The charter of the Region 6 Intergroup Outreach Committee (IGOR) is to assist the Region’s many intergroups. For the last few years, the committee has sponsored Intergroup Renewal workshops across the Region.
What is an Intergroup Renewal Workshop?
Everything in OA begins with personal recovery. More members in recovery = more sponsors and service = more attracting and retaining newcomers = OA growth = carrying the message to more suffering compulsive eaters. That is why we exist—Tradition 5.
Traditionally, the primary channel for helping people work through the 12-Step recovery and transformation process has been sponsors. Informal surveys show a sponsor shortage in many areas, low newcomer retention, and decreasing numbers of intergroups as OA’s overall membership falls.
Intergroups are in a unique position to supplement sponsorship as well as attract more people by creating training and educational opportunities to help members strengthen their recovery. From increased numbers in recovery comes more sponsors, more attraction, more retention, a stronger intergroup and OA. When an intergroup begins transforming itself into this sort of high value role, it attracts current members in recovery who want to help—hence the term Intergroup Renewal.
Transforming (or in some cases, rebuilding) an intergroup into a body with this refocused mission requires strong leadership and new ideas. The process to implement this transformation is covered in an 11-hour workshop in Region 6 for intergroup officers or members expected to soon become intergroup officers.
Key modules from the workshop are summarized in the attached document. The most fundamental question for every intergroup to ask itself in this model is: What can we do to help members strengthen their personal recovery?
Please see Intergroup Renewal publication here.
For questions on this workshop or related Intergroup issues. contact the R6 IGOR Committee at igor@oaregion6.org.