March 17, 2020
The SA Central Office (SAICO) has been receiving inquiries about how groups should respond to the COVID-19 (coronavirus). Many members and groups have expressed concern about how health and safety apply to their meetings and are looking for guidance on how to address this question.
SAICO is intended to be a resource for shared group and intergroup experience. Our intention is to consolidate and circulate the information we are receiving from members of all groups looking for the shared experience of the Fellowship.
SAICO cannot proclaim guidance on health issues for members of groups; however, we do suggest contacting your national, state/provincial and local health authorities for up to date information.
We can give general guidelines regarding how some SA groups have opted to address this issue. Our collected experience suggests that individuals speak with contacts of their groups before attending meetings to see if there have been changes at their regularly scheduled meetings. Some groups are no longer able to meet at their traditional venue but have arranged for other methods of contact via phone or internet. Other groups are conforming with rules of social distancing.
Social distancing conformity might include: avoiding shaking hands and handholding; expanding space to 5’ between chairs, wiping down tables; encouraging people to wash their hands before and after the meeting, suspending food hospitality for the time being; or staying home if you have close contact with the elderly, children or other vulnerable populations for the time being. These suggestions do not preclude individuals from being responsible for their own health decisions.
Alternatives for face-to-face meetings have been discussed by several groups. Among these ideas are: creating a group contact list and using the SA phone meetings to gather; staying in touch by phone, email, WhatsApp or other forms of social media; and/or starting a video conference meeting with a platform such as Zoom. Zoom is a platform SAICO has used with great success, though there may be others your group prefers.
SAICO is performing updates on the sa.org website regarding the status of future SA scheduled events. We endeavor to keep the status of meetings updated as well when we are informed via email. The safety and health of our SA members is our main priority. We will update our website with any new relevant information regarding health advisories as we receive it.
Blessings to all during this time. We ask that you please not visit the Central Office at this time, but contact us by phone or email if you have further questions.