (Sarah)

Absent

Marathon

Absent

aDCM (Ashley)

Ashley reported from NEPA Intergroup. Events announced at Intergroup: One further flyer was handed out at the Intergroup meeting and passed around here, advertising a karaoke and dance party at a Wilkes-Barre venue in September. It is not an A.A. event and it is not attached to these minutes.

Follow-up

A member How many districts belong to our Intergroup?
Russell DCM Seven.

DCM (Russell)

A motion from nine districts. Russell read a motion that nine districts have put forward. We have talked about this here.

Motion to have all current DCMs and area officers submit a written service resume prior to EPGSA for voters to reference during Area elections.

The background information submitted with the motion, in full:

I am making this motion after speaking with several people about the voting process at EPGSA and discussing ways to make it more informative for GSRs during elections. The motion was brought up at our last district meeting. Only one GSR in attendance had previously attended EPGSA during a voting year. We did not take a formal vote, however, the discussion that ensued supported having something more in place to make informed decisions during our elections.

When I served as a GSR, I often had little to no knowledge of the individuals standing for Area Panel positions. In many cases, I either asked others who they were voting for or selected a name at random, especially if that person appeared to be leading. I know I am not the only person who has experienced this.

As a DCM, I encourage GSRs to attend Area events so they can become familiar with trusted servants and learn more about the people involved in service. However, the reality is that attendance at these events is often limited. During elections, the voting body is frequently provided with little more than the names of those standing for positions. This does not give GSRs enough information to make fully informed decisions and is not the most effective way to elect trusted servants to the Area Panel.

I have reached out to several Areas regarding their election procedures, and this is what I have found:

The following Areas require candidates to give a verbal service resume when standing for a position: Areas 11, 12, 15, 30, 44, 45, 49, 60

There is currently a motion pending in Area 15 to post service resumes on their website during elections. They are voting on the motion at their next area meeting. It is the only Area I have reached out to that may potentially present a written service resume for the body to reference prior to or during elections.

I have not yet reached out to, or heard back from, additional Areas, but I am continuing to gather information on how other Areas facilitate their elections.

Due to the length of our election process, I believe that pre-submitted service resumes may be more beneficial and time-efficient than having individuals give verbal resumes during elections.

Russell will reach out to Area 15 to find out what they are doing and what the intent is, and whether an amendment could allow the body to talk with candidates.

Follow-up

Emily GSR/Workshop Chair I agree with the need. But people can say things, or hold service positions, without that telling you much. Is there an opportunity for a question-and-answer with candidates — where they stand on specific Traditions, how they have applied this in their life, whether they have read the service manual — rather than only a list of the positions they have held?
Russell DCM In my experience at the area level there is no opportunity for that. Everything is structured, you give your report, there is no question and answer at all. I have sat in rooms with these people and I do not know who they are. Something like a candidate town hall a month before would be worth asking about.
A member I would not want my information on a website like that.
Summarized Response from Group It would be a service record only — first name, last initial, and what they have done. Not an address, not a phone number.
A member Voting records should be included too. Many districts said they did not want the first 164 pages changed, and the delegate voted with those who wanted the change. A voting record would not have shown that beforehand.
Russell DCM Three-quarters of the Fellowship is supposed to be in favor of a change to the first 164 pages. What was counted was three-quarters of the 140 people in the room.
A member Bill wrote a kill switch into the structure. It is Concept Twelve, the right not to partake — the only way to stop delegates who go their own way is to withhold financial support. That is up to your group; nobody here will tell a group what to do.
A member Have you ever been to a voting session? You sit in a large arena, someone says they want to stand for a position, everyone votes, and you do not know who the person is. You have no chance to ask questions or find out their background.

Group Concerns

A group changed how its meetings are chaired, who may share, and how often, at its last business meeting. Their Intergroup Representative (IGR) has stopped attending and stopped participating but maintains that the position is still theirs and cannot be taken away. The question to the room was how a group handles that. No one was named.

Old Business

None.

New Business

None.

Open Floor

None.