Saturday 8am - Technical Information
For the Secretary/Chair to read before leading a phone bridge meeting
As the Secretary/Chair for this meeting you will be given a “leader code” that will give you more features on the key pad than other members.
Here is some information that will help before dialing into the meeting once you have been given the leader code.
1. Dial the phone number and then use the regular pin number followed by the # sign that everyone else uses.
2. There will be a voice prompt after entering the regular pin # that says “IF YOU ARE THE MODERATOR PLEASE PRESS 1.”
3. Follow the prompt and Press 1. The word “moderator” and “leader” mean the same thing.
4. The voice prompt will again say “PLEASE ENTER THE MODERATOR PIN (Leader Code) number FOLLOWED BY THE # SIGN”.
5. You will join the phone meeting muted after entering the leader code and # sign. Press *1 to unmute yourself and then introduce yourself as the Secretary/Chair of the meeting. Press *0 for a menu of all features.
Probably one of the most important services you can give as the Secretary/Chair is to have the highest sound quality on the phone bridge system. This means without background noise and weak sound quality. “Sound” is all we have for the phone meeting to work.
Background noise can be taken as disrespectful or interruptive while members are speaking. As a trusted servant you can guide the meeting without background noise or interruptions to the best of your ability.
Along with your own skills; here are a few tips and a few pieces of information to help you:
1. Technically the phone bridge system is built for “only” one person to be unmuted at a time. This of course would include, You (the Secretary/Chair) as well as the Timekeeper to stay muted by using the *1 keys. The timekeeper only unmutes to say “time”. The Secretary/Chair unmutes a few seconds before the member is done sharing to welcome the next share. You can remind the timekeeper to please stay muted except to say “time”. (Only one line unmuted at a time).
2. As the Secretary/Chair (with the leader code) you are encouraged to use the *5 to clear the line to address the noise. This ensures that members will be able to speak so their share can be heard. Then the member can press the *1 keys to continue sharing without the previous background noise. We call this “Cycling Through”. (Most of the time people forget to mute and don’t know they are not muted). This can be done by saying “Excuse the interruption, I’m going to clear the line” and then press *5 keys. You then could say, “Whoever was sharing please press *1 and begin again,” or “Whoever would now like to share please press *1 to unmute yourself.”
3. Some meetings have multiple readers. The extra unmuted lines will cause the reading to be heard by some but not by other members.
Here are some suggestions.
1. Organize the readers so they know the order they will be reading.
2. Then tell the rest of the readers to mute until a few seconds before it is their turn to read.
3. After each member reads remind them to mute again.
4. (AS A Rule of Thumb), just because you can hear does not mean that other members can. These phones meetings have global coverage. Not all phones have equal sound. Only one line unmuted at a time will keep a clear worldwide phone line for everyone during the meeting.
These 4 technical points can promote safety, warmth and recovery similar to face to face meetings. This was written to assist you to know and understand the phone bridge technical features.
Thank you for taking the time to read these suggestions. If you need help, just ask. Congratulations on doing service and beginning the flow that opens our heart to what it already knows---that we all need each other.
Sincerely,
Your Web Coordinator
The Meeting Format Starts Now
(This is the part you read out loud)
The
Meeting Format:
Saturday, 8 a.m. Sunrise Acceptance Meeting.
We welcome you to the Saturday Sunrise Acceptance Meeting. This meeting is an hour and 15 minutes.
Hi I am __________________ and a grateful member and secretary for this meeting today.
Phone Etiquette
a. Prior to joining the meeting, we ask members to temporarily disable their call waiting by dialing *70 before calling the number to the phone bridge (example *70-1-712-432-8733). If a member does not disable their call waiting, we may hear your conversation or beeping.
b. When you dial in, you will start the conference being muted.
c. Stay muted at all times unless you are sharing. You can un-mute by pressing your *1 keys. You will hear a voice saying “you are now un-muted”. Some phones do not have a long enough beep for the muting and un-muting to happen. You may have to press *1 several times for this function to work. When the voice comes on, you will know that the *1 keys have worked.
d. We ask members to use the *1 keys to mute even if they have a mute function on their individual phones. The *1 keys ensures the greatest sound strength for the entire phone line and provides the greatest service to all members of the phone bridge during the meeting.
e. Please do not use a speaker phone for sharing or we will all hear an echo. Some speaker phones will not mute even when pressing your *1 keys.
f. To hear a menu of all the features--such as volume control or member count--simply press * by itself.
Serenity Prayer: Will all who care to please join me in saying the 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.
Readings:
Read or
ask a volunteer to read the Suggested Al-Anon Welcome.(How Al-Anon
Works pgs. Pg 8-9 in Al-Anon Service Manual 10-11)
“We welcome you to Al-Anon and hope you will find in this fellowship the help
and friendship we have been privileged to enjoy. We who
live or have lived with the problem of alcoholism understand as perhaps few
others can. We, too, were lonely and frustrated, but in Al-Anon/Alateen we
discover that no situation is really hopeless and that it is possible for us to
find contentment, and even happiness, whether the alcoholic is still drinking
or not. We urge you to try our program. It has helped many of us find
solutions that lead to serenity. So much depends on our own attitudes, and as
we learn to place our problem in its true perspective, we find it loses its
power to dominate our thoughts and our lives. The family situation is bound to
improve as we apply the Al-Anon ideas. Without such spiritual help, living
with an alcoholic is too much for most of us. Our thinking becomes distorted
by trying to force solutions, and we become irritable and unreasonable without
knowing it.
The Al-Anon program is based on the Twelve Steps (adapted from Alcoholics
Anonymous), which we try, little by little, one day at a time, to apply to our
lives, along with our slogans and the Serenity Prayer. The loving interchange
of help among members and daily reading of Al-Anon literature thus make us ready
to receive the priceless gift of serenity. Anonymity is an important principle
of the Al-Anon program. Everything that is said here, in the group meeting and
member-to-member, must be held in confidence. Only in this way can we feel
free to say what is in our minds and hearts, for this is how we help one
another in Al-Anon. (Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual pgs.10-11.)
Ask a volunteer to read:
The Preamble to the 12 Steps (Al-Anon/Alateen
Service Manual pg. 14 or the very beginning in the daily readers).
The 12 Steps (pg. 368 in Al-Anon daily readers)
The tradition and concept of the month and also the 12th tradition.
(P. 370 in Al-Anon daily readers or p. 17 in Service Manual
Introductions: Let’s go around the
globe to introduce ourselves and where we are calling from. Hi I’m_____
from_______.
Are there any Newcomers to Al-Anon? If so, please give your first name
and from where you are calling.
(If so please read)
Al-Anon suggests that you try 6 different meetings to decide whether Al-Anon is for you. Each group has its own personality and flavor. Al-Anon is for individuals who are affected by another’s drinking (ie. family, friend). Phone numbers will be given at the end of the meeting. We are glad that you are here!
Announcements:
1. 7th Tradition: Al-Anon is fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions. Although we have no expenses related to this phone bridge, we ask that you send your contributions to WSO and state that it is FROM the Saturday 8 AM Sunrise Acceptance Meeting or make donations at face- to -face meetings. WSO mailing address is:
Al-Anon World Service Office
1600 Corporate Landing Parkway
Virginia Beach VA 23454-5617
2.
Are
there any Al-Anon related announcements?
3.
Are
there any sponsors on the line?
4.
Is
there anyone who can stay after to answer questions and for more fellowship?
5.
Business
meetings are held the 4th Saturday of the month.
Format
for this meeting:
(only read week we are in)
1st week Step meeting (topic is the step of the month)
2nd week Speaker meeting (the speaker provides a topic)
3rd week Tradition meeting (topic is the tradition of the month)
4th week Speaker meeting (the speaker provides topic)
5th week Concept meeting (topic is the concept of the month)
Is
there someone willing to be our spiritual timekeeper?
Speaker qualifies for 15 minutes.
Would _________________, who is the Speaker like to introduce today’s speaker and would the speaker please let our timekeeper know if you would like to have a five minutes warning?
Thank you very much ______________, " Would you like to give out your
phone number?"
Three – Minute Shares
1. Please resist the
desire to cross-talk, which means directly commenting on another person’s
share. Your intention maybe to show support, but directly commenting on
another’s share could be misinterpreted.
2. We ask that
individuals belonging to other anonymous fellowships remain anonymous or any
other affiliations, professions, publications, philosophies, and religions.
Thank you.
3. By group conscious
the chairperson may gently address distractions at any time..
4. We have three-minute
shares. Will the timekeeper please indicate when 3 minutes are up and please
let the timekeeper know you heard them?
5. We are now open for
sharing. Would the timekeeper like to be the first to share?
Closing: It is now 10 minutes after the hour. If there are any phone numbers you want from those who shared or served today, you may request them now. We will give the numbers after we close with the Serenity prayer. This is also when we will read the meeting schedule, if someone requests it.
In closing I would like to say that the opinions expressed here were strictly those of the persons who gave them. Take what you liked and leave the rest. The things you heard were spoken in confidence and should be treated as confidential. Keep them within the walls of this room and the confines of your mind. A few special words to those who haven’t been with us long: Whatever your problems, there are those among us who have had them too. If you try to keep an open mind you will find help. You will come to realize that there is no situation that is too difficult to be bettered and no unhappiness to great to be lessened.
We aren’t perfect. The welcome we give you may not show the warmth that we
have in our hearts for you. After a while, you’ll discover that though you may
not like all of us, you’ll love us in a very special way the same way we
already love you. Talk to each other, reason things out with someone else, but
let there be no gossip or criticism of one another. Instead let the
understanding, love and peace of the program grow in you one day at a time. (How
Al-Anon Works pg. 380, Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual pg.22)
Thank everyone for their service
Serenity Prayer
Meeting is now closed
Could we have the requested phone numbers?
MEETING SCHEDULE
All
Eastern Time Zones, same phone and pin number as you dialed in for this meeting.
8am
Saturday and Sunday
9am
Weekdays (Monday
----- Friday)
11am
Sunday
Noon
Monday ----- Saturday
2pm Sunday
4pm
7 days a week
8pm
7 days a week
10pm
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday,
Friday and Saturday
12 midnight Thursday
Alternative number due to technical difficulties: 218.486.1616, pin 830717#
If anyone would like the long version of the meeting schedule they can
request/access it by email or visiting the website.
Meeting schedule can be accessed on the web at www.alanonphonemeetings.org.
Format changes or requests can be emailed to alanonphonemeetings@yahoo.com.
Any new meetings and format drafts ideas can be brought to the Group Conscious Meeting on the 4th Saturday of the month at 1:30 EST.
Secretary turns the meeting over to the newcomer greeter for approximately 25 minutes after the meetings closes.
Meeting is now Formally closed.
Long
version of the meeting schedule, I can give it at the end of the meeting.
All Eastern Time Zone
8:00am
Sunday, Early morning Rise & Shine Step Study
Saturday Early Morning Speaker Meeting
9:00am
Monday 3 Daily Meditation Books ODAT/Courage to Change/Hope for Today
Tuesday Step 1 How Al-Anon Works/12 and 12/ Paths to Recovery/ 3 Meditation
Books
Wednesday Step 2 How Al-Anon Works/12 and 12/ Paths to Recovery/ 3 Meditation
Books
Thursday Gratitude 3 Meditation Books
Friday Step 3 How Al-Anon Works/12 and 12/ Paths to Recovery/ 3 Meditation
Books
11:00am
Sunday Step/Tradition/Concept/3 Mediations Paths to Recovery
12:00 Noon
Monday Day A Topic from the 3 Meditation Books
Tuesday Al-Anon 12 & 12
Wednesday From Survival to Recovery
Thursday Al-Anon’s 3 meditation Books
Friday Speaker Meeting
Saturday Hope for Today Meditation Book
2:00pm
Sunday Paths to Recovery Book Study
4:00pm
Monday Beginners Meeting 3 Meditation Books/How Al-Anon Works/Beginners
Pamphlet
Tuesday 10th Step How Al-Anon Works/12 and 12/ Paths to Recovery/ 3 Meditation
Books
Wednesday 11th step Guided Mediation Paths to Recovery/ How Al-Anon Works/3 Med
Thursday Slogans How Al-Anon Works/3 Mediation Books
Friday 12th step
Saturday Opening our Hearts
Sunday Transforming our Losses
8:00pm
Monday From Survival to Recovery
Tuesday Topic discussion from 3 meditation books
Wednesday Beginner’s meeting How Al-Anon works
Thursday Step/Tradition/Concept/3 Mediations Paths to Recovery
Friday How Al-Anon Works
Saturday Speaker meeting
Sunday Steps and Traditions How Al-Anon works
10:00pm
Monday 4th Step WRITING Workshop Blue Print for Progress
Thursday 4th Step WRITING Workshop Blue Print for Progress
Saturday Traditions Meeting How Al-Anon Works/Paths to Recovery
12 midnight
Thursday 3 Daily Readers 3 Meditations Books