Monthly Business Meeting Agenda

Pre-Meeting Chair and Officer Agenda

Date Time Location/Method

Dec 7, 2025 6:00 PM Calendar event Virtual Meeting Details:

Business Meeting BTVIG

Meeting ID: 558 759 5395

Passcode: family

The business meeting will follow a working session of the officers and any of the

committee chairs. The meeting is open to everyone but is a working session; discussion

will be with the officers and chairs only. Open questions will be allowed if time permits.

Topics for Discussion:

End of meeting handover to afterglowExplanation of the Officer Terms: As per the By-Laws Section

5 - Term of Office

Office Term Rule Description

A. Board members shall be elected to serve

for a period of two years.

1) On even-numbered years Chair and Secretary shall be elected.

2) On odd-numbered years Vice Chair and Treasurer shall be elected.

B. Newly elected officers Shall begin service at the Intergroup meeting

following their election.

C. Term Limits Board members shall serve no more than two

consecutive terms in the same office.

D. Re-eligibility After an interval of two years, a member may

again be eligible for election to their prior

office.

E. Group Representation Upon election to the board, members shall

cease to be a representative of their group

(IR), and that group shall choose a new IR.

The Better Together Virtual Intergroup Business Meeting

Start Time End Time (or earlier by motion)

Calendar event Calendar event

Position Officer Term

Chairperson Person -

Date Date

Secretary Person -

Date Date

Vice Chairperson Person -

Date DatePosition Officer Term

Treasurer Person -

Date Date

Business Meeting Agenda

Date Time Location/Methodch

Date Calendar event Virtual Meeting Details:

Place

1. Welcoming: (Start recording and AI)

○

Chairperson: Person

2. Opening Prayer:

○

God set aside everything we think we know about our higher power, about

ourselves, about this intergroup, and our own recovery so we may have an

open mind and a new experience with all these things. Please help us see

the truth.

3. Minutes: Reading / Waiver of Reading / Motion to Approve

○

Secretary: Person

4. Reports from Officers:

○

Vice Chairperson: Person

○

Secretary: Person

○

Treasurer: Person

5. BTVIG Committee Chair Reports:

○

Data Tech: Person

○

Host / Co-host: Person

○

○

Zoom Service Training: Person

Member Contact List: Person

○

Newsletter: Person

○

Welcome Committee: Person

○

○

○

○

○

Speaker Seekers: Person

Workshops: Person

Sponsorship Committee: Open

No Disruptions: Person

Person Person Person Person

Facebook: Admins: , , , ,

Person6. BTVIG Meeting Delegates:

○

Newcomer Meeting Rep: Person

○

World Service - Virtual Region Delegate: Person

○

Person Date

World Service Office Delegate: (exp )

7. World Services and or Regional Visitors:

○

Person

8. Ongoing Business to Review:

List of 5 recommendations for discussion from the script meetings.

○

Group Conscience on Motions: When a motion is to be voted on, the Chair

seeks 3 members to speak in favor "pro" and 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 the motion is to be voted on.

9. New Business:

○

Call for any new business.

○

Retreat Information - Update

○

Any member in the zoom BM room can bring up new business, to be

considered in the meeting. Make a motion, ask a question, and begin a

conversation about this BTVIG Intergroup.

10. End Meeting Motion

11. Serenity Prayer:

○

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to

change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

○

Close Meeting

Robert's Rules Hints

Term Definition

Point of Order When someone draws attention to a rule

violation in a meeting of a deliberative

assembly.

Making a Motion Statements that describe a proposed action

or decision. How to introduce: "I move that…

"

followed by a statement of the proposal.Term Definition

Seconding a Motion Required to confirm that more than one

member of the assembly wishes to discuss

the motion. No second, no motion.

Note on Voting:

●

●

●

●

Motions are approved by group conscience and are 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" and 3 members to

speak not in favor "con" on the motion with one minute 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.

A copy of the current BTVIG By-Laws can be found here:

Bylaws Signed 2024_copy.pdf

Better Together Intergroup – Business Meeting Record (Clean Transcript)

Russell W. opened the meeting, noting that three officers were present, establishing a quorum. Officers were asked to vote yay or nay on skipping the previous month’s minutes. Lori D. and Carla agreed, and the motion passed.

Russell explained that he has created an agenda form—attached to the newsletter—to support a smooth transition for the next chair, including all committee chair contact information. The formatting in the newsletter will be improved, but the form is fillable and intended for use next year.

The secretary will now use the AI Companion along with the audio recording to complete the minutes. The AI transcript can be verified via the audio if needed.

Officer Reports

Vice Chair – Lori D., Chicago

Lori reported successful Thanksgiving marathons, with new participants joining from other groups. There were new moderators trying service for the first time. December will include:

• Christmas Day marathon

• Day after Christmas marathon

• New Year’s Day marathon

• Holiday party on December 27 with talent, costumes, and pet dress-ups

• New Year’s Eve dance party / karaoke extravaganza

She encouraged everyone to join.

Russell added the New Year’s Eve Afterglow event would feature both “atrocious” and talented singing.

Treasurer – Carla C.

Carla presented November figures:

• Available funds excluding earmarks: $11,800

• Total funds on hand: $16,600

• 30 donations totaling $732

• 24 donations via Venmo, none via PayPal, 6 via Zelle totaling $400

• Typical expenses: Zoom, postage, iPostal, Calendly

• Cell phone annual plan was paid this month

• Small donations from marathon ($5) and none from newcomer meeting

Chair Report – Russell W.

Russell summarized ongoing administrative improvements:

• Data Tech (Matthew B.) is working on a color-coded calendar and committee scheduling for next year.

• Committees will have designated monthly meeting nights to encourage growth and rotation.

• Google Workspace emails for officers and chairs will be standardized to eliminate use of personal emails.

• Templates for all major service roles will be completed before his chair term ends next November/December.

• He emphasized preparing for emergencies so service can continue smoothly even if someone becomes unavailable.

Committee Reports

Host / Co-Host – Lori D.

• Two new hosts will be trained for next quarter.

• Host/tech host/waiting room request forms have been sent out early due to the busy December schedule.

• The quarterly host/co-host meeting (normally the 4th Wednesday) falls on New Year’s Eve, so it will be combined with this Wednesday’s all-co-host meeting.

• Lori is trying to finalize January scheduling earlier than usual.

• To qualify as a host, members must first complete all co-host duties.

Zoom Service Training – Matthew B.

Russell noted Matthew has been conducting trainings and posting information in chat. Lori added that she or Matthew will train the two upcoming new hosts.

Member Contact List – Sonya P.

• Hosts have been helpful while the contact committee is short-staffed.

• People still struggle with submitting their information correctly.

• The committee is considering returning to “shadow work” (assisting newcomers privately), which historically produced better engagement.

• Sonya confirmed that training with Matthew went well.

• The committee needs at least three new volunteers:

  • One for Thursday

  • One backup for Wednesday

  • One additional helper

• Burnout is an issue due to lack of rotation.

Volunteers were asked to raise hands. Lydia (NZ) volunteered for weekends and will message Sonya privately.

Russell encouraged others to consider service, noting mistakes are normal and welcomed humorously within the group.

Newsletter – Michelle B.

• December newsletter was released.

• Content continues to improve.

• One volunteer has reached out to assist.

• Member submission form for articles (experience, strength, hope—not meeting details) is now available.

Russell encouraged members to submit “For Today–style” reflections for publication.

Welcome Committee – Kelly M.

• New chair beginning January 1: Melvin.

• Kelly has completed two years and is rotating out.

• Service requests for weekly announcements and call-ins will be sent next week.

• Committee is functioning smoothly with solid volunteers.

Speaker Seekers

No chair present.
Russell noted:

• Louis previously chaired; Matthew B. assists via Calendly.

• Members may request the link to suggest speakers.

• January traditionally has many open speaker slots.

Lori agreed and shared the link in chat.

Workshops – Lori D.

• Planning meeting dates for next year.

• Will coordinate with Virtual Region Convention.

• Exploring hosting a service fair (possibly multiple).

• Overall objective: plan the workshop calendar for the upcoming year.

Sponsorship Committee

• Volunteers Diana and John M. will begin work in January.

• December is too busy to start meaningfully.

No Disruptions Committee – Annie

• Strong team in place.

• Recruiting additional members; interested members should message Annie.

• Seven new volunteers will be onboarded mid-December.

• WhatsApp group setup is underway.

Facebook Page

Russell reported:

• Members must be verified; only Better Together participants allowed.

• Bots and impersonators remain an issue.

• Some fake profiles have copied photos and created look-alike accounts.

• Contact Lori or Russell to help members join safely.

Newcomer Meeting – Jen V. and Susan B.

• Newcomer meeting running smoothly.

• Currently doing “12 Days of OA.”

• Strong speakers and many newcomers attending.

Regional Delegate & World Service Updates – Maryhelen

• Must step down from World Service Delegate role due to term limits but can run for Regional Delegate again.

• Virtual Region has a 1-minute video they’d like shown at all meetings; decision required from board.

• Links to the Virtual Region site can be posted in chat or newsletter.

• Assembly went well; minutes pending and will be shared once available.

Russell added:

• Virtual Region Facebook ads will include familiar voices (without breaking anonymity).

Script Committee Recommendations (5 Proposals) – Presented by Lori D.

Members are asked to consider these proposals for one month.
They will be formal motions in January.

1. Early Afterglow Transition

• Afterglow host announces presence at the top of the hour.

• Allows chair, host, tech host, timer, or security to leave early if needed.

• Already happening informally; proposal is to formalize it.

2. Reduce Readings (Tues–Sun)

• Current readings: Preamble, Invitation to You, 12 Steps (with paragraphs).

• Proposal: Keep Preamble + 12 Steps only

• Remove Invitation to You to save time.

• Monday remains unchanged due to special format.

3. Select Next Day’s Chair Before Speaker

• Currently chair is chosen at the end of the meeting, often very late.

• Proposal: Solicit next day’s chair right before the speaker begins.

• Allows service team to send emails earlier and avoids late-night burdens.

4. On-Screen Timer with Silent Alert

• Introduce on-screen countdown visible to all.

• Silent 2-minute alert + spoken “gentle reminder.”

• Intended to reduce over-length shares.

• Tech host still intervenes if someone significantly exceeds time.

5. Modify “Last Person on the List” Language

Current wording: “We will end the meeting after this person’s share.”
Proposed wording:
“We frequently go a few minutes past to allow all shares. I see ___ as the last person on the list right now, so we will be transitioning to Afterglow soon.”

This removes the hard cutoff line.

Additional Notes from Russell

• Security team tracks meeting metrics; average ending time has improved by 4 minutes.

• Meetings run significantly longer on nights when an internal member speaks—something he views positively.

• Speaker typically begins around 19 minutes past the hour.

• Reducing the opening readings may shift expectations for when speakers begin.

• Attendees often join between opening and speaker, so changes must be communicated clearly.

Retreat Announcement

• Next retreat will be in Chicago at the same hotel.
  Dates: October 23–25

• Fundraisers and auctions planned to expand scholarship availability.

New Business

Diana (NJ) expressed appreciation for all service members’ work.

No other new business.

Elections

Vice Chair

• Nominee: Jenean B. (unopposed)

• Approved overwhelmingly by hand vote.

Treasurer

• Nominee: Carla C. (renewing, unopposed)

• Approved overwhelmingly.

Secretary

Nominees:

• Melvin B. – accepted

• Rachel B. – accepted

Poll results:

• Melvin – 17

• Rachel – 15

• Abstain – 1

Result: Melvin B. elected Secretary (1-year term to complete Catherine P.’s term).
Russell thanked Rachel for standing for service.

Regional Delegate

• Nominee: Maryhelen

• Approved by majority.

World Service Delegate

• Cynthia D. nominated; accepted pending eligibility exception.

• No other nominees.

• Approved by majority hand vote.

Maryhelen, Russell, and Cynthia will coordinate next steps for the exception request.

Meeting Close

Motion to adjourn made by Amanda T, seconded by Annie.
Motion passed.
Meeting closed after the Serenity Prayer.

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