General Service Representatives
The lifeline between the AA groups and General Service Board in New York
GSR Preamble
“We are the General Service Representatives. We are the link in the chain of communication for our groups with the General Service Conference and the World of AA. We realize that the Ultimate Authority is a Loving God as he may express himself in our group conscience. As trusted servants, our job is to bring information to our groups in order that they can reach an informed group conscience.
In passing along this group conscience, we are helping to maintain the unity and strength so vital to our fellowship. Let us therefore, have the patience and tolerance to listen while others share, the courage to speak when we have something to share, and the wisdom to do what is right for our group and AA as a whole.”
The Westside Combined Districts compile a monthly Google doc for GSRs to use at their meetings.
They have graciously agreed to share that info with us. Link below.
How to Make a GSR Report
It’s important to get your group used to hearing a GSR report.
We suggest your report be weekly and brief. Or, at least 2x per month.
Break down the information you get from your monthly District meeting and quarterly Area Assemblies into short bullet points. AND, use the link above for the ‘Ten Topics for GSR Reports.’
Think about your group and what might interest them and report those items to them.
Commonly, you’ll only need to report one or two of these bullet points for each report.
Use your Box 459 newsletter and the SCAAN (Southern California A.A. Newsletter) newsletter for interesting things going on in Area 05, GSO (General Service Office) and AAWS (A.A. World Services).
Often there will be things of interest to your group in these publications.
If there are items that require an informed group conscience, its suggested that you hold a separate business meeting to discuss them and vote. It is best to plan for and announce this business meeting, as well as the topics to be discussed, at least 2-3 weeks ahead of time so members can think about them and plan to attend. This also applies to your conference agenda item presentations. A business meeting may be the perfect place to talk about those items.
For more information, consult your new GSR information PDF or the Service Manual.
Inverted Triangle of Service
The General Service organizational chart is represented by an inverted triangle. (See page S16 in the A.A. Service Manual).
The delegation of authority starts at the top of the inverted triangle with the Groups first, then the Districts, then the Area. The elected Delegate represents the Area at the annual General Service Conference in New York City carrying the Group Conscience of their Area.
At the bottom of the triangle are the two nonprofit corporations:
A.A. WorldServices, Inc. and Grapevine, Inc.
They are overseen by the General Service Board, which is made up of 21 Trustees.
THE TRUSTEES: The General Service Board (see Chapter Nine) is made up of 21 trustees. It meets quarterly, and its actions are reported to the Fellowship through quarterly reports and also in the Final Conference Report. The board’s two operating corporations, A.A. World Services, Inc. and AA Grapevine, Inc., report in the same way (see Chapter Ten).
A.A.W.S. is the corporation that employs G.S.O. personnel, directs G.S.O. services, and is responsible for book and pamphlet pub-lishing. The Grapevine corporate board employs the magazine’s editorial and business staffs and publishes A.A.’s monthly magazines (Grapevine and La Viña) and related materials.
General Service Representative Duties
Attend District Meetings.
Attend Area Assemblies.
Serve as the mail contact for the General Service Office.
Receive the General Service Office bulletin - Box 459 (Information on A.A. activities Worldwide).
Serve as email and mail contact with your District Committee Member (DCM).
Provide up-to-date group information through the area registrar or through the General Service Office directly.
Review new literature, guidelines, bulletins, videos etc. from G.S.O.
Study and learn about the Twelve Traditions and Twelve Concepts and become familiar with the General Service Manual.
Work with your group’s treasurer to develop plans for the support of the General Service Office and your District.
A Regular Contribution Plan and the Birthday Plan encourage the group to support the area, the district committees and local central offices or intergroup. (Read the pamphlet “Self-Support: Where Money and Spirituality Mix”).
Participate in District and area meetings and often help with planning for area get-togethers and conventions.
Make regular reports to your group that require no vote but informs them of what is happening in A.A. General Service.
Bring Information about workshops, conferences and District and Area activities to the group and invite them to participate.
2 Year Commitment.
See Page S26 in the A.A. Service Manual for more details.
Commonly Used Terms
AAWS - A.A. World Services - Manual page s78 - Nine Directors, Two Trustees, two regional trustees, three non trustee directors, one paid staff member and the General Manager of GSO (President of the corporation).
ACM - Area Committee Meeting - Another quarter meeting of all District Committee Members, District Committee Chairpersons and officers to discuss A.A. affairs of the Area.
Area - a geographic division within a state or province made up of Districts. (There are 6 Areas within the state of California and 93 Areas in the United States and Canada. We are Area 05).
Area Assembly - A periodic meeting with all representatives to discuss A.A. affairs of the area. In Area 05 they are presented quarterly. During this assembly there are committee meetings.
Area Committee Member - Members of the Area Committee: District Committee Member, District Committee Chairperson, Area Officers, Past Delegates and their Alternates.
Area and District Officers - Elected officials of the Area and District.
Area Committee Chairperson - Appointed position that conducts business of the respective committee.
Delegate - An A.A. member of the Area Assembly who is elected every other year to represent the Area at the annual General Service Conference in New York.
District - A geographical division of A.A. Groups within the Area (There are 35 Districts in our Area - Area 05. We are District 3.)
DCM - District Committee Member - An experienced GSR elected by the GSR’s of their district to represent the groups of that district at Area Committee Meeting and Assemblies. DCM’s coordinate service activities within their districts. The DCM is the link between the GSR and the Area Delegate to the General Service Office.
DCMC - District Committee Chairperson - The elected chairperson a group of Districts that have combined to perform service functions.
GSC - General Service Conference - An annual meeting of 93 Delegates from Areas in the United States and Canada, Trustees and GSO Representatives, to discuss and vote on approved agenda items.
GSB - General Service Board - A group of 21 Trustees who oversee the two nonprofit corporations. A.A. World Services, Inc. and A.A. Grapevine, Inc.
GSR - General Service Representative - An individual elected by an A.A. group to represent that group in A.A. General Service. A groups link to A.A. as a whole.
GSO - General Service Office in New York - Our A.A. Headquarters in New York City. Provides services to groups in the US and Canada and publishes literature.
Pacific Regional Forum - A regional meeting with GSO and A.A. members.
PRAASA - Pacific Region A.A. Service Assembly - An annual assembly host-ed by one of the 15 areas in the Pacific Region of Alcoholics Anonymous each year and it therefore moves around the region.
SCAAN - Southern California Area Assembly Newsletter.
Trustees - Regional elected representatives to the GSB. There are 8 regions in the U.S. and Canada.
Third Legacy Procedure - The election voting process. See page S21 in the A.A. Service Manual for more details.
Twelve Concepts of World Service - An interpretation of A.A.’s world service structure.
Area 05 Committees
ACCESSIBILITIES
AREA ARCHIVES
AUDIO VISUAL
COOPERATION WITH THE ELDER COMMUNITY
COOPERATION WITH THE PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY (CPC)
CORRECTIONS• FINANCE• GRAPEVINE/LA VINA
GUIDELINES AND POLICIES
SPANISH SPEAKING WOMEN’S CONFERENCE
INTERPRETATION
LITERATURE
NEWSLETTER (SCAAN)
PUBLIC INFORMATION (P.I.)
REGISTRATION
TRANSLATION
TREATMENT FACILITIES
WEBSITE/TECH
SPANISH SPEAKING WOMEN’S WORKSHOP AD-HOC
COOPERATION WITH THE YOUNG COMMUNITY AD-HOC
See Area Guidelines and Policies for details regarding Area 05 Committees, which is located on the Area 05 website.
