| Al-Anon Beginners Meeting | |
For the first time on the Internet newcomers to Al-Anon Family Groups can participate in a web-based meeting based on the suggested topics for beginners.
Members of the email discussion group Key to Harmony collected the "shares" of their members -- sharing their personal experience, strength, and hope -- on each of the topics suggested by AFG World Service Office guidelines for Al-Anon beginners meetings.
These shares were then organized on a web page as a Beginners Meeting organized into the six weeks of topics suggested by WSO for face-to-face newcomer meetings and also to emphasize the Al-Anon suggestion that new members try at least six meetings before making up their mind about the program.
Public Outreach
With the meeting organized into topics on a web site, beginners do not have to take six weeks to go through the discussion, but can do so at any time by reading the shares of Key to Harmony members on each topic.Each topic page also offers a list of suggested reading from Conference Approved Literature on the topic and links directly to the literature order page on the AFG web site.
Originally, the Beginners Meeting pages were intended for new Al-Anon members who join the Key to Harmony email group, but with a recently suggestion by WSO that online Al-Anon groups focus on outreach, Key members voted to make the page public in hopes of carrying the Al-Anon message of recovery to the friends and families of alcoholics.
At Least Six Meetings
Here are the topics covered during each "week" of the Al-Anon beginners meeting:
We Would Suggest...
...at least six meetings. The index to the Beginners meeting at Key to Harmony's web site.Week 1
Introduction to the 1st Step, the Three C's, and Conference Approved Literature.Week 2
Continuation of Step One discussion, and introduction of living one day at a time.Week 3
Review of Step One, and introduction to Al-Anon Family Group Slogans.Week 4
Step Two, and the Serenity Prayer including it's three parts; acceptance, change, wisdom.Week 5
Step Three, and understanding ourselves, letting go of fears, resentments and self pity.Week 6
Sponsorship, finding a home group, how a group is structured (Traditions and Group Conscience).
Online Al-Anon
Key to Harmony is one of several groups that conduct topic meetings via email. Members of these groups can "attend" a topic meeting anytime they check their email.
For a complete list of all online Al-Anon meetings listed with WSO, including email and chat meetings, visit the Online Al-Anon Information Service web site.
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