Alano.ONLINE - Your 12-step group's affordable online clubhouse!

Rules

Members must be responsible

You must be responsible for ensuring that the meeting is a safe space free from illegal activity. If you have an issue with a Zoom bomber, etc., use the facilities in the Zoom program to report them to Zoom and block them from the meeting. You may also appoint cohosts in your meeting to help.

Keep your info up to date

You must tell us when contact info changes for your meeting so we can keep the calendar up to date.

Attendee membership

At least one person who regularly attends your meeting must be a member of Alano.ONLINE to host the meeting.

If you no longer participate in the meeting, another person from the meeting must join as a member of Alano.ONLINE and pay dues to take over that meeting.

This is necessary to comply with Zoom terms of service. Dues-paying Alano.ONLINE members host the meetings under our umbrella account of our business.

Follow the Zoom rules

When you use the Zoom software, you agree to a separate set of rules with that company. Refer to the Zoom website for their terms of use.

Individuals only

The chartered purpose of Alano.ONLINE is to serve individual members who welcome the public to gather to study and practice the 12 steps in various programs based on the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.

We cannot help a person who organizes a meeting for another legal entity, whether that company is a for-profit entity, 501(c)(3) company, registered association, club, or other entity.

A spiritual connection to your program is great, if your meeting is an ad-hoc, autonomous gathering of individuals who have no other outside affiliation, and are self-supporting through your own contributions. (Traditions 4, 5, 6, and 7.)

A legal connection to your program's district or world service organization is not okay, if those entities are separate companies.

For example, a meeting started by an individual or group of people is fine. You can be listed in your program's meeting guide. Your meeting has no legal relationship with the service corporations that run the district or world service offices, nor their boards nor trustees. You're just people who study the 12 steps independently.

A workshop, webinar, or conference organized by the district or world service office would not be okay, if that organization is an official legal entity with a board of directors and fiduciary responsibilities. They would need to use their own Zoom account.

12-step meetings only

Alano.ONLINE members are independent individuals who gather to study the 12 steps of recovery. Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon, Debtors Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous, and Overeaters Anonymous are some examples of 12-step groups.

We do not help people organizing any other type of meeting. This excludes spontaneously-organized workshops related to recovery programs, like the D.A. Tools Game, PRG's, or individual sponsor checkins. Meetings are not to be used for co-working sessions, meditation classes, any form of regulated counseling, personal communications, outside businesses, etc.

The chartered purpose of Alano.ONLINE is to serve only independent individuals who meet to study, discuss, and practice the 12 steps and official literature of 12-step programs with others who freely attend ad hoc, unorganized meetings. (Traditions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.)

Standards of Conduct

In general, practice the steps and traditions and you'll be fine.

Members must not harass, stalk, pursue, or otherwise harm any other member or any ad hoc attendee of their meeting, or their membership will be revoked.

Alano Dot Online is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all directors, members, employees, and volunteers. We do not tolerate discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, or any other protected characteristic. All members and directors of Alano Dot Online must adhere to this policy and promote a culture of respect and equality in our business affairs.

Considering the 6th Tradition

It is fine if you as an individual want to let people know about our services, but please respect your program's 6th tradition and do not officially endorse Alano.ONLINE as a group.

Tradition 6 (long form from aa.org):
Problems of money, property, and authority may easily divert us from our primary spiritual aim. We think, therefore, that any considerable property of genuine use to A.A. should be separately incorporated and managed, thus dividing the material from the spiritual. An A.A. group, as such, should never go into business. Secondary aids to A.A., such as clubs or hospitals which require much property or administration, ought to be incorporated and so set apart that, if necessary, they can be freely discarded by the groups. Hence such facilities ought not to use the A.A. name. Their management should be the sole responsibility of those people who financially support them. For clubs, A.A. managers are usually preferred. But hospitals, as well as other places of recuperation, ought to be well outside A.A.- and medically supervised. While an A.A. group may cooperate with anyone, such cooperation ought never go so far as affiliation or endorsement, actual or implied. An A.A. group can bind itself to no one.

Alano.ONLINE is not endorsed by A.A. and is not affiliated with it. It acts as a "club" mentioned in Tradition 6. Your group, as a group, is not "in business" with Alano.ONLINE. Alano.ONLINE "can be freely discarded by the groups," and has no legal relationship or binding to them. Meetings can go their own way at any time. Alano.ONLINE has no authority or sway over any meeting group's collective decisions, nor do our members in their capacity as meeting hosts. As a member of Alano.ONLINE, you can still vote in your meeting's group conscience decisions, but in that capacity you represent only yourself, and you do not speak as a member of Alano.ONLINE.

Conversely, your group has no say in your vote as a member of Alano.ONLINE. As an individual member of Alano.ONLINE, you have some authority over the club. "Their management should be the sole responsibility of those people who financially support them." Members of Alano.ONLINE have voting rights to elect Directors and veto their decisions according to its bylaws. That is completely separate from the management of A.A., any other 12 step program, and the meetings that study those programs. "For clubs, A.A. managers are usually preferred," which we extend to members of any 12-step program.

You are a member of Alano.ONLINE as an individual, but your group, as a group, is not. It is fine if your group chooses to assist you with your membership dues to Alano.ONLINE, just as they would reimburse you for customer fees paid directly to Zoom for an individual meeting account — as long as they do not assume any authority over your voting rights as a member of the club.

Similarly, Alano.ONLINE does not direct you how to vote on your group's decisions. This keeps Alano.ONLINE "separately incorporated and managed" and distinct from your group and your program.

Considering traditions 3 and 10, and the 3rd step

Members must not force any particular understanding of God or religion on any attendee of their meeting. Adherence to this rule is vital to keep Alano.ONLINE from being classified as a religious organization, which has different paperwork and tax status. Alano Dot Online members may express individual religious views, as long those views are not required of meeting attendees. This also helps ensure your group's independence under the 3rd, 6th, and 10th traditions, and the 3rd step of your program.

The same goes for politics. Political campaigning by members in meetings on any outside issue is not allowed. This preserves the independence of your program. It also protects Alano.ONLINE's §501(c)(3) non-profit status, so that we are not classified as a political organization.

Best effort - disclaimer of liability

We will give our best effort to provide video conference meetings for the study of your program at the time that you schedule, and we will be transparent to our directors and members with regard to all financial transactions. By signing up, you agree to indemnify, release, and hold harmless Alano.ONLINE and all of its directors and other members for any and all claims of liability, known or unknown.

Privacy Policy

• Alano.ONLINE will only keep essential personal information required to deliver our services or required by law for non-profit members.
• Our payment partners will collect information necessary to process donations and membership dues, under their own privacy policies. (PayPal and Stripe.)
• We will take every precaution to ensure the protection of your personal information.
• We will not share, sell, or transfer genuine personal information to any other third party, except as required by federal or state court order of the United States.
• Our video conferencing providers (Zoom, etc.) may collect additional information about you, determined separately by the terms of service for use of their connection software. We will not share your personal information directly with them for your access credentials. (You will use a managed, anonymous e‑mail address @alano.online to log into the video service and start the meeting.)
• We use internal cookies only for the following purposes:
  • The cookie notice that pops up at the bottom of the page when you first visit, so you don't see it again.
  • The e-mail subscription form that pops up, so you don't see it again if you subscribe, and so it doesn't bother you again for a while if you don't.
  • The member login system on our site.
  You will not be tracked by any third party.

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© 2024 Alano Dot Online, a §501(c)(3) non-profit company.

Contact: alano.online@outlook.com