Archives Coordinator Job Description
The elected Officers and appointed Coordinators (3-year term) are the Board members of Southern California World Service of AFG, Inc., a California Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation and a charitable 501(c)(3) tax-exempt entity per the Internal Revenue Service. SCWS Officers must live within the California South Area during their entire term. The officers act in accordance with the spiritual principles of Al-Anon Family Groups while conducting the prudent management of the Area. The Officers accept additional demands on their time and possess some special skills relevant to their position. Members of Al-Anon in SCWS who also are members of A.A. are ineligible to hold Al-Anon service positions that vote in matters affecting another group or Al-Anon or A.A. as a whole.
Eligibility and Qualifications
Is accessible, available, responsive, and is able to communicate effectively, prepare written documents and meet deadlines. Must be in good financial standing with the Area. Continues to be an active member of Al-Anon in CA(S), with working knowledge of the 12 Steps, Traditions and Concepts, current Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual and Knowledge-Based Decision-Making (KBDM). Has an understanding of the Area and World Service structure. Must maintain confidentiality of non-public information.
Official Duties and Responsibilities
- Preserves the experience, history, and memorabilia of the Al-Anon fellowship in Southern California as outlined in the Area Archives Guideline (G-30). This history should be preserved so as to be available to the membership and the serious researcher, within the framework of our Traditions, for the good of Al-Anon as a whole.
- Assembles, maintains and stores the historical artifacts for this World Service Area, some of which is scanned and stored electronically.
- Chairs Longtimer’s Meeting in last year of three-year term.
- Prepares and presents a written report for each quarterly SCWS meeting and emails to Secretary and Bulletin Editor.
- Makes the traveling Archives available upon request for Districts within SCWS.
- Acts as a liaison with the entity in Southern California Area that SCWS has an arrangement for custodial storage of valuable, historical books and other materials that require special storage conditions, such as controlled temperature, humidity and lighting.
- One-Time Project—2021-2023: Archives Coordinator will direct an Archives Committee on reorganizing the Archives, which are maintained in a storage unit in Glendale, to implement a 2020 SCWS Board decision that the Archives contain only material pertinent to the Area, as suggested in the Al-Anon Guideline G-30, plus first-edition AFG material or AFG material personalized for the Area, as in CAL or early-day literature that contains autographs of early-day members.
Basic Skills, Personal Qualities, and Experience Needed
- Ability to coordinate with others by phone, email and/or direct contact
- Ability to do simple presentations, multi-task various requests, add items to large three-ring binders.
- Ability to lift and move boxes of the SCWS Archives, or make arrangements for this to be done for Area meetings.
- Is accessible, available, responsive, and flexible. Is able to communicate effectively, prepare written reports and meet deadlines.
Additional Skills Needed
Has a strong sense of responsibility, able to prioritize and work independently or as a team
Equipment and Technology Needed
Access to computer, printer, Internet connection. Participates in conference calls and online meetings.
Realistic Time Commitment of this Position
Between 2-25 hours per month which may include presenting information about Archives to District meetings. Additional hours/days needed in final year for planning the Longtimer’s Meeting. Attends 8 SCWS meetings per year, 7-8 hours each, and presents prepared reports: Feb, Aug Committee (3rd Sat) and May, Nov Assembly (3rd Sat) and Jan, Apr, Jul, Oct Board (Sun). Attend the Annual SOS or TEAM event and support events of other coordinators. This is an appointed position for a three-year term. Additional time may be spent, if desired, collecting archive material (books, notes, photos, etc.) and written or recorded recollections from Longtime Al-Anon members. One Archives Coordinator collected written stories and recordings from Longtime members using a list of guideline questions, for possible publication
Preparation
Meet with prior SCWS Archives Coordinator. Notebook with detailed procedures will be provided at Turnover Meeting. See WSO Guideline G-30 for details on creating this type of archive (written stories and recordings).
Travel
Attends one service event outside SCWS Area during three-year term. Makes own travel arrangements, within budget guidelines.
Meetings
| Meetings | Months | Days | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Officers | January, February, April, May, July, August, October and/or as needed | Saturdays or Sundays, as agreed | 3 to 6 hours, as needed |
| SCWS Board | January, May, July, October | 3rd Saturday or to be determined | 9:00am to 3:00pm |
| Area World Service Committee (AWSC) + new DR Orientation | February, August | 3rd Saturday and 1st Saturday (New DR Orientation) | 9:00am to 4:00pm 10:00am to 12:00pm (New DR Orientation) |
| Area Assemblies + new GR Orientation | May, November | 3rd Saturday 1st Saturday (New GR Orientation) | 9:00am to 4:00pm 10:00am to 12:00pm (New GR Orientation) |
| Sharing of Service (SOS) | January | 3rd Saturday | 10:00am to 4:00pm |
| Longtimer's Event | Last year of 3-year panel | 3rd Saturday | 10:00am to 4:00pm |
Revised: 09/2024