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Conventions and Conferences and Speakers

  • “The ACA Annual Business Conference is held in April and is attended by Group Service Representatives and Intergroup Representatives discussing and voting on fellowship business. That business can include literature development, public information practices, hospitals and institutions meetings, or other topics. The ACA WSO Board of Trustees hosts the annual meeting.”
  • We have ACA Speaker MP3 recordings for download at our shopping site.
  • The Fellowship Text explains the ABC on page 620.
  • For information on the Annual Business Conference (WSO sponsored) and non-WSO sponsored conventions, go to the Events Page
  • “We try to select speakers with an ACA message that reflects the Twelve Steps, the Inner Child and reparenting one’s self with ACA principles.”
  • Attraction means we put information out where individuals seeking it have possible access to it. This may include flyers, brochures, booklets, audio or video presentations, speakers, panels of speakers, web pages, and information booths.
  • The Fellowship Text (p. 572) gives guidance for people who are asked to speak at conferences and Chapter 11 page 389 includes how to host a sponsorship workshop and can be used as a template for other events.
  • Speaker Meeting: The chairperson shares for 10 minutes on a recovery topic. Then one or two ACA speakers share for a total of 20 minutes. This is followed by open sharing among the group members. Panel Discussion: Three or more speakers form a panel, and each shares for 10 to 15 minutes for the first half of the meeting. The remainder of the meeting is allocated to open sharing or question and answers. 
  • From Tradition Five page 514 Each group decision must ultimately answer this question: “Does the decision we are about to make contribute to carrying the ACA message?”
  • Occasionally, ACA members are asked to speak at an ACA meeting or to start off group sharing with extended remarks on a given recovery topic. When asked to speak at a group, convention, or other ACA event, we are expected to share our life story before finding recovery and what has happened since finding recovery. The key to speaking at an ACA meeting involves balancing your remarks with an equal amount of family dysfunctional history , living codependently or addictively as an adult, and living life in recovery with the Twelve Steps, sponsorship, and ACA meeting attendance. Each part is important. By telling all of our story in a balanced manner, we build identification, demonstrate honesty, and offer an example of how the ACA program works in our lives. We tell our story with enough detail to break through the denial of dysfunctional living. We break the “don’t talk” rule and get honest about our parents’ behavior and our own behavior. We do not belittle or shame ourselves when telling our stories, but we must be honest about what happened. We seek identification with other ACA members instead of seeking sympathy or self-pity when telling our story. When we are honest , we find empathy and acceptance among other group members. The same principles of sharing hold true if we are asked to share briefly as the lead share at the beginning of an ACA meeting. The lead share (first speaker) will talk for 10 to 15 minutes on the topic of the meeting. The person offers his or her experience and recovery on the topic. In addition to working the Twelve Steps, we suggest that ACA speakers place some emphasis on attending meetings, getting a sponsor, using the telephone, seeking a Higher Power, giving service, and fellowshipping with others outside of regular meetings. Some ACA speakers will read each of the Twelve Steps, sharing his or her experience with the Step. If you have not worked all of the Steps, you can share on the Steps you have completed and other aspects of recovery. If you have not worked any of the Twelve Steps, we urge you to make a beginning so that your story is balanced with recovery. 
  • We try to select speakers with an ACA message that reflects the Twelve Steps, the Inner Child and reparenting one’s self with ACA principles. 
  • Tradition Ten excerpt
    In meetings we share about any issues affecting our recovery. If others share about outside issues of politics, or state opinions not shared by others in the group, they are only expressing personal opinions. people do have squabbles and do quarrel. Tradition Ten is about ACA as a whole having no opinion on outside issues. The individual has his or her own opinion, but that is not ACA's opinion. We must keep this clear when we speak at meetings or are asked to speak elsewhere. 
  • Referring to 
    In ACA we keep the focus on our lives and our feelings. We do not make reference to the shares of others except as a transition into our own sharing. A very general “what’s been brought up for me is…” or the occasional “thank you for sharing” is fine , but please do not make more detailed references to another person’s share.
  • Event posting Please provide an announcement wording, please include your event's website and email point of contact and if you have a flyer for your event include that. In accordance with Tradition Six we can only post ACA registered meeting sponsored events, please do not request posting of events by other organizations or companies. The posting will be here

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