Service Work...

[Emimily]

... or how i am trying to complete my triangle.

ok, so here's what it is. i am signed up for a pretty major service commitment, with a few smaller service commitments here and there. i'm excited, because after staying sober for a little over a year, i feel like it's high time i start really giving back to AA. i am a little nervous though... i guess i'd just like to hear anyone else's experience, strength, and hope when it comes to doing service work.

thanks!

[Sugah]

Hi, Emimily...and good for you. Service is what keeps the boat floating.

My suggestion? Just as we have a recovery sponsor, it's good to have a service sponsor, as well. If your sponsor is actively involved in service, she can fill both roles (if she's willing...ask her!). If she's not, find someone with some time in the program who's active in service, and ask her. My service sponsor is the current delegate for our area. I call on her with questions about traditions, concepts or just how I'm personally handling a service responsibility.

Which brings me to the second suggestion. If you don't already have a service manual, get one. They cover all the different positions in the homegroup, district level and area level. They go into some depth with the traditions and the concepts, and if nothing else, they make good bedtime reading. As valuable as the information is, it's pretty dry....so I admit I use mine more as a reference manual than as part of my recovery reading!

Again...congrats on your committment. It's a wonderful thing, and though we must remain humble in serving, it really feels good to give back and watch as our service contributions begin to grow.

Hope that helped.

Peace & Love,
Sugah

[GlassPrisoner]

I just gave a couple of mine to new-comers. I still have 3. And I play taxi a lot

[CarolD]

Good for you...

I never heard of a Service Sponsor...
interesting idea.
Is that in the service manual?
Did I miss that?

Well...anyway..
What I have done is to "train" newer
members in the position I am leaving.


These days, I consider my SR committment
to be my principal AA service work.

The job I most enjoyed was my 3 years
as President of our Alano Club.
I liked seeing the actual improvements
we did on our clubhouse.

The strong point of service work IMO
is there is a miche' for everyone.

[Sugah]

I don't know where the concept of service sponsor comes from, Carol, but it's suggested around these parts. We have many very active districts, so it's not hard to find someone willing to help a newcomer to service learn about the traditions and how they relate to different service positions. I've found mine most valuable when it comes to speaking at non-AA functions, and we've had many very good discussions regarding what's in the pamphlet on the same topic.

Peace & Love,
Sugah

[barb dwyer]

Hi Em -

I couldn't do much volunteering at our Alano club ... the setup there was too much like a bar for my 'fragile' sobriety state. I don't even hang out there all that much because of that and where I am in my recovery and all that rot.

But I *do* a good bit of volunteering for the Home group, and the other groups I frequent. Coffee making, pouring, mopping, straightening chairs, washing ashtrays ... stuff that maybe I see not getting done that I know I've got five or ten to put into straightening out.
And, I'm definitely the 'greeter' most of the time.

When I came into the program years ago the first time, it was a sponsor's thing to get their sponsees doing service stuff.

I notice that's become lax now that I'm back.

[SaTiT]

I never heard of a service sponsor either..
but I guess my grandsponsor was showing me the ropes
anyways.
Heck i didn't even know he was going to be my
grandsponsor.

it's like a truning piont. After i've been a juggernaut.
Doing service working help me to get out of myself
and start rebuilding my life. It also kept me humble.
And having a committment keep me plug into the
program and it gets me to grow even more and
start reading on the traditions and trying to figure
that out.

But most of all it gave me peace. While i didn't
have the keys to the room. I would hang out
with an oldtimer. i mop and clean and stuff like
that. Because as wacked out as i was and the way
I was raised. I was rasied that you have to earn it.
i didn't have much to give to AA at that time.
I hardly even open my mouth or shared.
I bascially just staired at the walls during a meeting.

i just felt peace in that room..just a place to rest my head.

gradually i was ask to go pick up people from a
treament center...I hated that damn treament center.
They denile me treament but i had to go help the people
from there...what da ??

i also had to go pick up donuts every sunday morning too..
there's a story behind that..but I'm taking a 5th.lol

I don't know..it's as if someone or something knew my
everymove..lol After all it is by the grace of god there
go I...