The Better Together Virtual Intergroup Business Meeting

Sunday, August 3, 2025 7:00 PM ET

Chairperson: Russell W Term: 1/2024 - 12/2026 Vice Chairperson: Lori D Term: 1/2023 -

12/2025 Secretary: Catherine P. Term: 1/2024 - 12/2026 Treasurer: Carla C Term: 1/2023 -

12/2025

Business Meeting Agenda

Welcoming: Chairperson Russel W. opened the meeting at 7pm

Attendance – Russell W, Carla C, Lori D, Matthew B

Minutes and Secretary's Report

Catherine P. explained the delay in posting the previous month’s minutes and shared that she

plans to use Google AI, with Matthew’s help, to speed up the process going forward.

Reports from Officers and Delegates

Chair:

Russell noted concerns about meeting shares running over time and will refer this to the

service committees for feedback.

Vice Chair:

Lori reported that the recent service fair had low attendance but did result in a few new

volunteers.

Treasurer:

TREASURER REPORT FOR July 2025

$10,384.39 Retreat Fund

$10,382.74 Operations

NET WORTH: $22,188.26

DONATIONS:

$388.00 Venmo

$100.00 US Bank$15.00 Paypal

STARTING BALANCE: $22,085.90

PAYPAL: 4 Retreat Reg = $855.15

EXPENSES: $502.89

Zoom = ($93.58)

Postage = ($3.30)

iPostal = ($14.99)

iPostal Mailbox= ($14.99)

Postage = ($4.66)

Calendly Renewal = ($121.20)

Signup Genius Annual = ($107.89)

Apple/Calendly App = ($1.00)

Retreat Supplies = ($601.89)

Retreat Hotel Deposit = ($2000)

Retreat Refund = ($370.16)

· The Chase account is fully closed, and Zelle is now in use.

· She proposed catching up on World Service Business Conference funding with a $2,652

contribution.

· World Service: $495 and Virtual Region: $2,324 donations will be made.

· No motion was needed as these were within standard operations.

BTVIG Committee Chair Reports:

Data Tech Matthew B - via Lori D.

Matthew’s updates included:

· Working on a secure online contact list.

· Implementing 2-factor authentication for all committee accounts.

· Emphasis on not resetting passwords independently.

· The team remains available for Zoom and tech support.Contact List Sonya P

Sonya acknowledged committee members facing personal challenges and thanked the

co-hosts keeping things running. She put out a strong call for new volunteers and

emphasized how easy it is to get trained. She also plans to connect with Matthew to

streamline the contact list.

Newsletter - Michelle B

Michelle shared she’s behind due to illness but expects to catch up within a week. She gained a

new committee member from the service fair.

Welcome Committee – Kelly M.

Kelly said the committee is doing well but lost a few newcomer callers. She invited others to

volunteer by phone. Otherwise, everything is stable.

Workshops – Lori D.

Plans are underway for the October Relapse and Recovery workshop. Help is welcome, and the

committee is also supporting retreat planning.

Newcomer Meeting – Jen V.

Jen reported steady newcomer attendance (3–5 per meeting). There's a pending motion to

change the script format for the last week of the month.

Sponsorship Committee

Joannie has been compiling resources in the whatsapp for people to look at.

No Disruptions Annie C.

Annie not present.

Sign up Genius Jen V.

She's working with Matthew on sending SignUpGenius email reminders and plans to monitor

the email frequency to avoid overwhelming recipients.

Facebook Kimmy H/Rena/Lori D/Russell/Jenni R and Rina S are admins

A post requesting personal donations was removed, and a warning was issued. Russell

encouraged members to report any inappropriate posts directly to him via WhatsApp.You cannot find the Facebook group – it is a super secret hidden Facebook group that you need

to be invited to. You need to friend Lori or Russell or any of the admins – she is putting

instructions in the meeting chat on what to do. They do vet people and that is why they keep it

close, that’s the only way to keep it hidden and protect anonymity. If you have a different name

on Facebook let them know because they will not be certain that it is you. There have been bots

recently so they are being extra careful. They err on the side of security because they want to

protect it. Lori adds that if you have shut down your Facebook page and restarted and only have

a very few friends, because otherwise if they see that they will think your page was hacked and

won’t friend you. Lots of interaction there and a good place for recovery.

If you’re not in the Facebook group and you want to be, contact Russ or Lori and they will add

you in.

Virtual Region Delegate and World Service Delegate Maryhelen

Maryhelen reported on a workshop series and relayed a request from World Service for

each intergroup to create a "People Committee" focused on public information and

professional outreach.

A discussion followed:

· Russell suggested adding a call for volunteers in the next newsletter and his chair’s

message.

· Jen proposed combining smaller committees into cross-functional teams to improve

efficiency.

· Carla shared her experience running a people committee in Oklahoma and suggested

increasing public visibility through social media or print materials.

· Maryhelen shared her past involvement with face-to-face outreach and emphasized the

importance of exploring virtual alternatives. She also mentioned the Bylaws Committee is

awaiting final member reviews and will meet soon.

Retreat Update – Russell

Retreat planning is progressing well. Supplies are ordered, most deposits are complete, and

excitement is building. There have been no major surprises.

Russell W.: Okay. So, no ongoing business. Moving into new business now. Let’s talk about

retreat information.

The retreat is going well. We’re getting ready to do the final push to get everything finalized. The

schedule and times are really starting to come together, and I think everybody's getting excited.

A lot of the supplies have already been ordered, and we’re nearly finished with the deposits and

other financial commitments. Everything is coming together nicely.

It’s been exciting doing this for the first time—this is a new venture for us. We’re learning as we

go, but so far, thankfully, no major surprises. Knock on wood. So that’s been a wonderful thing.

Does anyone else have new business to bring forward?New Business:

Maryhelen S-G: Yes, as I briefly mentioned, both World Service and our regional level are now

asking all intergroups to establish a “People” committee—this covers public information and

professional outreach. I’d like to ask the Board what they think about forming such a committee

and whether we might be able to find volunteers for it.

Russell W.: Okay. That sounds doable. How about this—could you write something up for the

Newsletter? We’ll send it to Michelle and I’ll also include it in the “Message from the Chair.

” We’ll

put out a call for volunteers to help organize a “People” committee, and we can also bring it up

during the Afterglow. Sound okay?

Maryhelen S-G: Yeah, that works for me. I’m good with anything that gets thrown at me right

now.

Russell W.: Great. Jen?

Jen V.: Going along with that, I know each committee has a specific purpose, but would it make

sense to consider merging some of them—make them more cross-functional? Like, rather than

separate chairs for each group, maybe one team handles multiple related tasks. It might give

things a better chance of getting done if there's a little more overlap and support.

Russell W.: That's a good point. Let's take a closer look at that during next month’s

pre-business meeting. We can brainstorm a few solutions and see what sticks. Carla?

CarlaC-OK: So I’m actually the People Chair for my local intergroup in Oklahoma. I moved here

from California, where OA is widely known. Here, it’s different—at a recent fair booth, people

asked if we were like Alcoholics Anonymous. A lot of folks just don’t know what OA is.

I looked it up and apparently OA is the third largest anonymous program in the world. That’s

pretty amazing. We get over 100 people at meetings some nights—so we’re doing something

right. But still, there’s room to grow.

Things like a public-facing Facebook page or a stronger web presence could help people find us

more easily. We could also print business cards for members to give to their doctors or

therapists. There's a lot we could do.

Russell W.: Absolutely, and we are doing some of that. For the retreat, we’re handing out

materials that members can give to professionals—doctors, therapists, etc.

—so we’re on the

same page there.

CarlaC-OK: Awesome. Love it.

Russell W.: Maryhelen?

IGOR and PIPO:

Maryhelen S-G: Yes—my experience with the People Committee includes face-to-face

outreach like attending health fairs. Even here in the Tampa/St. Pete area, where OA is fairly

well known, people still ask “What is this?” and how they can refer patients.

One of our most impactful events was at St. Pete Pride, which is one of the biggest events in

Florida. Tons of people came up to our booth—some had heard of OA, others hadn't. That

in-person engagement really made a difference.

Now, with more virtual focus, World and Regional Services are exploring how to adapt that

outreach online. We could look into offering workshops or webinars they’ve developed.Also, Russ—we didn’t cover Bylaws yet.

Russell W.: Right, thank you for catching that. Please go ahead.

ByLaws:

Maryhelen S-G: The Bylaws Committee has reviewed the updated bylaws and we’re waiting on

a few final confirmations from members. Once we have those, we’ll try to schedule a virtual

meeting. So far, I haven’t received any major concerns, but we still need to meet as a group

before finalizing anything.

Russell W.: Got it. Thanks again. Too many committees indeed!

Russell W.: Okay, is there any other new business before we adjourn? Any motions?

Maryhelen S-G: I motion to end today’s meeting.

Russell W.: Thank you, Maryhelen. Motion to adjourn at 7:28 PM Eastern. Do I have a second?

Sonya P.: Second.

Lori D., Chicago: I second the motion.

Russell W.: Thank you. All in favor, please raise your digital hand.

[Hands raised – 9 out of 11 attendees]

Maryhelen makes a motion to adjourn Sonya P. seconds motion passes 9/11.

Close with Serenity prayer. Meeting adjourned.

Note:

*It is this groups conscience as per the BTVIG policy and Bylaws that motions are approved by

group conscience, and to be voted on the month after the motion was presented.

When a motion is to be voted on, the person who made the motion must be present and state it

again without changes.

The Chair will then seek,

3 members to speak in favor “pro”

3 members to speak not in favor “con”

on the motion with one min each to present their views.

When these 6 members have finished presenting their views there is no other discussion to be

taken and the motion is to be voted on.

Meeting to be held virtually via Zoom @ Meeting ID: 558 759 5395 PW: family Better Together Virtual

Intergroup (BTVIG) Business Meeting First Sunday each month (Second if first is a holiday weekend)

Room Opens at 6 PM (CT)

Pending