About BRANA

and the Blue Ridge Area Service Committee

BRANA

Narcotics Anonymous meetings began forming in western Virginia in the early 1980s. At that time, BRANA included most of the state west of Richmond; about eight meetings were scattered across the area.

Judith C., now a resident of Norfolk, Va., started a meeting in Waynesboro in October 1981 and another in Harrisonburg about a month later. Since then, Charlottesville, Winchester and Roanoke have formed their own areas.

Today, the Blue Ridge Area of NA extends from Shenandoah and Page counties in the north, through Rockingham and Augusta counties, to Rockbridge County in the south.

BRANA has six home groups and 25 meetings a week in Harrisonburg, Staunton, Waynesboro, Fishersville, Luray, Mount Jackson and Lexington.

The Blue Ridge Area Service Committee

The Blue Ridge Area Service Committee is a body made up of group service representatives (GSRs), duly elected officers and chairs of all standing subcommittees within the Blue Ridge Area. This body meets monthly for the purpose of serving the needs of its member groups.

The most important service that this committee provides is support for its home groups. Whenever a group has a specific situation or need which it has not been able to handle on its own, it can come to the area service committee (ASC) for help. These situations are almost limitless in scope, but we have learned that we can get much accomplished when we work together.

The ASC publishes a meeting list and maintains this Web site and a telephone helpline to assist addicts seeking recovery to find meetings. The committee also maintains a stock of NA literature and plans social activities to promote unity and camaraderie among the groups and NA members. The ASC also serves as a community resource for hospitals and institutions, counseling and medical professionals, schools, churches and the criminal justice system.