SOUTHERN DELAWARE INTERGROUP NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2025

Highlighted Step/Tradition/Concept for August

Step 8: “Made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.”

Well holy crap!  We have to make a list of EVERYONE??  Really?  What about the people who have harmed us?  What do we do about them?  Do they just get off scot-free?  This is a task that seems almost insurmountable when first suggested.  We cringe at the thought of having to relive some of those haunting behaviors even in the privacy of our own minds…. but to have to own our part in those situations….AND make amends…now THAT’S a tall order!  But like every other challenge we are faced with in our sober journeys, we realize not only is this necessary, it is indeed doable, and incredibly freeing.  In our drinking careers we got angry, we held grudges, and we were NEVER wrong.  Unless of course the squabble was a result of our drinking…then we may have over groveled to beg forgiveness.  We were either above or below, never equal.  Making amends levels the playing field as we “clear away the wreckage of our past”.  We earn the privilege of looking straight into the eyes of our fellows when the guilt, shame, and remorse is removed.  Because making amends is not just an apology, it is exhibiting a profound change in behavior that surprises even ourselves.  So, get started on that list, check it twice, and work at changing that naughty to nice!  😊

Tradition 8: “Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional, but our service centers may employ special workers.”,

“Alcoholics Anonymous will never have a professional class. We have gained some understanding of the ancient words “Freely ye have received, freely give.” We have discovered that at the point of professionalism, money and spirituality do not mix. Almost no recovery from alcoholism has ever been brought about by the world’s best professionals, whether medical or religious.  We do not decry professionalism in other fields, but we accept the sober fact that it does not work for us. Every time we have tried to professionalize our Twelfth Step, the result has been exactly the same: our single purpose has been defeated.”

— Reprinted from The Twelve and Twelve – page 166.

Concept 8: “The Trustees of the General Service Board act in two primary capacities: (a) With respect to the larger matters of over-all policy and finance, they are the principal planners and administrators. They and their primary committees directly manage these affairs. (b) But with respect to our separately incorporated and constantly active services, the relation of the Trustees is mainly that of full stock ownership and of custodial oversight which they exercise through their ability to elect all directors of these entities.”

— Reprinted from A.A. Service Manual/Twelve Concepts for World Services with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.

Southern Delaware Intergroup Monthly Meeting — Join us on the first Thursday of every month @  6 pm via Zoom. Meeting ID: 987-8810-5001, Passcode: 914711. Our intergroup is a resource for 12-Step work and Alcoholics Anonymous information in Southern Delaware. Please consider volunteering for a service opportunity, which includes most Intergroup committees. For more information about what each Committee does, see our Service Committees page and plan to attend our next intergroup meeting.

WELCOME BACK TO ALL THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ATTENDEES.  SO GRATEFUL FOR YOUR SAFE RETURN!