A good way to find a sponsor is to attend S.L.A.A. face-to-face meetings, conferences and workshops in your area, if there are any. You may also attend meetings, conferences and workshops outside your area. See information on your local S.L.A.A. website or at https://slaafws.org/meetings and https://slaafws.org/events. Listen as people share at meetings and events and see whom you relate to. A Sponsor and Sponsee work well together when they share a common history. Listen for people who have some time in the program and who have Sponsors of their own. Listen for someone who shares honestly, as honesty between a Sponsor and a Sponsee is critical. Questions to ask a potential Sponsor are described at https://slaafws.org/questions-to-ask-a-potential-sponsor.
We’ve found that people don’t always raise their hand or announce at meetings that they’re available to sponsor — but if approached individually, that person may be able to help you with Sponsorship or at least be available for outreach calls. The prospective Sponsor may be someone with whom you feel comfortable. However this is not necessary for the sponsoring relationship to work. Comfort may not be present in the early stages of the relationship but may develop over time as the Sponsor and Sponsee get to know each other better.
Another way to find a Sponsor is to attend S.L.A.A. telephone meetings. Some phone meetings have a process for finding sponsors, temporary sponsors, co-sponsors, or recovery partners. Many phone meetings have “Fellowship Time” after meetings when you can spend time talking with, and getting to know other members in recovery. Find information about phone meetings at https://slaafws.org/meetings, under Telephone Meetings.
There is also information regarding S.L.A.A. phone meetings for women only at http://www.slaawomensgroup.org.
If you have access to the internet, you can also participate in S.L.A.A. online meetings. See information at http://www.slaaonline.org as well as at https://slaafws.org/meetings, under Online Meetings.
Temporary Sponsors, Co-Sponsors and Recovery Partners
While you are looking for a sponsor, we would also like to suggest you ask someone to be your Temporary Sponsor, Co-Sponsor or Recovery Partner. Co-Sponsors are two people who have worked the Steps in another program and who start co-sponsoring each other very early in their time in S.L.A.A.
A Recovery Partner is someone with whom you check in on a regular basis. Being accountable to someone can be very beneficial to your recovery. It is suggested that that you make an agreement with someone in the program to check in often, even daily if possible. It should be someone that you feel comfortable being honest with, that you can share the areas of your recovery that are important to you. Your Recovery Partner may be a member of S.L.A.A. or another friend in recovery. It is recommended that you do not ask a romantic partner or someone to whom you may be attracted to be your Recovery Partner. This tool can be a valuable addition to sponsorship or a great help while you are looking for a sponsor.
FIND OUT MORE
If you have questions or wish to find out more about sponsorship, contact the CONFERENCE SPONSORSHIP COMMITTEE (CSPC) at https://slaafws.org/committee/cspc.
