Intergroups
(Click on name to go to page for each Intergroup) |
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GRAND STRAND INTERGROUP
PO Box 2553
Myrtle Beach, SC 29578
(843) 445-7119
Districts: 81 &
82 |
TRI-COUNTY INTERGROUP
3005 W. Montague Avenue
North Charleston, SC 29418
(843) 554-2998
24 hr (843) 723-9633
Districts: 70,
71, 72,
& 73 |
GREATER COLUMBIA INTERGROUP
3014 Devine St., Room 103
Columbia, SC 29201
(803) 254-5301
Districts: 22,
31, 42,
& 43 |
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GREATER GREENVILLE INTERGROUP
PO Box 1002
Greenville, SC 29602
(864) 233-6454
Districts: 7 &
10 |
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LOWCOUNTRY INTERGROUP
PMB 105
20 Towne Drive
Bluffton, SC 29910
(888) 534-0192
Districts: 60 &
61 |
What is an Intergroup or Central Office?
A central office (or intergroup) is an A.A. service office that
involves partnership among groups in a community - just as A.A. groups themselves
are partnerships of individuals. A central office is established to carry out certain
function common to all groups - functions which are best handled by a centralized office
- and it is usually maintained supervised, and supported by these groups in their
general interest. It exists to aid the groups in their common purpose of carrying
the A.A. message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
Excerpted from
"A.A. Guidelines/Central or Intergroup Offices" |
Functions of an Intergroup
The A.A. experience has demonstrated that central offices are helpful,
particularly in populous areas....
Sometimes, however, central office ventures have bogged down in disputes over money,
authority, and like matters - thus becoming less effective in carrying the A.A. message.
It's not always clear why these troubles have come up, but often it's been because the
proper functions of a central office were not clearly explained or understood, or there
was some disregard of the principles in A.A.'s Twelve Traditions. So, the following
suggestions have been made to outline the basic services a central office might offer:
- A.A. Inquiries: By providing an Alcoholics Anonymous listing in the
local telephone directory, the central office may receive inquiries from those
seeking help. They will refer the caller to a nearby A.A. group, where sponsorship
may be arranged, or have a twelfth stepper contact them.
- Office Facilities: The central office can maintain a conveniently
located office in which paid workers and/or volunteers are available to carry
the message of A.A. to the alcoholic.
- Meeting Lists: At regular intervals, the central office may publish
and distribute up-to-date lists of meetings and other information about local A.A.
services.
- Information Exchange: The service office may function as a clearinghouse
for the circulation and exchange of information among all the A.A. groups in the
community....
- Local Committees on Public Information (P.I.) and Cooperation With the
Professional Community (C.P.C.) in cooperation with district and area P.I. and C.P.C.
committees:....
- A.A. in Correctional and Treatment Facilities: The central office can
maintain contact with local groups in correctional facilities and treatment
facilities, offering literature and prerelease A.A. contacts and arranging for A.A.
speakers and visitors to meetings. When there is a correctional or treatment
facility committee for this purpose, the service office may assist it through close
cooperation with local hospitals and prisons....
- Local A.A. Events: An A.A. central office is a logical body to manage
the details of an annual dinner, picnic, or convention, if the participating groups
wish it.
- A.A. Bulletin or Newsletter: The preparation of a publication for
periodic distribution to A.A. groups is often a function of the central office.
- Special Needs Services: Many central offices carry information on groups
that are wheelchair accessible, or signed for deaf members. Some offices have TDD/TTY
equipment for communicating with deaf alcoholics.
Excerpted from "A.A.
Guidelines/Central or Intergroup Offices" |
Communication with Districts
Communication is the key to working together - Central Office or Intergroup
Office and General Service Area Committee or the District Committee and the General
Service Office of A.A. In 1990 the General Service Conference stressed the importance
of communication and recommended that delegates establish and maintain contact with
offices in their areas to share Conference information and assure that central intergroup
offices have a voice in the Fellowship through their existing service structure.
Try to find out what is going on by getting together from time to time
with corresponding committees in your area. It is important to share ideas and discuss
activities so as to avoid duplication of effort. It is not important who does the work
(the General Service Committee or the Central Office or Intergroup Committee in your area)
but that the work gets done - that help is there for the next alcoholic who needs us
and our Fellowship.
Central offices and general service area committees are complementary,
rather than competitive, A.A. operations. Both exist to help insure A.A. unity and to
fulfill A.A.'s primary purpose of carrying the message.
Excerpted from
"A.A. Guidelines/Central or Intergroup Offices" |
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