[Businessmtg] FW: What Is Fully Self-Supporting?

Wed Apr 29 10:43:50 PDT 2026

Hi Jerry,

A couple of questions & comments. . . 

A.  My personal feeling about the WSO are based on facts.  Facts that tell me that WSO is not the wonderful example of Al-Anon recovery and service that so many believe it is.  Facts that tell me that WSO is highly focused on looking good at all costs.  Unfortunately, the fellowship treats this much the same as Al-Anons naturally treat problems at home - they deny them, they hide them,  . . . and the situation just gets worse and worse.  

B.  I'm also a group conscience kind of guy, however I'm not so rigid.  
When I was the Treasurer for NCWSA (Northern California World Service Area Al-Anon), we had a huge problem with our accounting system.  First, it was literally designed to make it impossible for anyone to figure out where the money was going.  Seriously!  The Past Delegate designed it, actually said that out loud in a finance meeting when they couldn't reconcile the books before I took over as Treasurer.  Then, when I established a new system, that same Past Delegate challenged me for doing so, AND challenged ME for the discrepancies between old system and the new system.  My response?  I quoted Concept 3 - the right of decision makes for effective leadership.  He shut up.  The following year, I caught that same Past Delegate submitting expenses for an EXTRA WEEK of travel to Hawaii for him and his wife.  He said they needed a week's rest after the long flight.  Yes, he was a candidate for Trustee on the BoD.  

My bottom line on this is simple.  Good leaders, and good people in general, sometimes find it necessary to break the rules.  It's a legal principle called the "Lesser of two evils principle".  

C.  Earmarked donations.  Hmm.  I'm not sure about the policy on that, but I will say that I recall noticing a line item for that on WSO's Balance Sheet.  

D.  We may have talked about this one-on-one over the years, or you may have noticed it.  When I drafted the Founding Principles for ASP back in early 1996, I intentionally referenced the Al-Anon Traditions and intentionally did not reference the Service Manual.  That was because I knew that (a) the Traditions were solidly cast in concrete, and (b) that the Service Manual was frequently changed at the direction of the BoD and WSO according to the political winds and tides.  One is solidly principle-based, the other is not.  The point is that ASP chose to align itself with the Traditions, and not with the WSO-based Service Manual.  As I said, this was intentional and intended to minimize arguments regarding interpretations of the Service Manual, in favor of interpretations of the Traditions.  

Love and SERENITY,
Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: Businessmtg <businessmtg-bounces+steve=serenitysys.com at asp-afg.org> On Behalf Of logmark--- via Businessmtg
Sent: Wednesday, April 29, 2026 8:52 AM
To: steve at serenitysys.com
Cc: ASP Business <businessmtg at asp-afg.org>
Subject: Re: [Businessmtg] What Is Fully Self-Supporting?

Hi,back, Steve & all,

Totally familiar with your personal feelings about the WSO. We differ somewhat on some of the details, on others not.

Back to the discussion of asking the Business Meeting (BM) to add $400 to our current Prudent Reserve (PR) without having an expense to account for it. To repeat, our current Group Conscience sets our PR at "one year's expenses." We can comply with our existing GC by adding the new bank's fees for being below their minimum balance, upping our PR to $1,780. Still short of their $2,000 requirement. Still paying fees.

The question is: How can we, under our current GC - the only authority we recognise in Al-Anon* - bump our $1,600 PR to $2,000 to satisfy the bank's requirement in the face of our GC which, when we follow it truly, doesn't permit more than $1,780?

Avoiding fees is not an expense.

I'm a Group Conscience kinda guy. Vary from them not a whit. Were this group to decide, by a fully informed GC, to eliminate donations to, say, the WSO I would follow that GC to a "t" even though I'd personally disagree in the extreme. Obedience to the Unenforceable comes to mind. The will of the Group (as expressed in our GC) over my free will, etc..

How to comply is the sticking point. Using our current GC still leaves us short and paying the fees anyway. Is there a legit work-around which doesn't ignore our GC and create a precedence for future arbitrary use of our funds, in this case the $220 to artificially jack up our PR?

~ Someone could donate $220 earmarked for this purpose - nope. Earmarking donations is not permitted.
~ We could artificially up our expenses, or spend another $220 on unnecessaries just to justify upping our PR - Nope, unethical.
~ I suppose someone could loan ASP's PR $220 creating a debt (expense) which would increase our PR to the desired $2,000 in expenses.

Smacks of forcing solutions. The reasonable thing to do is to change our GC on our PR in a way which separates it from expenses - a major change in how we do business. (And, boy, I can't wait for that discussion!)

In service,
Jerry
-
* For our group purposes we have but one authority - a loving God as He expresses Himself in our group conscience. - Tradition 2.
     On Wednesday, April 29, 2026 at 02:25:08 AM EDT, steve--- via Businessmtg <businessmtg at asp-afg.org> wrote:  

 Hi Jerry, 

Yes, it is true that "ASP has, by Group Conscience, set our Prudent Reserve
(PR) amount at 'one year's expenses.' This is the amount which would keep our lights on even if not one penny is donated by members."  It is worth noting that this has been the default Prudent Reserve in Al-Anon for decades.  

It is also worth comparing to WSO's reserves:

              Cash                    $  3,985,675

              Investments      $  9,198,639

              Total reserves    $ 13,184,314

That's in excess of twice the 2024 budgeted expenses.  

Talk about "Quite a security blanket."  It appears that WSO's security blanket far exceeds any reasonable standard known in Al-Anon.  Yet, here we are. . .

1.  Unfortunately, my box of Al-Anon literature has not yet surfaced from our move to Idaho.  Among my stash of recovery literature is my collection of Service Manuals going back to the 80's when I was a GR & DR.  When it does, I have little doubt that I will be able to verify my take that the Service Manual's statement that it is the group's responsibility to support WSO is a recent addition to the Service Manual.  In the meantime, I'll note that WSO's statement about our being responsible to support WSO financially is limited to WSO.  There is a draught of information in the the Service Manual about supporting the Districts, Intergroups, Literature Depots and Areas, etc.  

In fact, WSO went so far as to declare that there was no such thing as an online Al-Anon Information Service, hence ola-is.org was required to change its name under the threat of legal action from WSO.  Interestingly, WSO allowed ola-is.org to continue its website.  Afterall, WSO did nothing to support the electronic meetings in those days.  Would WSO take legal action against ola-is?  Knowing that WSO sued Don R., a personal f2f friend of mine and the founder of CAFG, three times before they prevailed tells me that unlike AA's GSO, WSO is more than willing to go to court to get its way.

2. Let's talk about the Al-Anon App, hosted by WSO.  For starters, the member is required to agree to giving WSO the literary right to use whatever they post in their shares on the Al-Anon app.  So much for "Whom you see here, What you hear here, When You Leave Here, Let it Stay Here <https://alanonla.store/product/table-anonymity-tent-card/> " anonymity table card published by WSO for the face-to-face groups.  

Next is contributions.  The Contribution page on the Al-Anon app states "It is both a privilege and a responsibility for groups and member to ensure that not only their group, but all service levels remain self-supporting.
This keeps Al-Anon free of outside influence that might divert us from our primary purpose of supporting families and friends of alcoholics.  How much would you like to contribute? $5 $10 $20 $50  Custom Amount".  

[pick one, then Buy with G Pay pops up]

The problem??  The Al-Anon App makes no effort for the member to donate to any service arm other than WSO.  

Sure makes it sound like contributing via the App is doing the right thing for Al-Anon, but it is 100% self-serving.

3.  Unlike most groups, whether face-to-face or electronic, WSO is very interested and focused on money.  Groups are quite happy if the rent is paid and they have enough money for pamphlets.  Every group I've ever known sells books at cost, so the group does not benefit financially from the sale of CAL.  OTOH, WSO sells CAL at a significant profit; $ 3,217,630 NET profit in 2024, not counting magazine sales or subscriptions.  Contributions from members and groups were $ 2,916,398 in 2024.  I thought it was interesting that WSO made a net profit of $ 187,468 on the International Convention; amazing considering that my Area was never able to come close to breaking even in our conventions.  Perhaps even more interesting is that WSO had $
1,077,624 in revenue over expenses in 2024, the last year reported on their website.  That's a 15.6% profit.  Not bad for a non-profit.  

4.  Did you know that the "stories" in Al-Anon CAL are not the stories of Al-Anon members?

This is true.  WSO solicits stories from members for upcoming CAL.  But, instead of publishing the stories of real Al-Anons, WSO hires a professional writer to "blend" stories into a fictional story, and then sells the latest book of stories.  FYI, I was there when WSO tried to explain this after WSO informed a young lady member of MY home group that her story would be included in the new "How Al-Anon Works" book coming out in time for the 1995 AA International Convention.  It is so bastardized it is unrecognizable.  

5.  WSO and its Quarterly Appeal.  Every quarter, the AFG Inc. Treasurer sends out a "Quarterly Appeal" letter to every group.  The heading of this letter says:

"Groups are encouraged to read this letter at two successive meetings and pass around the enclosed envelope."

  (I believe WSO used to ask this be read at 3 meetings)

Note: Most groups structure their meeting per the Service Manual:

*    Suggested Opening
*    Reading of the Steps & Traditions
*    Introductions
*    Announcements and Reports
*    The Meeting Program
*    Passing the Basket - "At some point during the program, voluntary contributions are made. . ."

Back to the reading of the Quarterly Appeal letter. . . 

The group's CMA reads the Quarterly Appeal letter during the Announcement phase of the meeting, and then passes the basket around the group for donations to WSO.  This is well before the basket is passed for the group itself.

What is also typical is that many, if not most, members put money in the basket for WSO that they intended to put in the basket for the group later during the 7th Tradition passing of the basket.  In other words, the group
(a) spends several minutes reading the Quarterly Appeal letter, and (b) members then donate funds to WSO that they'd originally intended for the group.  Members that donate their usual amount to the group and WSO are a small minority.  Please do not discount the reality of peer pressure to donate to WSO during this process.

Note that this is designed to occur at over 15% of the Al-Anon meetings.

I've been to many meetings that eventually realized that the meeting was running the red as a direct result of the Quarterly Appeal.  Naturally, this was controversial, but in the end those groups decided to do something to save the group.  Namely, stop spending precious meeting time panhandling for WSO.

6.  Many of us in Al-Anon have issues with how WSO spends its money.  For years, we have noticed how WSO sends staff on [boondoggle] trips around the world.  Or how many knew that WSO has hired several attorneys in the last few years.  It's gotten to where quite a few groups have taken group consciences to (a) not read the Quarterly Appeal letter, (b) not donate to WSO, (c) not elect a GR, etc. because they've witnessed too much that tells them that WSO doesn't care.

Did you know that WSO has hired 3 attorneys in recent years.  The first was assigned to oversee compliance with online meeting's use of CAL.  When the WSC decided that electronic meetings were groups, not merely meetings, that changed our legal access to using CAL in our meetings.  So, she was given a different title & job.  Subsequently, WSO hired two additional lawyers.
Something is wrong with Al-Anon's bureaucracy when it needs a staff of lawyers.  

7.  It is worth noting that the wording of the Service Manual is determined by WSO itself.  Hence such a statement is rather self-serving.  Yes, the general membership has a voice via their Delegates and the World Service Conference, which can decide that a change needs to be made to the Service Manual, however the actual wording is left to WSO.  The devil is in the details.

8.  Voice and Vote.  In the early days, the Service Manual included an image of our upside-down service structure.  See image <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Al-Anon_Alateen_Organization_Structure.p
ng> .  That has been removed from the Service Manual.  Why?  I, and many
others, believe that WSO enjoys the benefits of a fellowship that treats WSO as the center of its universe.  

Lastly, as you know WSO & the BoD refused to recognize ASP or any electronic "meeting" as a legitimate group for over 24 years.  Yet, they insisted right from the get-go that we support them financially.  Finally, the World Service Conference voted to recognize us as groups, however it must be said that COVID provided significant impetus as f2f Al-Anon crashed and burned during COVID.  FYI, it seems that most AA meetings pretty much ignored the govt and met anyway; a reflection of the dedication of their members to their program.  The World Service Conference group conscience was an instruction to WSO to (a) treat the electronic meetings as groups, and (b) to remove differences in the Service Manual between face-to-face meetings and electronic meetings.  Five years later, and I'm still waiting for them to treat us the same, so please forgive me if I'm not enamored with WSO.  

There's a reason - actually many more reasons than I've described here - why many of us in Al-Anon have serious issues with WSO's failure to support Al-Anon groups in general, and the electronic groups in particular.

Love and SERENITY,

Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: Businessmtg <businessmtg-bounces+steve=serenitysys.com at asp-afg.org> On Behalf Of logmark--- via Businessmtg
Sent: Tuesday, April 28, 2026 12:55 PM
To: steve at serenitysys.com
Cc: ASP Business <businessmtg at asp-afg.org>
Subject: [Businessmtg] What Is Fully Self-Supporting?

Biz-Pals,

Some terms have been a bit distorted I believe. ASP has, by Group Conscience, set our Prudent Reserve (PR) amount at "one year's expenses."
This is the amount which would keep our lights on even if not one penny is donated by members. Quite a security blanket.

It also happens that, by Group Conscience, any funds in our account over the set amount of our Prudent Reserve at the end of each quarter, is sent off to support our various service arms.

It has been stated in this meeting that, "It is NOT our responsibility to accumulate a larger excess." 

Our choice of terming funds over our PR amount as "excess" is a bit of a distortion. We use our funds over our PR as our means of fulfilling our responsibilities to become "fully self-supporting." [Tradition 7.]

It IS our responsibility to fund our service arms to the best of our abilities. Any quick look at Al-Anon's 'Service Manual' makes this clear*.
The only way ASP can currently generate funds to fulfill these responsibilities is to regularly receive donations above our set PR level.

They're not "excess funds," they're our service arm support moneys. Because we don't have any from time to time doesn't mean we don't have to be "fully self-supporting." And to declare that "increasing our group's [support] funds is in fact, a violation of the 7th Tradition" is a step way too far.

Now, to the point I've made in past shares, and a possible solution:

Since our PR can only be "one year's expenses" by Group Conscience, adding the new bank's fees to our yearly expenses equates to a new PR of $1,780 which the SC can do administratively. Anything other than that would require a change to our current Group Conscience's language.

Setting our PR at $2,000 without expenses to support it really amounts to hoarding $220. Can't use it; can't give it away.

In service,

Jerry

-

---------

* Service Manual:

~ "The group supports Al-Anon/Alateen at all levels of service by contributing to:

  - Their District, Al-Anon Information Service..., and World Service Area...that serves the group.

  - The World Service Office, which serves all groups. (In keeping with Tradition Seven, support of the World Service Office IS THE RESPONSIBILITY [emphasis added] of all Al-Anon members, groups, and service arms.)"

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To Unsubscribe, go to: http://www.asp-afg.org/mailman/listinfo/asp
The ASP web site with all kinds of info for ASP members is http://asp-afg.org/members/ For assistance with other ASP issues, contact Tammy, the List Administrator of ASP, at la at asp-afg.org