GENERAL SERVICE

Thus far we have been dealing with the personal services that one member or a few members can offer the newcomer in his search for recovery. The next type of service found in N.A. is General Service. General Service provides the support necessary for groups of N.A. members so that they can act together for the common good. A new idea in service also begins at this level, this is the concept of community service. This kind of service not only helps the addict who still suffers but also makes available, to the society it serves, a workable program of recovery for the drug addict for who other types of help have seemed to be just so much wasted effort. Narcotics Anonymous exists in many areas as an obscure unrecognized drug program, about which little is known. It is a fact that most communities in which active groups exist, acknowledge the often surprising, success of our fellowship and are grateful to have our groups around.

General Service is divided into sections, the area and the region. These are both geographic and functional designations. The area is designed to provide service to individual groups with specific needs and the region is established to serve many groups with common needs. This difference in function is important to keep in mind as we discuss these two levels of service because in many ways they provide very similar services. The group's General Service Representative is active at both these levels and must be aware of the nature and purpose of each, lest we fall back into many of the problems we are trying to overcome.

In 1969, N.A.'s first committee, specifically designed to fill our General Service needs, was established. This group and others like it have contributed greatly to the growth of N.A. However, today it is no longer enough to have a few members getting together to keep their groups going. N.A. has grown and is continuing to grow. The absence of effort towards some necessary functions, and the duplication of efforts towards others seems like an old friend to many of us; a cure causing worse problems than the illness.

A "Designated Area" within N.A. is any local area, community, or town with a significant number of N.A. meetings. We have found it convenient to tink of an area as any community or communities which comprise a single telephone directory. This concept seems adequate for our needs today, however, any set of groups within definable geographic boundaries who need to function together as an area can be a designated area.

The "Designated Region" is a broader geographic unit made up of one or more areas. Normally we consider a region to be any state within the United States or any foreign country. Again, the definition of a region is ultimately one of need, any N.A. areas which can show this need can be considered a designated region. A good example of this, as it exists today, are the Northern and Southern regions of N.A. in California. In the future, it may be necessary to break this down even further. A definition of a region might then be any geographic unit comprising a single telephone area code. We feel it necessary to stress that for the purpose of N.A. the designations of area and region should always be based on specific need rather than resentments, insanity, or personalities.

AREA SERVICE COMMITTEE

An Area Service Committee (ASC) is a committee made up of representatives (GSR's) from all Groups within a designated Area (provided that it is duly listed with N.A.'s World Service Office) which meets monthly for the purpose of serving the specific needs of its member groups.

Our experience has shown that from time to time our groups have problems which they can't handle on their own. In the spirit of our fellowship, we, as individuals seek help from one another to deal with our living problems; just so, groups can find help from other groups. For this reason General Service Committees have been established. However, most of the problems a group faces are of such a nature that another group located many miles away can be of little assistance. Only a nearby group can help and for this reason our General Service structure is made up of both Regional and Area Committees. The Area Service Committees are made up of representatives from all the groups in an area and are designed to support their members groups.

Isolated groups often have a hard time of it because there is no one nearby to whom they can turn. For this reason it is to the groups' benefit to put forth as much effort as possible towards starting other groups in their Area; and, once this is accomplished, establishing a new ASC as soon as possible. Often isolated groups have had to temporarily sit in with another Area's Committee of even act on its own in order to provide the necessary services. Experience has shown us hat this can sometimes be a very rough road. If your group is of this isolated type, it is of the utmost importance that you keep in especially close contact with your World Service Office and other groups even though they are located elsewhere.

Because groups, just like individuals, find it hard to survive alone, one of the most important functions of the ASC is to encourage new membership. This can, of course, be most successfully accomplished by active 12 Step work. For this reason, each ASC should maintain an accurate 12 Step and Sponsor list, put together a notice of its meetings and post this notice in places where people can see it, provide for periodic public service announcements, keep in contact with local authorities and referral agencies, and perhaps arrange for an answering service to take calls which can then be referred to members on the 12th Step list. In our Areas this type of service is provided on a personal basis and our primary aim is to being the newcomer into our fellowship in the hope that he too can benefit from our program.

Another major function of our ASC's is in providing activities which may make cleanliness more attractive to the newcomer, give the member an opportunity to learn how to function drug-free on a social level, and which gives us a chance to gather together to celebrate living. These local activities could include dances, picnics, parties, dinners, breakfasts, round robin meetings, and any other functions which the committee feel would benefit its groups.

The third and most important service which the ASC provided is that of Group support. Whenever a group has specific problem or need which it has not been able to handle on its own, it can come to its Area Committee for help. These problems are almost limitless in scope. However, we have learned that we can get much accomplished when we work together.

The ASC often performs other functions which are of help to the groups. This committee helps new groups get started or gives aid to floundering groups. It might scout as area for potential meeting places; might help a group which is short of funds set up a "work party" system in lieu of rent; might encourage members of other groups to attend meetings which need support; our might keep a stock of literature which the groups can purchase without waiting for mail to get to and from the WSO. The point is that the ASC handles whatever functions are necessary or helpful to its groups.

In order to provide these services the ASC needs the support of its groups, the active participation of its GSR's, certain facilities, and qualified leaders. The group supports its Area Service Committee both financially and emotionally. It takes money to provide the services we have described. It is the groups responsibility to offer this support. When as ASC is formed this need for funds may be minimal. Just enough to pay for a post office box, the rent of a hall once-a-month, and to serve coffee. However, as an Area grows so the financial needs of the committee also grow. In order to provide a full line of services it requires a steady, reliable input of money. Some Areas have tried to provide these funds through their activities or by holding "round-robin" types of special meetings, or by any number of fund raising methods. All these alternate courses of financial support are helpful, however, the bulk of the responsibility still falls on each group.

The active participation of each group representative is essential for a successful ASC. Each GSR must keep his group informed and must represent his group's spiritual conscience in all committee decisions. In addition to this a GSR participates in helping to carry out the ASC's other specific functions. The planning and implementation of activities, the attracting of new members, and the aid given to groups with special problems are services which require much more effort than a monthly meeting. Most Area Service Committees have found that a subcommittee system is necessary to provide these services. A subcommittee service, such as 12 Step work, and may meet or do work as needed during the month between regular ASC meetings. It is the GSR's who make up these subcommittees and do the work.

There are certain facilities which are necessary to the services provided by the ASC. In the beginning the may simply be a permanent mailing address (usually a post office box), a bank account, and a place to hold meetings (often a private house). As the membership and number of groups within an Area increases, or when the groups decide that they need a broader spectrum of services, more facilities are needed. These might include a telephone answering/referral service, a ditto machine, a typewriter and adding machine, and a place to store literature, among others. As an Area grows still more the members may decide to consolidate and improve these facilities by opening and staffing a local office. At all times, however, these facilities must reflect the needs of the Area if they are to be an asset to the groups rather than a burden.

In order to coordinate these services, each ASC elects officers. These officers include a Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Chairman conducts the monthly meetings and is responsible for correspondence; the Vice-Chairman coordinates subcommittee functions; the Secretary keeps an accurate record of what occurs at each meeting; and the Treasurer keeps track of the finances. Their functions and responsibilities are very similar to those of the group officers. These officers are elected yearly from among the active General Service Representatives. They do not normally represent any group and have no vote in the committee.

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