Aug 29 – 30, 2020 – WSBT Quarterly Minutes Approved – Documents Archive for Cocaine Anonymous

C.A. WORLD SERVICE BOARD OF TRUSTEES SUMMARY MINUTES OF MEETING QUARTERLY BOARD MEETING

Saturday, August 29, 2020-Monday, August 31, 2020

Since this report is a confidential C.A. document, for members only, it may contain members’ full names. This usage to facilitate communication within the fellowship was approved by the 1990 WS Conference. Such confidential use does not, of course, violate in any way our Tradition on anonymity in public communications media (press, radio, TV, etc.).

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WSBT Quarterly 3 Meeting 2020

August 29-31, 2020

Minutes

Originally Scheduled to be held in Los Angeles

Now Via Video Conferencing Using Go To Meeting Platform & Zoom

Platform

Meeting Details Below

WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day One Part 1

Sat, Aug 29, 2020 7:00 AM – 11:00 AM (PDT)

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/410779077

You can also dial in using your phone.

United States: +1 (669) 224-3412

Access Code: 410-779-077

WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day One Part 2

Sat, Aug 29, 2020 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM (PDT)

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/278986021

You can also dial in using your phone.

United States: +1 (312) 757-3121

Access Code: 278-986-021

Topic: WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day Two Part One
Time: Aug 30, 2020 07:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 890 0024 7932
Passcode: 526729
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Meeting ID: 890 0024 7932
Passcode: 526729
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Topic: WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day Two Part Two

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Time: Aug 30, 2020 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

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Meeting ID: 893 5636 0041

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+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

Meeting ID: 893 5636 0041

Passcode: 498967

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Topic: WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day Three Part One

Time: Aug 31, 2020 07:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

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Meeting ID: 813 4891 4310

Passcode: 431120

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+1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)

+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)

+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)

+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)

+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)

Meeting ID: 813 4891 4310

Passcode: 431120

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/keBGKWZ5qG

Topic: WSBT Q3 2020 Quarterly Meeting Day Three Part Two

Time: Aug 31, 2020 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

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Meeting ID: 872 2009 9043

Passcode: 132144

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+1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)

+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)

+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)

+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)

Meeting ID: 872 2009 9043

Passcode: 132144

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdzKUaQbUp

MINUTES

Moment of silence and Serenity Prayer

Personal Sharing (approximately 3-4 minutes each)

Roll call

Yvette Holman – WST
Jason Laurence – TAL1 / MERT
Kevin Murphy – WSOT
Kerry Wesley – SWRT
Sarah Taylor – ERT
Clay Plummer – MWRT / WSBT Assistant Secretary
Tom Phelan – PSRT / WSBT Secretary
George Mooney – ANRT /Acting ASRT WSBT Vice Chair
Wade Staples – PNRT / WSBT Chair
- Vanessa Matthews Jackson – TAL2 (Deceased)
- Chris Redd – ASRT (Deceased)

Reading of the 12 Traditions (Wade)

Read long form of Tradition 9 and discuss (Clay) Clay presented an excellent overview of Tradition Nine referencing material he found on-line from a C.A. Service workshop.

Read Concept 10 and discuss (Tom) Tom provided a long explanation of his understanding of Concept Ten. He stressed the ultimate authority of the groups. Additional, strong and good discussion provided by other trustees around the idea of deviations from the service structure.

Chair’s opening remarks (Wade) He provided an update on DOO process. Protocols are in place at the office for dealing with Covid-19. The office has caught up with the backorders. And 7^th tradition contributions for the year are ahead of expectations.

WSBT officer reports (see attachment A)

Chair (Wade)

Vice-Chair (George)

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Secretary (Tom)

Assistant Secretary (Clay)

Motion: to accept Officer’s reports made and seconded, passed unanimously

Trustee reports (see attachment B)

Atlantic North Regional Trustee (George)

Atlantic South Regional Trustee (George-Acting) —

–George brought up concerns about difficulty in receiving communications from areas, conversation ensued about similar issues in other regions.

Mainland European Regional Trustee (Jason)

Midwest Regional Trustee (Clay)

–Issue of Covid contact tracing was raised by the Greater Missouri area, discussion ensued

Pacific North Regional Trustee (Wade)

Pacific South Regional Trustee (Tom)

Southwest Regional Trustee (Kerry)

European Regional Trustee (Sarah)

Trustee At Large 1 (Jason)

World Service Trustee Report (Yvette)

World Service Office Trustee Report (Kevin)

Motion: to accept trustee reports made and seconded, passed unanimously.

11:00 am PDT break for lunch

12:06 pm PDT resume

WSBT Subcommittee reports – lead trustee listed first (see attachment C)

Finance (Kerry/Jason/All)

–highlighted reduced expenses through August 27, 2020 and increased 7^th tradition revenue versus budget and prior years

Legal (Yvette/Tom)

NewsGram (Clay)

TEC (George/Sarah)

–Discussion ensued about whether regions would be putting forth new slates or electing new ones…regional trustees reported mixed thoughts

Long-term Planning (Jason/All)

–discussion took place regarding role of LTP as a subcommittee

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Orientation (George/All)

International Structure and Development (Sarah, Wade, Kevin, Jason)

–discussed frustration in efforts by the international fellowship to deal with issues such as translations and pamphlet development.

TNC (Yvette, Kerry, Sarah, Jason, Wade)

Trustee Outreach (Wade)

World Service Conference (Kevin/George)

External Communications (Jason/All)

Motion: to accept WSBT Subcommittee reports made and seconded, passed unanimously

Trustee Conference Committee reports–lead trustee listed first (see attachment D)

Conference (Sarah, Yvette)

–discussion took place about virtual conferencing, also questions surrounding SR-21 and flyers in delegate mailings

Public Information (George, Clay)

Hospitals & Institutions (Kevin, Kerry)

Literature, Chips & Formats (Clay, Tom)

–extensive discussion regarding Step Companion guide. Also, discussion about WSOB decision around renaming HFC I and II

—Break August 29, 2020 4:11 pm PDT—

—Meeting resumed August 20, 2020 7:30 am PDT after extensive technical issues

Structure & Bylaws (Jason, Kevin)

Contact S&B to request that pamphlets approved at 2019 Conference be added to the WSM listing

Convention (Yvette, Sarah)

–Discussion about committee member participation throughout the year Archive (Tom, Wade)

–question re Archive item number 2019-09-25, shows item to be with WSOB and WSBT. However, this item is not with WSBT. Tom to touch base with Archive chair to correct this issue.

Unity (Tom, Kerry)

Finance (Kerry, Jason)

Information Technologies (Wade, George)

–brief discussion about the App and its progress. Additional discussion took place with respect to the committee’s relation to LTP projects, especially on-line and hybrid functions.

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Motion : to approve Conference committee reports made and seconded, passed unanimously

CAWS Convention updates (see attachment E)

CAWS 2021 (Kerry)

—Report noted that room night reservations are strong. Committee plans to regroup and hold a general committee gathering this fall.

CAWS 2022 (George)

—questions were raised about status of the Hyatt contract and the path forward. The hotel has provided verbal acknowledgement that the Memorial Day weekend dates will be available in 2022. The ad hoc committee reported that nothing has been finalized. The ad hoc negotiating committee will get a summary of the current contract status from the hotel including credit for deposits made.

CAWS 2023 (George)

–Committee is having challenges getting people to step up for the steering and general committees. Suggestions offered that new committee members might energize the committee. Additionally, the master timeline for conventions is a valuable tool and would be incredibly useful at this point in assisting organizing the event. George will follow up with obtaining a master timeline.

CAWS 2024 (Jason)

—Well-organized and moving forward. Concern expressedabout the preferred hotel. Discussion ensued, with suggestion that MERT raise possibility with the convention steering committee of considering an Amsterdam venue.

Motion: to accept the CAWS convention update reports, moved and seconded; passed unanimously.

PLACE MARKER – BUSINESS ITEMS

MARKER 2006.02.20 Copyright and trademark protection (Vanessa/Yvette) – To remain on agenda for quarterly review

April 24, 2020

Matter No.	Country	Mark	Renewal Due:
59628-0001	Canada	WE’RE HERE AND WE’RE FREE	September 30, 2027
	U.S.	COCAINE ANONYMOUS	September 4, 2020
59628-0003	Canada	COCAINE ANONYMOUS	December 13, 2021
59628-0004	U.S.	CA	December 20, 2028
59628-0005	Canada	CA	June 12, 2022
59628-0006	U.S.	CA HOPE FAITH COURAGE (logo)
59628-0007	Canada	CA HOPE FAITH COURAGE (logo)	August 9, 2021
59628-0008	U.S.	WE’RE HERE AND WE’RE FREE	April 2, 2026
59628-0009	Europe	COCAINE ANONYMOUS	April 1, 2026

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59628-0010	Europe	CA HOPE FAITH COURAGE (logo)	July 26, 2026
59628-0011	Europe	CA	November 15, 2021
59628-0012	South Africa	COCAINE ANONYMOUS	?
59628-0013	South Africa	CA	June 30, 2027
59628-0014	South Africa	CA HOPE FAITH COURAGE (logo)	June 30, 2027

NOTE: From previous online business this quarter: The motion to renew our U.S. Trademark No. 1593568 (U.S. Service Mark Reg. No. 1,593,568) CA Hope, Faith, Courage logo due April 24, 2020 was passed.

Motion: to authorize attorney to proceed with application for renewal of US trademark “Cocaine Anonymous,” matter #59628-0002, made and seconded; passed unanimously.

MARKER 2006.08.13 Signature of annual corporate documents (Wade/All)

To be completed @ at Winter Quarterly

Have we received copies of the Directors and Officers Insurance?

(Important)

Any further action required for signing until 2020 December? NOTE: Can signing of these documents in December 2020 be facilitated via courier/electronic means?

Noted that this item will be dealt with at next quarterly.

MARKER 2009.05.09 Status of WSO – (Yvette/Kevin)

Discussion of status of prospects for new director positions. Operations appear to be normalizing. Covid issues have been addressed with social distance protocols. Some discussion of filling chair position with Randy’s departure. Noted concern with respect to WSO handling of translations.

–Break for lunch 11:00 am PDT–

–resume 12:05 pm PDT—

Developed questions for discussions with Chair, treasurer and DOO.

Question/answer with Michael T – WSOB Treasurer ~30-45 minutes (1:00 PM PDT on Sunday, Aug. 30^th).

Question/answer with Randy M – WSOB Chair ~ 30-45 minutes (2:00 PM PDT on Sunday, Aug. 30^th)

Question/answer with Linda F – DOO ~ 30-45 minutes (3:00 PM PDT on Sunday, Aug. 30^th)

Motion: to invite Linda, as a gift in recognition of her 9 1/2 years of service to C.A., as an honored guest to CAWS 2021 in Austin with

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flight, room and full registration covered, made and seconded, passed unanimously

MARKER – TEC – (George/Sarah)

–discussion took place with respect to virtual interviewing of trustee candidates prior to next year’s conference. Also, brief conversation about provisions in the event next year’s conference is not held for some reason.

MARKER – FINANCIAL OVERVIEW – (Kerry)

–Break August 30, 2020 at 4:05 pm PDT— –Resume August 31, 2020 at 7 :04 am PDT

MARKER – LONG TERM PLANNING – (Jason)

–Reviewed WSBT projects chart and regional empowerment notes for 2019-12 Q4 Long Term Planning discussion notes. This item to be discussed in more depth on WSBT.

Motion: to add to WSBT LTP chart an item to look into moving the office/storage to a different location, made and seconded, passed by simple majority (this item came from New Business section)

Motion: To change the title and purpose of project 2019/22 from ‘Hosting of

World Website’ Purpose: Look at outsourcing of World website, to ‘Future

World Website’ Purpose: To develop new features to the website, made and seconded, passes with one abstention

Motion: based on the reasoning document presented from the fellowship branding project in LTP main committee we would like that project group to move forward with creating branding guidelines, pending approval of the WSOB and S&B conference committee, made and seconded, passes unanimously

MARKER – Trustee to write a NewsGram Article for next issue.

Next Theme will be Spiritual Experience, Clay volunteered.

OLD BUSINESS

Trustee Orientation Documents (Wade) Timeline now extended, but we will continue this work online and then WSBT approval of the revised documents and also review with possibility in mind of making some or all available to the Fellowship as a resource.

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“A Quiet Peace” in French – Current Status (George)

–George reached out to Jay about gaining access to materials necessary for formatting for this project

Discussion with respect to TAL2 position

Motion: to de-activate the TAL2 position, made and seconded. Motion passes unanimously.

–Discussion-in favor: cost, new trustee for MERT, interview process this year will be onerous; no discussion in opposition

Possible referral to S&B to review the WSM for any ambiguities if the WSC is not held annually.

Motion: for WSBT to issue referral to S&B to review the WSM for any ambiguities in the event WSC is not held for any reason, made and seconded, passes unanimously

NEW BUSINESS

Ratification of WSBT

Full board ratified August 31, 2020 by secret poll

Ratification of WSOB

Full board ratified August 31, 2020 by individual director by director vote, secret poll

WSBT Elections – Election of WSBT Officers for 2020/2021
Chair, George M.
Vice-Chair, Jason L.
Secretary, Clay P.
Asst. Secretary, Kerry W.

Approval of 20200719 WSBT Conference Call Minutes

Motion: to approve 20200719 WSBT Conference Call minutes as amended, made and seconded, passed unanimously

Question/answer with WSOB Chair (~30min) see above, completed August 30, 2020

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Question/answer with DOO (~30min) see above, completed August 30, 2020
Question/answer with WSOB Treasurer (~30min) see above, completed August 30, 2020
New Area Petitions Forwarded from WSCC (& Related letter received) Indonesia & Wales

Motion made to provide interim recognition of area petitions from Wales and Indonesia until next conference, made and seconded…motion made to divide the motion, made and seconded, motion to divide fails…motion to provide area recognition passes unanimously

WSCPI Forwarded Item from WSCC (& Related letter received)

Motion: WSBT has reviewed the submission and there is no requirement to approve it as the WSBT recognizes that the release document is already approved, made and seconded, passes unanimously

Possible Referral to S&B regarding possibly outlining business process in absence of a Conference. (Jason)

Motion: to send a referral to S&B- “please investigate and develop processes for carrying out business normally undertaken at conference in the event conference is not held,” made and seconded, passes unanimously

Possible LTP item to look into moving the office/storage to another location (Sarah)–see Long Term Planning marker above
Kevin brought up virtual platforms for conference committee business
Area questionnaire issue

Motion: to add to area questionnaire an item identifying number of groups made and seconded, passes by simple majority

WSBT ad hoc committee– WSC Members Mail Vote Guidelines

(Ad hoc committee will remain in place pending receipt of recommendations from the Conference Committee in order to facilitate interaction and collaboration)

Motion: To allow the Conference Committee to proceed with the mapping process regarding the accreditation process and voting of conference

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members with interaction & referrals submitted to various boards and committees, made and seconded, passes unanimously

Items for next conference call

Regional maps to be included in the World Service Manual (possible referral to WSCS&B).
Conference session timings. Sessions to end at a reasonable time of night. Proposal for 10pm finish. 8am to 10pm being reasonable (possible referral to WSCCC).
Additional language to be added to WSCCC guidelines such that the WSBT review mailings against Concepts and Standing Rules. At the moment the language only states Traditions (possible referral to WSCCC).

CORRESPONDENCE/RESPONSES FROM/TO THE FELLOWSHIP

Q2/01 2020/4/10

Dear WSBT,

I am writing to you in my capacity as chair of the WSCPI. First of all, I would like to thank the board for all that you do for our wonderful fellowship.

Over the last few weeks as we all know the world has been turned upside down due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result of this several members of our committee noticed on the PI loops all over the C.A. World that there seemed to be a need for some form of media release due to the brick and mortar meetings being shuttered and replaced by meetings on online platforms. As a committee we got to work putting one together. We drew on what was already being created by the fellowship, pulled it all together in what we considered a decent document that both fulfills the needs of the fellowships PI servants and sat well with our Traditions.

This document was then put through committee with an online vote. Subsequently, it was given to one of the Trustees assigned to the WSCPI to review. The Trustee came back to myself asking for a small revision and confirmation that the document would not be included in our inventory on pi.ca.org and I assured him it wouldn’t. The document was revised and released to the PI servants to use as a tool to engage with media both in print and television.

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In my view we acted within our remit as the World Service Public Information Committee as is outlined in our statement of purpose.

Since the release of this document there have been questions raised by one of the Board as to the authority of the WSCPI to release such a document without first being approved by the WSBT or the body of the Conference itself. I would like clarification on this from the WSBT.

Having had both conversations with former Trustees and the Conference Chair, Trevor S, who is very much of the mind that we have acted appropriately. Furthermore, I would like to draw your attention to Concept 10 in particular page 45 where it reads “Let us always be sure that there is an abundance of final or ultimate authority to correct or to recognize; but be equally sure that all of our trusted servants have a clearly defined and adequate authority to do their daily work and to discharge their clear responsibilities.” With further reference to Concepts 3, 4 and 9 which outlines why as a committee we should be able to act as we have without being impeded in our actions.

I would also like it noted that our sister fellowship Alcoholics Anonymous have also released a statement to the media about how the landscape of their fellowship has momentarily changed. This having great effect with positive articles appearing in several well known publications.

On a personal note, it is not lost on me as to what is going on in the world at this moment. It is absolutely awful but so is the thought of addicts dying at home isolated without a solution. With that in mind I feel strongly that this release should be made available for use by the fellowship as early as humanly possible.

In love and service,

Stuart J.

WSCPI Chairperson

Approved Response:

Dear Stuart,

Thank you so much for your inquiry. We hope that this response will afford the answers to your questions. Please be assured that we do appreciate the extraordinary work of the World Service Conference Public Information Committee (WSCPIC) and your own dedicated service as the Chair of the committee.

We are aware, as you describe, that the ‘media press release’ was reviewed by the WSCPIC, presumably via the WhatsApp group and that a consensus to approve was reached. We are also aware that the document was provided to the Lead Trustee assigned to the committee for his review. Comments were made

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and the document returned, with the proviso that it would not be uploaded to pi.ca.org (Members Area).

The reason why you were advised not to upload it to the Members Area is because documents or posters etc. are only to be uploaded to that site once they have been approved by Conference. This is in accordance with Standing Rule (SR) 21and the description of the WSCPIC as per our World Service Manual (WSM), excerpts of which are provided here below. To have disseminated, via WhatsApp etc. to PI servants, the non-Conference approved document does appear to be a, well intentioned but knowing disregard of both SR21 and the WSCPIC description. We believe that you have acted against your statement of purpose rather than in accordance with it, as you suggest in your letter. We believe that for a document of this type to be approved by Conference it would probably also be subject to SR14, however this would be for the World Service Conference, Conference Committee’s (WSCCC) ‘Review Committee’ to make a decision on in advance of Conference or indeed for the World Service Conference (WSC) Chair to rule on during Conference.

The World Service Board of Trustees (WSBT) do not ‘police’ the actions of any facet of our Fellowship, however there is some concern as to the affect that this misleading action would have on up and coming trusted servants. It has been brought to our attention that the membership of the WSCPI WhatsApp group, as you explain were polled on this matter, is in the region of seventy and that this is a far greater number than the active members of the WSCPIC, in that they do not attend the committee conference calls. This larger body can therefore be more easily influenced by enthusiasm and may not be fully informed as to procedure. We hope that you will consider these points.

STANDING RULES FOR THE C.A. WORLD SERVICE CONFERENCE

Materials to be distributed to the fellowship by World Service Conference Committees shall be approved on the Conference floor prior to distribution with the exception of financial budgets.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Page 70.

PUBLIC INFORMATION COMMITTEE: http://www.ca.org/service/world-service-conference/wsc-public-information-pi-committee

In all public relations, C.A.’s sole objective is to help the still-suffering addict. Always mindful of the importance of personal anonymity, we believe this can be done by making known to the addict, and to those who may be interested in their problem, our own experience as individuals and as a Fellowship in learning to live without cocaine and all other mind-altering substances.

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We believe that our experience should be made available freely to all who express sincere interest. We believe further that all efforts in this field should always reflect our gratitude for the gift of sobriety and our awareness that many outside C.A. are equally concerned with the serious problem of addiction.

The Public Information Committee shall organize an annual Public Information global poster campaign to encourage the fellowship worldwide to become involved in a weeklong event June 1st through the 7th. Order and customize your local posters from PI.CA.ORG.

The Public Information Conference Committee develops, initiates, and plans the means of communication to the public, which is presented to the Conference for Fellowship approval.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Pages 41 & 42.

Your letter requests clarification on the following questions:

‘Since the release of this document there have been questions raised by one of the Board as to the authority of the WSCPI to release such a document without first being approved by the WSBT or the body of the Conference itself. I would like clarification on this from the WSBT’.

We believe that the above commentary has answered your question as to the ‘authority of the WSCPI’ to release such a document without Conference approval. As to ‘approval’ by the WSBT, this is not under normal circumstances within its purview. The WSBT are therefore, under normal circumstances, not empowered to approve such a document. The review by the Lead Trustee on the WSCPIC is only for Traditions and Concepts violations and is not an approval. We realize that the response to your letter has been delayed and we apologize for that. During the time that has passed the WSBT has been very busy, dealing with matters brought about by the Covid 19 pandemic, as we are sure you will appreciate. Without the sitting of Conference this year we were keen that the business of the Conference Committees continue without any unnecessary impediment. To that end the WSBT passed a motion allowing for WSC committees to submit motions that they consider urgent for interim approval by the WSBT. This is an extraordinary measure, which we did not take lightly and that we believe is in accordance with the Point 8 of the Conference Charter and also Concept 6, excerpts of which have been taken from our WSM and are below. We understand that a copy of that motion, which is directly below, was provided to you by the WSCPIC Lead Trustee.

Irrespective of this it was requested that the Lead Trustee bring both a ‘P.I. Updated Covid-19 Press Release Area Template’ and a ‘P.I. Release Form’ for our attention at the last WSBT quarterly meeting. We can advise that both documents were added to our agenda however neither were reviewed, as will be reflected in our minutes, as they had not been submitted as requested and would in any case probably not be deemed sufficiently urgent to require our interim

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approval. We ask that you please appreciate that the WSBT have no intention of acting as the Conference and it would not be appropriate to do so. To that end our intent was and is to only review the absolute bare minimum of submitted motions that are deemed sufficiently urgent. We make note of this here only by way of an update and such that it may avoid the need for you to submit a further letter requesting clarification on this.

WSBT Motion for Interim Approval of Motions

Motion: That the World Service Board of Trustees (WSBT) review for interim approval urgent World Service Conference (WSC) subcommittee, World Service Office (WSO) and Area petitions in the absence of the WSC sitting in 2020. This to be in accordance with the description of Why, What, How and When as below.

Why: To ensure that work carried out by World Service Conference (WSC) subcommittees, resulting in motions that require urgent attention, can be reviewed, and possibly approved, on an interim basis, until the WSC next sits.

What: These motions are to be only those that the WSC subcommittees consider of an order of urgency that they cannot wait for consideration at the next sitting of Conference, as scheduled for September 2021. It is left to the recognisance of each WSC subcommittee to make a judgement on the urgency of their motions and that this will hopefully significantly reduce the number of motions submitted. Please note, as the WSC Conference Committee is also a subcommittee of the WSC it is not deemed appropriate for that subcommittee to review and decide on the urgency of other subcommittees motions. That will be decided by the WSBT.

How: With the WSO being currently closed the motions are to be submitted directly to the WSC Conference Committee, in the same format and in accordance with the same timeline as if this year’s Conference were proceeding. This will allow the WSC Conference Committee to record the submission of the motions for future tracking. All received motions are then to be forwarded to the WSBT for review and possible approval. Please note, that this approval is on an interim basis and that all motions should also be submitted for the next sitting of Conference for consideration.

When: As previously noted, the motions are to be submitted in accordance with the usual by Standing Rule 14 timeline, as if Conference were commencing on Wednesday 2nd September 2020. Any motion will therefore need to be submitted 90 days before that date (end of May). Please note, it is not intended that motions will be reviewed on an ad-hoc basis throughout the year.

COCAINE ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICE CONFERENCE CHARTER

The World Service Board of Trustees: Composition, Jurisdiction and Responsibilities: The World Service Board of Trustees of Cocaine Anonymous shall be an incorporated trusteeship, composed of addicts and non-addicts whose successors are elected by the Trustee Election Committee, these choices being subject, however, to the approval of the Conference. The World Service

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Board of Trustees is the chief service arm of the Conference and is essentially custodial in its character. (WSC Amendment, 1992)

Except for decisions upon matters of policy, finance, or C.A. Tradition, liable seriously to affect C.A. as a whole, the World Service Board of Trustees has entire freedom of action in the routine conduct of the policy and business affairs of the C.A. service corporations and may name suitable committees and elect Directors to its subsidiary corporate service entities in pursuance of this purpose.

Except in great emergency, neither the World Service Board of Trustees nor any of its related services ought ever to take any action liable greatly to affect C.A. as a whole without first consulting the Conference.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Page 70.

THE TWELVE CONCEPTS

On behalf of C.A. as a whole, our World Service Conference has the principal responsibility for the maintenance of our world services, and it traditionally has the final decision respecting large matters of general policy and finance. But the Conference also recognizes that the chief initiative and the active responsibility in most of these matters should be exercised primarily by the Trustee members of the Conference when they act among themselves as the World Service Board of Cocaine Anonymous.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Page 8.

We note that you have discussed this matter with former Trustees and the current WSC Chair. We have no comment on this or their apparent views. You refer to an excerpt from the Concept 10 essay in the AA World Service Manual and to Concepts 3, 4 & 9. We believe that in accordance with Concept 10, as per our WSM excerpt below, that the service responsibility of the WSCPIC is matched by an equal authority and that authority is clearly defined in the documents previously referred above, SR21 and your own committee description. We do not believe it is within the authority of the WSCPIC to create and disseminate documents to the Fellowship without Conference approval. We further believe that you do have the ability to apply the correct level of decision, participation and leadership, as per the WSM Concept excerpts below, however this level is once again defined by SR21 and your own committee description. It is not for the WSBT to make a judgement on these documents. If you believe that further authority / latitude is required for the WSCPIC to operate effectively then please do submit a referral/s to that end.

THE TWELVE CONCEPTS

As a traditional means of creating and maintaining a clearly defined working relationbetween the Groups, the Conference, the World Service Board of

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Trustees and its service corporation, staffs, and committees, and of thus insuring their effective leadership, it is here suggested that we endow each of these elements of World Service with a traditional “Right of Decision.”

Throughout our Conference structure, we ought to maintain at all responsible levels a traditional “Right of Participation,” taking care that each classification or group of our world servants shall be allowed a voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge.

Good service leaders, together with sound and appropriate methods of choosing them are at all levels indispensable for our future functioning and safety.

Every service responsibility should be matched by an equal service authority — the scope of such authority to be always well defined whether by tradition, by resolution, by specific job description or by appropriate charters and bylaws.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Page 8.

The actions of Alcoholics Anonymous are an outside issue and in accordance with Tradition 10, as per WSM excerpt below. They may inform the WSCPIC workflow but are not for our comment here. We do not believe there is any restriction on local Public Information committees contacting media companies. There is only a restriction on documents being created and disseminated from the Conference and its committees. Maybe the centralized creation of documents during a situation such as a pandemic will never be the most effective way forward. The work of local committees could of course be captured, and Conference approved for future use, possibly with a reasonable degree of adaptability.

THE TWELVE TRADITIONS

Cocaine Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the C.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy.

This is an excerpt from the C.A. World Service Manual 2020 Edition, Page 7.

Like yourself we do appreciate our primary purpose however the protocols we have are here for a reason and are the conscience of our Fellowship. We hope that all your questions have been answered and by providing some feedback on your subsequently submitted documents that this matter is closed out to your satisfaction.

Sincerely,

World Service Board of Trustees, Cocaine Anonymous

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Q2/02 2020/4/26

Cannabis

From:Brian Jack <brian__jack@hotmail.com>

Sent: Sun, Apr 26, 2020 at 5:22 am

To: cawso@ca.org

Hi there what are the updated views on medical cannabis, I use cannabis for chronic pain, CBD also SRO oils for my other treatment. I feel there not enough information out there which is isolating myself within meeting as people think I’m using and not taking my sobriety date seriously

Approved Response:

Brian we would first like to thank you for your correspondence regarding this sensitive topic. There are no updated views regarding the use of medical cannabis, CBD (Cannabidiol) or RSO (Rick Simpson Oil). Cocaine Anonymous has a pamphlet called, “…And All Mind-Altering Substances”, which has a wealth of information surrounding this subject. There are topics in the pamphlet that may give you some insight and answers to your questions. For example: Alcohol and Marijuana, Prescription Drugs, Over-the-Counter and Commonly Used Legal Drugs. Hopefully our literature will give you some clarity between the medical necessity of medications vs getting high on medications.

ILAS,

WSBT

Q2/03 2020/4/26

I hope this message finds you all well. I have attached a letter requesting a written response from the WSBT on behalf of the Colorado Area. Thank you in advance for taking the time to consider our questions and thank you for your continued service to our fellowship.

Warmest Regards,

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Andrew McClure

Colorado Area Chair

cacoareachair@gmail.com

720-495-2007

Dear Cocaine Anonymous World Service Board of Trustees,

Thank you for your continued service and dedication to our fellowship. I am writing this letter after discussing with the Colorado Area Delegates the recent actions detailed in your March 31^st letter regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. These are complicated times, with new challenges which are complex and constantly evolving. This letter is not meant to infer a lack of trust in the WSBT nor to admonish you for the decisions made. Rather, we have prepared some questions which we request to be reviewed by the entire WSBT and addressed in written form. This will help us inform our fellowship about the process by which these decisions were made and who was consulted during the deliberations. We hope this can be a learning experience for all of us and we thank you in advance for taking the time to respond to these questions.

Question 1: For what reason did the WSBT cancel the 2020 Conference? We believe that the World Service Conference is the active voice of the fellowship, where the Ultimate Authority for our fellowship and our world services can express itself through our group conscience. The representative conference has the traditional authority for our services, so eliminating the opportunity for the expression of that voice means the legal authority of the trustees goes unchecked until the 2021 conference. During a global crisis which has dramatically changed the way Cocaine Anonymous functions at every level, cancelling the conference seems extreme. We believe the Conference is a critical part of resolving the issues presented by this crisis. Please explain why the conference was cancelled so we can all understand.

Why were none of our Colorado Area Delegates consulted regarding the cancellation of the Conference?

Was there any discussion about alternative methods for hosting the 2020 Conference via a virtual meeting? Is the WSBT still willing to work with the contributions from our groups ought to remain the primary baseline for operational budgeting in order to align with our principles. Continuing with the CAWS convention and doubling individual contributions appear to be decisions made about finances and not about our principles.

What other alternatives were presented which would engage the fellowship and our service structure? For example: were any Area Delegates or Area Chairs consulted to determine how groups might continue to have meetings online where a statement addressing our 7^th tradition and the current needs of the office could be read, encouraging groups and members to support their local service structure and the CAWS Office?
This decision happened before much time elapsed. What projections, budget estimations and research were used to support this decision? Why could this not be discussed at conference?
Is this a permanent change or is this only for 2020?

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Question 3: Please explain why the 2020 CAWS Convention has been postponed, to be held on the same weekend for which the Conference is normally held, while the Conference itself has been cancelled. Is this purely a financial decision? Are there reasons the CAWS Convention could not be cancelled? Why was the Conference cancelled and not postponed as well if we assume hosting an international convention can be held as soon as September? Is that because the Conference does not produce any revenue to support the overall costs of hosting it?

Question 4: Are the minutes of the WSBT meetings on record? We would like to see the minutes from these meetings. Is that possible?

Question 5: How does the WSBT plan to engage the Area Delegates in decision-making between now and the next Conference? What else can our Area do to support the WSBT and the office?

In conclusion, we as members of Cocaine Anonymous in Colorado want to reiterate how much we respect the gravity of the current situation and the difficulties you all must have faced in coming to your decisions. We are grateful for your continued service and we trust that everyone has the best interests of our fellowship at heart. Our only goal here is to educate ourselves enough to adequately inform our Area of the process by which these conclusions were reached; to be sure we all remain accountable to each other in the spirit of a loving Higher Power as expressed through our group efforts.

In love and service,

Andrew McClure

Area Chair

Cocaine Anonymous of Colorado

720-495-2007

cacoareachair@gmail.com

Approved Response:

Dear Andrew:

We hope this finds you well. Thank you for your Area’s well-considered questions regarding our recent emergency decisions. As you know, we were dealing with unprecedented and fast-moving events; our duty to protect the Fellowship and its members was foremost in our minds. None of the decisions we took were done without deep concern or without extended discussion over several full days of virtual meetings.

While the Board does not normally explain its decisions in detail, we recognize the extraordinary actions taken require extraordinary transparency. To take your questions in order:

For what reason did the WSBT cancel the 2020 Conference?

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The Board consulted with World Service Conference (WSC) Conference Committee members over several weeks, particularly with reference to procedures. We also discussed all of the issues with the World Service Office Board (WSOB) Chair. We reviewed examples of other Fellowships and organizations dealing with the same issues. We also asked experienced members within the Fellowship for information regarding the “force majeure” concept and its current interpretation in California and New York (NY). This informed our decisions both for the Conference and the 2020 and 2021 Conventions. We had continuing reports from Convention committees. No Delegates were consulted, as such, in this matter.

During the last year we had been investigating virtual attendance at the Conference as part of our long-term planning. This investigation concluded that we did not have enough experience to attempt a completely virtual Conference, nor did we feel that it was practical with current technology. We did feel that committee sessions at the Conference could be opened to remote participants, and that live -streaming of the Conference itself might be possible (although we were unsure of the desirability and cost). This would take considerable planning and could not be facilitated within a few months.

The decision regarding Conference 2020 was in part connected to the decision regarding Austin. Since the Convention traditionally helps fund the Conference, and the Convention could not be held in May that meant that the Conference would have to be paid from existing funds. Since the office was closed, most if not all sources of income had dropped to zero. The prudent reserve was already being tapped to pay ongoing expenses (e.g. rent) so there was a financial argument for delaying or cancelling the Conference. It should be noted that even with a full attendance of Delegates, the Conference still costs approximately $25,000 each year. We were also concerned that with Tradition 7 donations not flowing to Areas, their funding of Delegate travel would be compromised. Additionally, most fund-raising events seemed quite difficult due to gathering restrictions.

There were also some practical and legal issues. First, it appeared unlikely that non-essential international travel would resume soon, and that participation in Conference decisions by European and Asian delegates would not be possible. Additionally, North American travel was difficult. The US-Canadian border had been closed (and remains closed) and domestic travel inside the USA is extremely restricted. It seemed likely that the Conference would have limited attendance and would not represent Cocaine Anonymous as a whole. It was unclear to us when any of this would change, and planning for the Conference was impossible. Further, if we were to invoke “force majeure”, notification had to be given to the hotels as soon as we were aware of the issues.

Complicating this was the necessity for the Conference to approve Trustee slates and for the Trustee Election Committee (TEC) to meet behind closed doors, something that could not be guaranteed in a virtual setting. Our decisions

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regarding continuing terms flowed from this, and from the way terms are counted by Conference, not year, in the World Service Manual. We endeavored to find a reasonable means of slate approval, as well as the TEC sitting, and addressed these matters more than once, without finding workable solutions.

The vote to cancel Conference 2020 was unanimous.

Why did the WSBT decide to double the individual contribution limit?

We knew that the WSO Board had decided, before the pandemic, to bring this raise to Conference. We had discussed this informally at the time and agreed. The limit had last been raised at Conference about 15 years ago and was due to be raised again. Our decision was aimed at better ensuring the continuation of operations during a protracted downturn in income than any desire to thwart the “power of the purse.” We did discuss the possibility of undue influence if the limit were raised to a larger amount but are happy that the $10,000 limit does not stray into that sphere.

While donations from groups and areas have historically been a major source of income, contributing over one third of all non-event income in 2019, we expected a severe reduction in group (and probably area) income for the balance of the year. Most of the rest of our income comes from chip and literature sales, which are also zero with the office closed and meetings online. This left the office with little income other than the Convention, which was itself problematical, and direct contributions from members.

While there are not a lot of large individual contributions, there are some and we wished to enable those members so situated to help Cocaine Anonymous World Services at this time. While we do have a prudent reserve that would probably carry us through, we did not want to rely on it entirely.

The increase is temporary until Conference 2021, at which point the limit can be revisited. This motion also passed unanimously.

Please explain why the 2020 CAWS Convention has been postponed, to be held on the same weekend for which the Conference is normally held, while the Conference itself has been cancelled.

Please be aware that we were obliged to provide notice of termination to the Conference hotel as soon as we were aware that force majeure would have to apply. This had to be done independently of discussions with the Austin hotel. The Austin hotel had informed us that they were unlikely to be able to hold the Convention in late May. Subsequently, we were informed that they were willing to reschedule us to September and offered some inducements to do so. September was the earliest we, and the hotel, thought that a convention could be held.

Unlike the Conference, the Convention could be held even though some C.A. members would be unable to travel to attend. We also discussed postponing to

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2021. Complicating this was the NYC convention in 2021, which would also have to reschedule, and we had no idea how the NY hotel would respond. Due to contract terms, we also notified the NY hotel we could not meet the existing contract terms under current conditions, again citing force majeure. In the time since we made these decisions, we have come to the conclusion that a September convention date is also untenable and have contracted with the Austin hotel for the May 2021 dates. We are in discussion with the New York and Atlanta hotels regarding the necessary rescheduling.

Are the minutes of the WSBT meetings on record? We would like to see the minutes from these meetings. Is that possible?

The minutes of our quarterly meeting of March 27- 29, 2020 have not yet been approved. When they are, they will be available in a delegate mailing and/or from your Trustee.

How does the WSBT plan to engage the Area Delegates in decision – making between now and the next Conference? What else can our Area do to support the WSBT and the office?

We primarily intend to work with the various WSC committees and their delegates. Regional Trustees will work with their local delegates as usual. We will have published a statement regarding procedures for urgent committee items that needed to be addressed by Conference 2020. The WSBT and the WSOB, in conjunction with the WSC Finance Subcommittee, will develop and approve a budget for the coming year, which obviously will be different than previous expectations.

We have been assisted by host committee and WSC Convention Subcommittee members in our discussions with the two Convention hotels.

Again, we thank the Colorado Area for bringing forward these questions in such a clear form and we hope that our answers provide the transparency you seek.

Sincerely,

Your World Service Board of Trustees.

Q2/04 2020/4/27

April 4, 2020

Members of the WSBT

I am writing to express my very grave concern over the letter I received regarding the WSBT and their intent to hold a conference amongst themselves to deal with what are clearly conference matters. I was shocked and saddened at this course of action, as in my

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opinion it goes radically against and much over the scope of responsibility as laid out in our World Service Manual.

As a former Trustee, as well as Chair of the Board, I understand the scope of delegated authority granted to the WSBT. I am also very aware of the limitations of that authority. The World Service Manual is, I believe, quite clear on these matters.

Taken from page 54 of the 2020 WSM, the Manual states “All actions by the WSBT are guided by the Traditions”. Therefore, the traditions would be a fantastic stating place to look for guidance. Tradition 2 tells us “For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority — a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.” Also taken from page 54 of the manual, “The WSBT does NOT govern. Its nature is that of custodian only, providing guidance.”

These statements alone tell us quite clearly that the Fellowship has no wish to be governed or ruled over. The manual is also very clear on who exactly are the ones to guide us. Our first 2 Concepts spell out who or what has been granted such authority to lead and make

1.The final responsibility and the ultimate authority for C.A. World Services should always reside in the collective conscience of our whole Fellowship.

2. The C.A. Groups delegate to the World Service Conference the complete authority for the active maintenance of our world services and thereby make the Conference — excepting for any change in the Twelve Traditions — the actual voice and the effective conscience for our whole Fellowship.

I would be remiss if I failed to ask how the Manual could be any clearer on this? The Fellowship has granted ultimate authority to the World Service Conference, and to no one else.

One must also consider other factors as well. Your letter dictates that the Conference Committee is not to be involved in the review of any materials submitted for your consideration. This is not in line with what is laid out in the WSM either. The Committee has traditionally been tasked to compile all submissions, both from committees as well as any individual members, and review them for possible SR 13 or 14 violations. This review has always included the Chair of the WSC. Not only does the actions proposed by the WSBT violate the Conference Committees right and obligation to review all submissions, it is also directly against several duties of the Conference Chairs. Once again, our manual lays out these duties. We can look to page 47 of the WSM to find the following.

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CONFERENCE CHAIRPERSON

Minimum Qualifications:

a. Voting experience at a World Service Conference.

b. 4 years continuous sobriety.

c. Service oriented background.

b. Willingness to serve.

c. A thorough working knowledge of the Twelve Concepts of Service, Twelve Traditions, Conference Charter and Bylaws, Conference Standing Rules, Robert’s Rules of Order and Parliamentary Procedure.

d. Previous leadership/chairperson experience.

Recommended Qualifications:

Wisdom and patience.
Even-tempered and calm.
Willingness to let people be wrong.

Description of Duties:

a. Chair the general sessions of the World Service Conference to include:

Determine the delegate order for discussion.
Preside over all voting.
Announce the outcome of votes.
Read all motions before presentation on the Floor.
Announce the sequence of business to be presented.
Recognize members who are entitled to address the Floor.
Limit or control debate as necessary.
Rule motions out of order when necessary.
Protect the assembly from frivolous motions.
Enforce rules relating to debate, order and decorum.
Expedite business while protecting member’s rights.
Decide all questions of order.
Respond to questions of factual information regarding business.
Call recesses when necessary.
Adjourn the meeting.

b. Serve as a member of the Conference Committee.

c. Accept and review Delegate Credentials, Proxies, and New Area Petitions.

d. Organize and conduct the New Delegate Orientation.

e. Visit other committees to support committee presentation of motions.

f. Prepare and review the Conference agenda.

g. Review and edit the minutes of previous Conferences.

There are several that I would like to point out. Point 2 allows the Conference Chair to preside over all voting. How can this be when all voting will take place behind the closed doors of the WSBT? Point 8 grants the authority for motions to be ruled out of order, yet with no right of review, how can the Conference Chair exercise this obligation? Point 10, as to order? Again, sidestepping the right to rule on order in regards to any violation of our Standing Rules. Point f has tasked the Conference Chair the to prepare the agenda yet is completely overlooked once again. This leads directly into our Standing rules, which

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can only be changed or set aside with a 2/3rds majority vote of the entire Conference. The Manual does not grant, allow, or spell out any other way to deviate from these Rules.

13. Any motion made at the Conference which changes the WSC structure or a WSC committee structure or which has a significant effect upon the World Service Conference, a World Service Committee, the World Service Manual or C.A. as a whole must be referred to the appropriate committee prior to consideration.

14. Any motion that has a significant effect on the World Service Conference including but not limited to WSC bids, literature changes, petitions etc. that is to be reviewed by the Delegates for possible consideration by the Conference must be received by the WSO at least 90 days before the WSC so that all Delegates can receive and review the motions at least 60 days prior to the Conference.

It is clear to me that this course of action by the WSBT violates both above Standing Rules. You are ignoring SR13 by circumventing the Conference Committee, as well as the Conference Chair, and their right to participate and carry out their duties as guaranteed in our 12 Concepts. No such authority has been granted to any entity of our Fellowship to strip members of these rights.

I would also like to point out that with your decision in the March 31 letter from the WSBT to cancel the upcoming WSC, a decision I understand and support, the next applicable SR14 date falls in June of 2021. There is no provision to have an SR14 date this year, as it is tied directly to a conference, not to an imaginary date this year. The suggestion by the WSBT for committees to submit as per SR14 this year is misleading and factually incorrect.

It also raises other questions. What of any members of the fellowship who feel they have important business? Can they too submit for your judgement? Allowing this directly violates the Conference and its rights under Concepts 1 and 2, as well as the Standing Rules. If not, under what authority are you denying these members their rights as granted under these same Concepts and Standing Rules? Your letter also states that this is not intended for motions to be reviewed throughout the year, but are you not setting an extremely dangerous precedent? In the future, can any committee or member who feels their issue is so important that it just cannot wait for the upcoming Conference submit it for an immediate decision by the WSBT? Nowhere in our structure does it allow for this, however it seems clear that this course of action starts us down that path.

I also question the thought process you describe by stating that any approvals granted should also be submitted to the next Conference for consideration. How exactly does one un-ring the bell? Once we have taken any action on something, a motion to rescind or reconsider is not in order. How does the WSBT intend to undo such action should the WSC reject their ruling? If it did not seem totally ridiculous, I would ask if time travel or some form of magic were to be employed? As Bill says in the Big Book, “Our friends thought a lunacy commission should be appointed.” As a rational person, I simply cannot understand this line of thinking.

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The World Services Board of Trustees (WSBT) has the broadest scope of any branch of our service structure. This is taken directly from our WSM on page 54. It is tasked with taking care of our Fellowship by providing custodial oversight. They safeguard our Traditions. They do not and should not perform any acts of governance.

Finally, being aware of the standard operations of the WSBT, I know it would not be prudent to ask by what vote this motion passed. I would like to point out, however, that should more than 1/3^rd of your numbers have rejected this proposal, by mandate of the Conference Charter, on pages 79 and 80, the following course of action is required.

“Whenever, in the judgment of one-third of the Director Trustees present at a meeting, a decision to take any action involves a matter of principal or basic policy and in the judgment of at least one-third of the Director Trustees a delay in arriving at a decision will not adversely affect the Fellowship of Cocaine Anonymous, the matter shall be submitted to a mail vote of Conference Delegates, and if a majority of the Conference Delegates votes against the taking of such action, then the Board of Directors will be expected to refrain from deciding to take such action.”

I thank you for your service to Cocaine Anonymous, and for the consideration taken in this matter. I can only ask that you pause, and consider the spirit behind the last part of our 12^th Concept “it shall never perform any acts of government; and that, like the

Fellowship of Cocaine Anonymous which it serves, the Conference itself will always remain democratic in thought and action.”

There are many questions here that I would like answered. The main one, perhaps is how have the WSBT assumed, and using what specific traditions, concepts, charter provision, bylaw, or other points within the WSM, that they have the authority to act as a conference for one that they themselves cancelled? I eagerly await your response.

In Love & Service,

Trevor Scheible

World Service Conference Chair

Approved Response:

Dear Trevor,

Thank you for your thoughtful expression of concern and the attendant observations included therewith. We very much appreciate your love and service. Please accept this

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response as an effort to clear up confusion and respond to your questions. We hope it is received in the spirit of unity and service.

By way of clarification, since we are unaware of a letter having been sent out indicating the WSBT’s intent to hold a “conference” amongst themselves, we assume you are referring to the motion passed by the WSBT and communicated to C.A. World Service Conference committee chairs on April 27, 2020 describing a procedure for emergency approval of urgent items. Since the WSBT motion we assume you are referring to was approved April 26, 2020, we also assume the date of April 4, 2020 on your letter is an error.

Note-the motion (resulting from on-line business) being referenced is as follows:

Motion: That the World Service Board of Trustees (WSBT) review for interim approval urgent World Service Conference (WSC) subcommittee, World Service Office (WSO) and Area petitions in the absence of the WSC sitting in 2020. This to be in accordance with the description of Why, What, How and When as below.

Why: To ensure that work carried out by World Service Conference (WSC) subcommittees, resulting in motions that require urgent attention, can be reviewed, and possibly approved, on an interim basis, until the WSC next sits.

What: These motions are to be only those that the WSC subcommittees consider of an order of urgency that they cannot wait for consideration at the next sitting of Conference, as scheduled for September 2021. It is left to the recognisance of each WSC subcommittee to make a judgement on the urgency of their motions and that this will hopefully significantly reduce the number of motions submitted. Please note, as the WSC Conference Committee is also a subcommittee of the WSC it is not deemed appropriate for that subcommittee to review and decide on the urgency of other subcommittees motions. That will be decided by the WSBT.

How: With the WSO being currently closed the motions are to be submitted directly to the WSC Conference Committee, in the same format and in accordance with the same timeline as if this year’s Conference were proceeding. This will allow the WSC Conference Committee to record the submission of the motions for future tracking. All received motions are then to be forwarded to the WSBT for review and possible approval. Please note, that this approval is on an interim basis and that all motions should also be submitted for the next sitting of Conference for consideration.

When: As previously noted, the motions are to be submitted in accordance with the usual by Standing Rule 14 timeline, as if Conference were commencing on Wednesday 2nd September 2020. Any motion will therefore need to be submitted

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90 days before that date (end of May). Please note, it is not intended that motions will be reviewed on an ad-hoc basis throughout the year.

For your information, please see SR14 excerpt from P50 of the WSM.

The first point we need to address is your characterization of our actions as “your intent to hold a conference amongst themselves to deal with what are clearly conference matters.” The worldwide Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a situation that is clearly a “great emergency.” We know you are aware of the widespread ramifications it has created throughout our fellowship, not the least being the cancellation of our 2020 C.A. World Service Conference. We have deliberated carefully to not overstep the authority granted this board necessary to carry out its responsibilities.

In your letter you discuss the Conference Rules and procedures and several ways you believe we are violating them. However, although you assert that we are “holding a Conference among ourselves”, we are not doing so and the detailed Conference procedures do not apply. We are acting under the emergency powers clearly outlined in Conference Charter 8:

We agree that the powers of the World Service Board are greatly constrained, outside of times of great emergency. We only have to point to the actions of various governments to show that a “great emergency” exists, and our motion was passed with such an understanding.

We further agree, time permitting, that mail balloting of Conference members should be preferred in matters having great effect on C.A. as a whole, and we may do so if such matters arise.

However, none of the matters we have considered for interim approval have lasting effect – all our hopefully few decisions will sunset at the opening gavel of the next Conference, and some have only minor effect outside of their respective committee. We only wish to consider matters that required the urgent attention of Conference 2020, particularly matters whose lack of Conference consideration prevents needed service work to proceed. Again, any such decisions are on an interim basis.

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Following are the items we feel need to be dealt with as being deemed “urgent.”

The annual conference includes actions from committees necessary for the ongoing operation of World Service office functions. One of these is an annual operating budget. In the absence of a budget, the WSOB lacks the authority to carry out its responsibilities. This is an item we would consider urgent and thus the action we have taken allows for a 2021 budget to be submitted by the WSOB and the Finance Committee, then reviewed for approval; this action falls squarely within the WSBT responsibility of “fiscal oversight.”

Another important item that is approved at the conference is artwork from the Unity committee for Celebrate Around the World events. Approval of this item is necessary for the fellowship to organize this annual celebration. We feel that facilitating this is an important function of the conference especially in light of current events. We are hopeful that spring of 2021 will bring a time when the C.A. fellowship can truly celebrate Unity all around the world.

Finally, Wales and Indonesia have presented petitions to be recognized as Areas, in order to support their growing fellowships. Such recognition will allow them to use the C.A. logo, to gain licensing for reproducing C.A. literature, and to work with WSO on translations. The WSBT has determined that granting temporary recognition until formal recognition can take place at the 2021 is of service to our fellowship.

With respect to your statement: “Your letter dictates that the Conference Committee is not to be involved in the review of any materials submitted for your consideration.” The actual wording of the motion is that the World Service Conference committee is not the body responsible for determining “urgency.” We still believe that it is each committee’s right to decide the urgency of their own work.

In answer to your question regarding the WSBT vote outcome, the referenced motion passed by unanimous vote of the WSBT.

Finally, your last point asks by what authority is the WSBT acting as the conference. We have already addressed this in that our position is that we are not acting as the conference. Instead, our actions as the C.A. World Service Board of Trustees are consistent with specific authorities set forth in Concepts Six, Seven, Eight and Ten and based on the exception outlined in the aforementioned Conference Charter item (8). We firmly believe our actions are guided by the spirit of unity, Tradition One; group conscience, Tradition Two; and our primary purpose, Tradition Five.

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We hope this answers your questions and addresses your concerns.

Respectfully in love and service,

World Service Board of Trustees

Q2/05 2020/4/28

Hello,

My name is Joe M. And I have been attending C.A. meetings down in Phoenix, Arizona for the past year. I have recently moved back to Montana, for the passing of my father, and would like to create the same fellowship up here. We do not have the service structure nor the meetings present and I would like to start that process as soon as possible. Where should I start? What information do you need from me?

Sincerely,

Your Trusted Servant

Approved Response:

This correspondence was addressed personally by Wade S, the PNRT. Support through direct phone call outreach, provision of meeting formats and readings, connecting the member to the Pacific North Regional communications group, and direct attendance support for initial meeting was provided, and Areas within the Region reached out to provide the Starter Kit materials and also offered their support as well.

Q2/06 2020/4/29

Hello a number of concerning issues have come up surrounding xxxxx and the Facebook group he is associated with. The Facebook group is CA Unity 24/7. On Sunday April 26th xxxxx hosted an online event and had Ray G and Happy Howard speak. On the flyer for the event and during the event xxxxx solicited donations through Cash App using the account $CAWS2020. On the CA Unity 24/7 Facebook group xxxxx has made the claim he is the admin for the “Official CA Facebook page” when I and the North American PI chair questioned him on the post he made claims he was the liaison between the World PI Committee and the WSO and that the WSO controlled the page. xxxxx has another event scheduled this Sunday May 3rd at 6:00 pm PDT and Mickey B is listed as the speaker. On the flyer for the event he is again soliciting donations through Cash App. The CA Unity 24/7 Facebook group has over 2,370 members as of April 26 th. Both flyers

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included the C.A. logo. He recorded the event on April 26th and at no time made the attendees aware he was recording them.

xxxxx is from xxxxxxxxxx and is associated with the fellowship there. He admitted to me in a conversation through FB messenger that the CA Unity 24/7 Facebook page is his and he plans to have more events. Additionally, a female member of C.A. reports xxxxx has been listed as a safety risk to women in an AA group she belongs to. xxxxx is not a member of the WSCPI Committee as he claims.

It is my sincere concern that xxxxx is causing division within and damage to Cocaine Anonymous. I am also concerned for the unsuspecting members he is having speak at these online events. I have sent this information to Clayton our Trustee to the WSCPI Committee and was advised to send this information to the Board as well.

Thank you for all of your diligent work and dedication,

Christie N.

Arizona Area Delegate

WSCPI Lead Secretary

Approved Response:

Christie,

Thank you for bringing your concerns to our attention. We get many concerns with the use of social media platforms such as Facebook. Upon further investigation of most of these concerns, they are well intended actions by our members to be of service to the Fellowship. We feel the best way to deal with these issues is to inform and educate our members of the suggested use of social media platforms. Our World Service Conference Information and Technology Committee has provided a document called, “Social Media and Our Guiding Traditions” as a very helpful start. They along with our World Service Board of Trustees and other members of our service structure, continue to provide assistance and guidance in these matters. It will take all of us to help inform and educate while using social media platforms.

It would also be helpful to inform this member of how to join a World Service Conference Committee and the process in which the Committee decides to do events.

Safety is always of the most important concern for our members. We have to be careful as not to denigrate any member’s reputation or take punitive actions against any member. Love and tolerance is our code as any member grows and strives to become a better person.

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Sincerely,

World Service Board of Trustees

Q2/07 2020/5/3

Hiya I’m Frankie the chair for H&I in Scotland. Can someone please give me guidance as to whether or not we are allowed to give hospitals and institutions we provide service in the id and password for the actual groups who are facilitating online meetings through the zoom app. My number is a UK number +447309123244.

Grateful to be of service

Frankie CA Scotland H&I chair

Note: This correspondence response was addressed in person by the European Regional Trustee.

Q2/08 2020/5/6

—–Original Message—–

From: “Mark Sankey” <mark.jajema@gmail.com>

Sent: Wednesday, May 6, 2020 8:10am

To: “wsbt@ca.org” <wsbt@ca.org>

Subject: Re: Fwd: Response to question about membership

Thanks for the reply, unfortunately there is still a little uncertainty.

The two positions I’m speaking of is

“Chair of Meeting” The person that directs the meeting, assigns readings, selects the speaker if a speaker meeting, controls who’s turn it is to share or if reading from the big book when to start and when to stop. As long as the member has sufficient sobriety time, according to group conscience, are they eligible to chair irregardless of their drug of choice. When you say required sobriety qualifications is that time only or does it pertain to drug of choice?

Speaker, invited quest to share their experience on how they recovered from a seemingless hopeless condition of mind and body. As long as the they are a member of CA, has sufficient sobriety time, according to group conscience, are they eligible to speak

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irregardless of their drug of choice. When you say required sobriety qualifications is that time only or does it pertain to drug of choice?

Hopefully this will clear up the uncertainty,

Thanks you very much for your hope so far,

Grateful for my recovery given to me by god through the actions of CA and their members,

Mark S

416-888-6917

Approved Response:

On Tue, May 5, 2020 at 9:45 PM wsbt@ca.org <wsbt@ca.org> wrote:

Dear Mark:

Thank you for that clarification. “Speak” has several meanings and we took it to mean a more general sharing. However, note our further point about membership in general:

“Now, can some members be given privileges, such as sharing, or attending closed meetings, or voting in a Group Conscience that other members are denied? If there is any meaning to the discussion of the 3^rd Tradition in the A.A. “12 & 12” the answer must be a firm “No.” It is perhaps permissible to ask those still under the influence to refrain from sharing, but that is because they are still under the influence, not because they are not members.

Like A.A. concluded decades ago, the bottom line is that a member is a member when they say they are.”

The list above was not meant to be exhaustive. It would also include carrying the message of C.A. as they understand that message, or any position of trust or service within C.A.

In short, there can be no differentiation among those who claim to be C.A. members, in any sense other than required service experience or sobriety qualifications. If an election is held, of course, members may vote as they see fit.

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We hope this answers your questions more directly.

Sincerely,

Your World Service Board of Trustees

Q2/09 2020/5/9

—–Original Message—–

From: “David Watson” <davwat73@icloud.com>

Sent: Saturday, May 9, 2020 7:23am

To: Wsbt@ca.org

Subject: Scottish CA PI committee

Hi my name is David Watson. I am a member of the Scottish CA public information committee.

I was looking for some guidance with sharing CA literature by email to professionals. Ie Doctors, police, treatment centres. We would copy and paste it from the CA website would this be copy right infringement ?

Thanks a trusted servant

Love & fellowship

David Watson

Approved Response:

Dear David:

We are sorry for the delay in replying to your question.

As far as using C.A.’s materials in Public Information outreach, you have several options:

You can quote passages from one or more works without prior permission. This is known as “fair use” if it is done for educational or charity purposes. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_use for details. While “fair use” is a US copyright term we will allow such use worldwide.

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You can send printed copies of literature that have been purchased from the office or printed in your Area under a license or royalty scheme.
You can ask the World Service Office for permission to copy particular works, or to send PDFs.

We hope one of these options is suitable for your needs.

Sincerely,

Your World Service Board of Trustees

Q3/01 2020/5/22

How do I start an online CA meeting for Veterans here in Virginia?

Myles E. Owens Jr, NCPRSS, RPRSS

Social Services Assistant

Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Programs (MHRRTP)

VA Medical Center

100 Emancipation Drive

Hampton, VA 23667

Office: 757-722-9961 Ext 3053

Approved Response:

Dear Myles,

Thank you for contacting us, please do accept our apology for the slow response. As you will appreciate, we are having to deal with a lot of unexpected business at this time.

We understand that you would like start an online Cocaine Anonymous (C.A.) meeting. To do so, however, you would have to be a member of C.A. and it is not clear from your correspondence if that is the case. If you or one of your clients is a member then please go to the Online Service Area (OSA) website as noted below where guidance on setting up an online meeting is provided.

Please note, that our Fellowship does not endorse or lend the C.A. name to any outside facility and we also have no opinions on outside issues. Our primary purpose being that of each C.A. Group carrying its message to the addict that still suffers.

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That being said, there are options that you could pursue and the first of these would be to take advantage of the numerous online meetings that already exist as part of the OSA. If you visit www.ca-online.org under the OSA Meetings drop down menu there are a list of meetings for each day of the week, at different times.

Alternatively, you could contact our Hospitals & Institutions committee, which is set up specifically to assist with meetings in facilities such as yours. The contact details can be found at: https://ca.org/contact-us/contact-a-service-committee/ Hospitals & Institutions usually focus on bringing face to face meetings into institutions, however with the current situation being what it is, they may consider offering an online version.

The only requirement for membership of our Fellowship is a desire to stop using cocaine and all other mind-altering substances and therefore our meetings are open to all who fulfil that criteria. We do however understand that there may be reasons why your clients would feel more comfortable sharing amongst those with similar life experiences. We do have meetings that cater for specific needs, whilst not excluding other C.A. members. The OSA already has a meeting for those members that also must deal with chronic medical conditions.

We have reached out to the OSA and understand that they may consider starting up an online meeting for veterans. This would not be a meeting exclusive to veterans that have a desire to stop using cocaine and all other mind-altering substances. If this option appeals to you then please contact the OSA through their webmaster at: webmaster@ca-online.org

We hope that this response to your enquiry proves helpful and would once again suggest that your first approach be to find existing online meetings to join.

Yours sincerely,

Cocaine Anonymous, World Service Board of Trustees

Q3/02 2020/6/1

To whom it may concern

Greetings! I am a recovered member of CA with long-term sobriety.

I was surprised to watch the PI videos with the tag line “ IS alcohol and drugs taking you to exciting places?”

“IS”?!?? Is the word “drugs” itself not a plural noun? Consequently, the phrase “ alcohol and drugs” is VERY plural! How was this phrase not checked for proper use of the verb?

Should the line not read “ARE ALCOHOL AND DRUGS TAKING YOU TO EXCITING

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PLACES?”

This is the common-sense English I understand and teach.

Am I missing something here about the need for competent communication in the field of PUBLIC INFORMATION? HELLO??

Is there some reasoning which makes the phrase that was chosen “quirky” or “funky” or “modern”, or “hip’ in some way?

I don’t get it !

Hope you’ll explain!

Thank you for your service.

David McMorrow

Oshawa Muckers CA

–This enquiry was forwarded to the WSCPI committee

Q3/3 2020/6/4

Steve from Pittsburgh says. Cocaine anonymous world service needs to put ” A Quiet Peace” on CA.org on a daily basis to help its membership and to promote sales of the book also I think it’s a fantastic book and don’t know why the membership can’t access at least a daily reading. Don’t you agree?.

Stephen C Cush Sr

–This enquiry was forwarded to the WSOB

Q3/04 2020/6/23

From: Jacqueline Carey [mailto:jcarey@careylegal.org]
Sent: Tuesday, April 7, 2020 8:24 AM
To: cawso@ca.org
Subject: Bequest

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Good Morning,

I have a client that wishes to leave a charitable bequest to “Cocaine Anonymous”. Can you please give me guidance on the corporate name and address? Perhaps you can forward this email to your legal counsel.

Thank you for your assistance.

Best,

—

Jacqueline Carey

ATTORNEY AT LAW

tel (800) 541-0635 fax (866) 370-5750

200 Park Ave., Suite 1700, New York, NY 10166

Dear Ms. Carey:

The corporate name is “Cocaine Anonymous World Service Office, Inc” a California non-profit. Our mailing address is

CAWSO

21720 S. Wilmington Ave., Ste. 304

Long Beach, CA 90810-1641 USA

https://ca.org

We have an annual limit on donations from any C.A. member of $10,000 and at this time the same limit applies to bequests. Our bylaws prevent us from accepting donations from persons who are not themselves C.A. members, therefore bequests would have to be from the estate of a C.A. member.

Sincerely,

CAWS Board of Trustees

Q3/5 2020/6/

Tuesday, 9 Jun. 2020

Greetings WSBT,

During out last Conference Committee call, the following motion was made, seconded and passed with substantial unanimity:

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Motion is to censure the WSBT for a gross violation of the conference committee’s rights.

In addition, the following questions were asked by a few of our members and requested that our trustee seek a timely response from the rest of the members of the WSBT:

1. ask the WSBT for its interpretation (not make a ruling) of this process with regards the right of participation if they choose to go forward with what they’re planning on doing? and

2. how is the WSBT are going to deal with a motion to censure as an acting conference of a board that’s dealing with urgent conference business? And

Unrelated to the motion, the following statement and related questions were asked:

1. We appreciate the invitation of extending the invite to join that subcommittee in LTP concerning virtual meetings; however, we would like some clarification.

a. If the LTP committee is talking about conference, do the LTP and the WSBT agree with and support the statement of purpose of the conference committee in the world service manual? and

b. Do they agree that this means that this (conference) committee is to do that sort of planning and it’s our job as outlined in the world service manual and that it is not the job of the LTP?

We, as a committee, would appreciate written timely responses to these questions.

Jessi Garza

WSC Conference Committee Chair

Approved Response:

Dear Jessi and WSC Conference Committee members,

We are dismayed to receive your letter regarding censure, as we believe that you already understand that we are not “holding a Conference among ourselves.” We hope that further explanation will allow you to reconsider your decision.

The first point, which we made recently to the Conference Chair (letter attached), is that we are not “holding a Conference among ourselves”, nor did we ever plan to do so. We simply requested that matters that were deemed urgent by the various conference committees and which had been submitted prior to the May 30^th SR14 deadline, be brought to our attention for possible interim approval. These would be limited to items that would cause a serious disruption in program services should they not be attended to. These would sunset at the opening gavel of the next Conference. It was our position that placing the Conference Committee as gatekeeper of these requests would interfere with other committees’ Right of Participation. Since there is no SR14 mailing this year, we do not see the impact on the Right of Participation of the Conference Committee (or its review committee).

As it happened, no committee brought such a matter to our attention and the window has now closed. Due to the Office being closed the Finance Committee were precluded from

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meeting the submission deadline for the budget and therefore we will review this upon receipt.

The only two items that we have received have been New Area petitions, and we agree that these are indeed subject to Conference Committee review. We await this review before we proceed.

The WSBT has no intention of responding to the censure motion as such, as (again) we are not “holding a Conference among ourselves.” The committee, or any member, could bring such a motion at Conference 2021, should it seem necessary.

On the topic of the LTP subcommittee investigating a virtual Conference, we are not actually planning a virtual conference. This process started last year, as the result of members of the Fellowship asking about virtual attendance at the Conference during the open LTP session in Sweden. The Covid-19 crisis gave the process a priority and expanded its scope.

In the present situation, we are investigating what other fellowships have done in this emergency, noting the cost, logistics and technical abilities and support required. We feel this is prudent as there is no guarantee that we will be allowed to hold Conference 2021 face-to-face. This may result in a referral from the WSBT to your committee. We recognize, in accordance with item (e) of your statement of purpose, that the development of policies and procedures for the Conference is the duty of the Conference Committee. We believe that, should a virtual Conference become necessary, that the Conference Committee, the Finance Committee, the WSO and the WSBT would come together to accomplish this necessary task. We hope to have laid the groundwork but have no interest in taking over the process.

Yours sincerely,

World Service Board of Trustees

Q3/6 2020/7/15

——– Original message ——–

From: kevin h <wheels4me@hotmail.com>

Date: 15/07/2020 05:26 (GMT+00:00)

To: tal1@ca.org

Subject: RE: [tiasbiz] Fro OSA

Hi Jason,

My name is Kevin and I a cocaine addict, and a member of the email meeting There is a solution group.

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I recently joined another 12-step program by email. All of their pamphlets are only available in print version, not e-versions.

I am writing to let you know how much I appreciate CA’s approach to putting e-versions of its pamphlets on the web. It is a huge help and I have read every online pamphlet.

Love & service,

Kevin

Approved Response:

Dear Kevin,

Thank you for your email.

We are grateful to know that our efforts to make our literature available and accessible have been successful and appreciated.

Sincerely,

Cocaine Anonymous World Service Board of Trustees

Q3/7 2020/7/19

Members of the WSBT

Regarding the Board’s action on and response to the LCF Committee’s submitted draft

Twelve Step Companion Guide:

“Motion to refer the book back to LCF with the comment it does not comply with the original concept that was approved on the conference floor, made and seconded; motion approved unanimously.”

I am requesting any/all notes and minutes surrounding WSBT discussions of the book project Twelve Step Companion Guide. This request to include any discussions taking place during the project’s review, and those prior or subsequent to motions by the members of the WSBT.

Thank you each for all that you do in service to our beloved Fellowship.

Blessings ILAS

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Justin Clague

LCF Committee Chair

–Response Pending

Q3/8 2020/8/5

Name: ALLEN MORET

Email: allenm@fsallc.net
Address

City: Los Angeles

State /Province: CA

Area or Region : los angeles

Subject: identification prior to sharing

Your Message: Need your help!

There is a member that prior to sharing identifies himself as “my name is xxxx and I am a member of cocaine anonymous” – is that appropriate? Not an addict, not an alcoholic?

It’s starting to became a topic of conversation among some members, so we are looking for some clarity. Love and Respect – Allen M (5/3/91)

–Response Pending

Q3/9 2020/8/5

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NamePatric

Email Address: patric.mcguinness2@gmail.com

City: London

State / Province: UK

Area or Region: CA London

Subject: Serious Concerns Regarding Area Chair

Your Message: Can i get the email address’s of the Trustee’s please as i wish to CC them into communication from now on between myself and the CA London Area Chair. Trust
has been lost at Area and the Traditions and Concepts have been trodden on by some. So i wish to ensure tranparency in my comm’s with them

—–Original Message—–

From: “Patric McGuinness” <patricmcguinness2@gmail.com>

Sent: Thursday, August 6, 2020 5:22am

To: “wsbt@ca.org” <wsbt@ca.org>

Subject: Re: Concerns in London Area

Thank you for your response.

I feel the back story to this needs to be disclosed also to put the complaint into perspective.

Back in the later part of 2019 i was the CA London Delegate. A sponsee i was working with had a complaint where they felt I was bullying, basically suggesting to them to come off social media as it was being used in a really dangerous negative way. They were against this idea and shared it with 2 other people an these other 2 suggested she complain to the Charity Chair,XXXXXXX. A complaint was made and XXXXXXXX started an investigation against me, I aired my grave concerns regarding the power given to a CA member being in a position to ‘investigate’ any other member of the fellowship. XXXXXXX conducted and interview with the sponsee, along with the 2 people who coerced the sponsee to make the complaint in the beginning. So you basically had 3 people making a statement to the Charity Chair which is by no means a safe practice to adhere too. XXXXXXX has no previous experience of recording and/or reporting and he became the self appointed policeman of CA. There was no evidence whatsoever to suggest any wrong doing on my part yet XXXXXXX came to London Area meeting and started the procedure to have a vote of no confidence

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in me as Delegate. Given i had outlined my serious concerns regarding the procedures he was following, his arrogance and egotistical attitude towards me was nothing shy of contempt. I explained my concerns regarding the way he was dealing with the complaint, he invited me to give my side of the story which i declined as it was glaringly obvious that i was not being afforded any protection what-so-ever, so i declined the invite to engage on the level he was offering due to my concerns and he basically agreed that what i was saying had some merit to it but he didn’t care and he pursued this course of conduct anyway and created an environment where i had these allegations against me with not a scrap of evidence to support. Apart from a statement that had been taken by him with the sponsee and the other 2 people who suggested they complain. That alone is incredibly one sided and unfair, yet he ignored my concerns and carried on with this witch hunt.

The investigation he conducted was an absolute farce and he has given himself the title of CA Police, this practice is incredibly dangerous as it has given the impression he is above any other member and has the power to ‘investigate’ other members at the drop of a hat. Bizzarely several other complaints materialised also, from the same group where XXXXXX is secretary and these other 2 members attend. They complained that i would leave the meeting early if there were no women there (how they could assume my reason for leaving a meeting ill never know) he alleged i was given out sexual therapy, anyway basically he came up with an utter load of old bollocks to support this moody complaint from the sponsee.

Anyway, XXXXXXX (XXXXXXX) XXXXXXX (XXXXXXX) and XXXXXXX worked together to present this picture that i was some sort of dangerous character and should be removed from my position. The way that the whole thing has been handled is an utter disgrace and they have brought the CA name into disrepute by treating me the way they have. They allowed public accusations to be aired and placed suspicion into the mix, they shaped the narrative to give the impression i was some sort of deviant or bully, they invited members to the area meeting to voice complaints and in doing so allowed them to circumnavigate the complaints procedure, complaints that XXXXXXX was already investigating.

In all my 18 years of sobriety in this fellowship I have never witnessed such dangerous practice. The arrogance and ego to pursue this course of conduct and ignore the dangers i voiced is a serious error and if it was not for the fact that i don’t wanna go to prison for the rest of my life i would have seriously hurt these utter cunts!! The injustice and tarnishing of my name they have allowed is unforgivable, the pursuit of Charitable status, driven by XXXXXXX has been a dangerous path indeed, given CAUK dropped the charitable status as it was in direct conflict with the traditions and concepts and the 2 could not be worked alongside harmoniously due to that conflict, NA here in the UK dropped Charitable status back in the 90’s for exactly the same reason, yet here we are with XXXXXXX at the helm, steering the CA London Area meeting into a position where the traditions and concepts and the spiritual integrity of the CA name has definitely been dragged through the mud. EvenXXXXXXX, past European regional trustee voiced serious concerns.

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I aired my serious concerns with Jason European trustee at large, as well as Sarah European Trustee and both of them failed in their duty to protect all concerned!!…. These individuals have been allowed to shape a narrative, control the rhetoric and tarnish my name and my reputation in this fellowship. They have created and allowed an environment of gossip and malicious rumour spreading as they knew the mere pathetic substance of the complaint in the beginning was zero. It would not have held up to scrutiny and so they needed another way to damage my reputation and give them reason to do whatever they wanted to do. Its a fcuking good job i am in recovery i tell ya cos i would have taken my time on each one of them arrogant fcuks!

It really is a disgrace what they have done, especially when I voiced my concerns and they were ignored. The other delegate left due to similar concerns within CA London Area and this for me was the final straw. The other concern I have is that the pursuit of charitable status I feel has blinded them to the whole spiritual nature of the recovery process, the arrogance and ego of this committee is a fcuking crime I tell ya! …..I love this fellowship an i wanna burn em alive for what they have done, A. to my reputation and B. what they think they are doing for the ‘welfare’ of the fellowship.

Its a fcuking crime and they need pulling in!

–Response Pending

Q3/10 2020/8/14

From: Clare Duffy [mailto:clareduffy100@gmail.com]

Sent: Wednesday, August 12, 2020 7:55 AM

To: cawso@ca.org

Subject:

Hi,

My name is Clare Duffy and I am a final year student at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland (UK) studying Mindfulness MSc.

As a result of my personal experience of the negative effects of my sons’ cocaine addiction had on me (recovering now, thankfully), and benefits having a Mindfulness practice gave me. My dissertation and research project will be looking at – the effectiveness of a Mindfulness-based intervention for the well-being of parents of substance abusers

Page 47 of 222

I wondered if you were aware of any research that I should be aware of that has been used in your organization or could point me to any other organization which you think may be useful?

Kind wishes

Clare

–Response Pending

WSBT REFERRALS

WSBT 2019-2 Referral forwarded from S&B – S&B number is 2017-15

Referral Subject (summarize please): To develop a process to change Article 10 of Conference Charter, one of the 12 Steps or 12 Traditions 15 (Jason/Kevin)

WSBT 2019 -3 Referral forwarded from S&B – S&B number is 2018-13Referral Subject (summarize please): To develop a process to change Article 10 of Conference Charter, one of the 12 Steps or 12 Traditions and clarification of ¾ of the groups. (Jason/Kevin)

WSBT 2019-4 from Susan B. OSA (In-Conference)

There was information in your opening report about seeing to it that our trademarks are up to date and used properly. I respectfully ask that the WSBT make sure that the block letters C.A. are used with the periods in all your forms, minutes and reports. We depend on and look to you for guidance and consistency. Thank you for your consideration!

Approved Response:

Dear Susan,

First of all, thank you for your enquiry. The World Service Board of Trustees (WSBT) will take every precautionary measure to proofread and ensure proper usage of C.A. on our Opening and Closing Reports, Board forms, minutes, and Trustee Reports. We are not at liberty to make any changes to our “fellowship’s correspondence” that are emailed to the WSBT@ca.org. The correspondence and WSBT response will be included in our “Summary of WSBT Quarterly Minutes” that is sent out by our World Service Office (WSO) in the Delegate’s mailing.

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Sincerely,

World Service Board of Trustees, Cocaine Anonymous

Dates and Times for Conference Calls and Quarterlies (Wade):

Conference Call:

PDT

Sunday, October 18th, 9:00 AM – Noon

Q4 2020:

Possible: December 4-6th, 2020 (Friday to Sunday)

WSBT Group Inventory – Tradition 4

Close – Serenity Prayer

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For all Trustee Reports see: https://documents.historyofca.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/2020-08-29-30-WSBT-Quarterly-Minutes-Approved.pdf

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