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Congratulations Sobriety
Birthday Celebrants!
Deborah E. -- 30 years
Kris R. -- 17 years
Donate a contribution in the amount of your years of sobriety and we'll say congratulations to you here!
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... and now, a word from our NVI chairperson...
Stalled
I am a grateful member of Alcoholics Anonymous and I love being sober.
Has our membership stalled? When I sobered up, we had approximately two million members world wide. You would think that number would have increased by now to around five million (at least), but it has not. What are we, as members of Alcoholics Anonymous, not doing? Have we stopped twelve stepping potential members to our fellowship? What about our Public Information (PI) and Cooperation with the Professional Community (CPC) committees at the Area, District, and Intergroup/Central office levels? We can’t shy away from the very thing that lured me to AA; attraction not promotion. I saw with my own eyes how the AA program transformed a friend of mine, that same person twelve stepped me. Anonymity as it pertains to our 11th and 12th traditions remains the spiritual foundation of our principles but we need to remember to carry the message to the still suffering alcoholics.
As a friend of mine likes to say, “I have a life second to none”, as the result of being a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Irving M.
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This is NVI's 66th birthday and we are asking 66 people to contribute $66.
Our goal is $4,346 and PROGRESS continues to be made!!
We are now at $2,376 and need just $1,970 more to go.
Your contribution helps us help you! |
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Excerpts from the Big Book related to Step Five
According to the Big Book of
Alcoholics Anonymous (pages 72–75, Chapter 6: "Into Action"), Step 5 requires admitting the "exact nature of our wrongs" to God, ourselves, and another human being. It emphasizes that this "vital" step of sharing our inventory, holding nothing back, is essential for clearing away fear and dishonesty, allowing for true recovery.
“If I have been thorough about my personal inventory, I’ve written down a lot. I have listed and analyzed my resentments. I have begun to comprehend their futility and their fatality.” (p. 70) "We must be entirely honest with somebody if we expect to live long or happily in this world.” (p. 73). These are two relevant quotes from the Big Book.
It is in step 5 that we begin to get a sense of our patterns of behavior, those ways of acting and reacting that allow our character defects to surge to the forefront. Call them whatever you might: flaws, shortcomings, faults, weaknesses, imperfections, vices, defenders gone too far or run amok; whatever you might call them, we often don't see them until we go through a thorough fifth step with a caring, insightful sponsor. Only then can we begin to get a real sense of what we should focus on in both steps six and seven, as well as step 10, going through our day to see how these ...things... might have come up in that day. It is an illuminating step, one that sets us on a path to long-term sobriety! |
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MAY is the FIFTH month
Step 5: Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Tradition 5: Each Alcoholics Anonymous group ought to be a spiritual entity having but one primary purpose—that of carrying its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
Concept 5: We serve the group by having the courage to state a minority opinion when needed and we respect this right in others. |
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What is YOUR Sponsor Contingency Plan?
I have been sober since 1991 and enjoy living my life as a gay sober man in recovery. When I was new to sobriety I followed the suggestions to the best of my ability and one of those suggestion that has paid off was getting a sponsor. My first sponsor I was with for over twenty years. During that time I developed what I called a sponsor contingency plan (SCP). Over the years of going to lots of AA meetings, when someone shared who really caught my attention, I would say to myself that person would make a great sponsor and I would put that name on a piece of paper.
My sponsor that I worked with for over twenty years did not die; instead, he moved to South Florida and I was not one of the chosen ones he said he would work with from afar. He simply asked me to get another sponsor before he moved. I went to that list I had developed and there were now ten names on it. I went to each person to talk about being my sponsor. I selected my current sponsor because he knew 96% about me sharing at meetings. What he didn’t know was the 4% I don’t share in AA meetings. I feel I have selected well from the sponsorship pool twice and on a good spiritual path of being happy, joyous, and free. I’m just so grateful that I was able to find another sponsor quickly when I hear other people with time in our fellowship struggle finding a sponsor with time.
Everything we do in AA is built off of one alcoholic helping another alcoholic to achieve sobriety. I’m a grateful member of Alcoholics Anonymous and I love being sober!
Irving M. |
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What
happens
when
someone calls our
hotline
AND we are
there to
answer?
It
makes a
difference
in
someone's
life.
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If anyone wonders whether answering the hotline makes a difference, our Phone Watch volunteer Kyle O has a few success stories to share:
- A caller in February decided he overreacted about being an alcoholic and our Phone Watch volunteer suggested he look for evidence. In the end he found that evidence, started attending meetings at Hope Is Here and his local meeting in Woodbridge, and just celebrated 30 days!
- An AA caller named Jerry left a message requesting help with a 12-step call. A veteran who was on the list for a liver transplant was relapsing again in Winchester. Kyle reached out to his friend from the Blue Ridge region who happened to be sitting next to the DCM for Winchester at the Virginia Assembly in Norfolk, and they were able to connect Jerry with an AA that works at the VA in Winchester. Truly you can’t make this up!!
- A first-time caller from Centreville left a message and in the follow up, experiences were shared. Our volunteer walked the caller through the NVI website and the Blue Chair app.
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Sometimes calls to the hotline are routed to a 12th step volunteer. We remain in need of volunteers who can take those 12th step calls. While we appreciate all volunteers for this service work, we are especially in need of women volunteers that can respond to women callers that are looking for support beyond that first phone call. Contact NVI to get more details and put your sobriety into service to others!
Close by or far away, we alcoholics help each other and the alcoholic in need!! |
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So Grateful
For me gratitude takes many forms. I am so grateful that I hit a bottom sufficient enough to do something about my drinking. I’m so grateful that the friend I called at an ungodly hour answered the phone. I’m so grateful to that nurse who assured me I was in the right place. I’m so grateful for those old-timers who greeted me at my first AA meeting outside of the detox facility I was in for twenty-one days. I’m so grateful to that man who said yes to being my sponsor. I’m so grateful to AA for guiding me to a loving God of my understanding.
One day at a time I have found myself on a spiritual path that is filled with nothing but happy, joyous, and free moments for alcoholism. I’m asked to do a couple of things after having a spiritual awakening; to work with others and to pass it on.
Today, I am a grateful member of Alcoholics Anonymous and I love being sober!
Irving M. |
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The following are just a few of the upcoming events. Explore these websites to find more!
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I had the good fortune to attend the Southern Maryland Roundup this March. One of the speakers shared this:
Service is like a football game: Eleven people on the field in desperate need of rest and 60,000 fans in the stands in desperate need of some exercise!
Life gets busy for us all and this isn't to harangue anyone. Just a reminder that people that do service in places like the GSO or NVI or your local meeting are helping make it just a little better. Not everyone needs an explicit thank you. It is appreciated when genuinely meant.
Send something that you would like to share and any suggestions you may have for how to improve our newsletter (whether ideas for new or different content or you have information about anything AA related in our area) to newsletter@nvintergroup.org. We would really love to hear from YOU!
Amy W.
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Volunteers Needed!
- Literature Chair
- 12th Steppers
- CPC
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Next NVI Board Meeting will take place
Tuesday, June 2, at 7:30 pm
All board meetings are hybrid (in-person & online) and held the first Tuesday of each month. Meeting announcements go out to the NVI mailing list.
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Shop at the NVI Online Bookstore for your literature and sobriety medallions! |
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Intergroup Officers
Chair: Irving M.
chair@nvintergroup.org
Vice Chair: Beth D.
vicechair@nvintergroup.org
Treasurer: Sam
treasurer@nvintergroup.org
Secretary: Jess P.
secretary@nvintergroup.org
Operations Manager: Chris
info@nvintergroup.org |
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Web Team
website@nvintergroup.org
Newsletter: Amy
newsletter@nvintergroup.org
Events & Ad Hoc Committees
Fundraising & GB 2026: Travis fundraising@nvintergroup
Young People: Ashley liaison-vscypaa@nvintergroup.org
WAIA: Jerry F. |
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Come Visit NVI!!
Want to visit the NVI bookstore located in our office and shop in person?
Need to meet with the NVI Operations Manager?
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The Unity Lifeline is a monthly newsletter of the Northern Virginia Intergroup of Alcoholics Anonymous. It is about, by and for the members of the Fellowship of AA. Opinions expressed herein are NOT to be attributed to AA as a whole, nor does publication of information imply any endorsement by either AA or the Northern Virginia Intergroup and artwork from AA literature are reprinted with permission from AA World Service, Inc. and/or The AA Grapevine, Inc. Contributions from our readers are encouraged! Submissions are edited for space and clarity ONLY. Contact information is required and anonymity is respected. In keeping with our goal of being self-supporting, your subscription is appreciated.
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For inclusion in the next newsletter, please submit info to newsletter@nvintergroup.org |
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