Remote Communities
Remote Communities
The Area 79 Remote Communities Committee
Committee Purpose
To foster unity within the fellowship of Area 79 by creating an awareness of the needs of alcoholics in remote communities. This committee seeks to assist those who are unable to make it to regular face-to-face meetings on a consistent basis. Members may be faced with travel or geographic challenges or may face barriers such as language, cultural considerations and/or anything else that could separate a person who needs A.A. from our lifesaving program of recovery.
Connecting the fellowship of A.A.
- Consideration for Remote Members (pdf, 2 pages)
- Remote Connection Program (pdf, 2 pages)
- Remote Communities Communicator – Newsletter Spring 2025 (pdf, 14 pages)
- Online Intergroup of Alcoholics Anonymous – a resource for virtual meetings
Further Information
History
The history of the Remote Communities Meeting is interesting. The seeds were planted at the 50th Anniversary of A.A. in Toronto in 1985. A handful of Canadian Delegates met to discuss the problem of carrying the message to remote Canadian communities. Not long after, the Canadian Delegates began to meet informally at the Conference. The Alaskan Delegate was invited to join them in 1996. Plans were made and a Northern Remote Communities Meeting was held July 19th through 21st 1996 in Toronto. The 3-day meeting was a success and has continued. By 1998, there was a Remote Communities Meeting taking place prior to the opening of the Conference. The meeting is open to all delegates and by 1999 the Remote Communities Communicator was being produced and distributed. It is a forum for sharing ideas on overcoming barriers of culture, language and geography.
Job Description
Remote Communities Committee Chair
The Remote Communities chair is an appointed position that works with the Area Service Committee (ASC) and assigned District Committee Members (DCMs) to continue work begun by the ad hoc committees in addressing the needs of Area 79’s remote communities.
Duties
- Work in conjunction with the General Service Committee and the standing committee to recommend actions to better serve remote communities.
- With the participation of the Remote Communities Committee, review and update existing Area 79 resources and consider development of additional resources for use in assisting remote communities.
- Be the liaison between remote individuals seeking a connection and districts/individuals wanting to host a remote connection.
- Maintain a list of all Area 79 Remote Connection Program (RCP) meetings and their current contacts.
- Encourage DCMs to keep the Area 79 website list of RCP meetings current.
- Maintain communications to provide support and encouragement for district remote communities chairs and assist other districts with remoteness challenges.
- Update and maintain the inventory of remote communities literature, including the kit, workbook and area- specific literature.
- Be familiar with the BC/Yukon Area 79 website and resources available to assist those in remote communities.
- Be familiar with the “Remote Communicator” reports from 2002 to present.
- Participate in the bimonthly inter-area remote communities teleconference meeting.
- Duties common to all ASC members on the ASC page.
