Aa history Lovers 2006 moderators Nancy Olson and Glenn F. Chesnut page
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> > > > > > > IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ++++Message 3746. . . . . . . . . . . . Significant October Dates in A.A. History
From: chesbayman56 . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/30/2006 6:06:00 PM IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Oct 1936 - Bill C. a Canadian alkie staying at Bill's house, committed suicide using a gas stove. Oct 1939 - 1st central committee formed in Cleveland; 1st example A.A. rotation. Oct 1942 - 1st issue of Cleveland Central Bulletin is published. Oct 1944 - First non American branch started in Sydney, Australia by Father T V Dunlea and Rex. Oct 1951 - Lasker Award given to AA by American Public Health Assoc. Oct 1951 - Sister Ignatia wrote "Care of Alcoholics - St.Thomas Hospital and A.A. Started Movement Which Swept Country" article in "Hospital Progress" the journal of Catholic Hospital Association. Oct 1954 - The "Alcoholic Foundation" renamed the "General Service
Board of A.A." Oct 1958 - Playhouse 90 TV airs "The Days of Wine and Roses". Oct 1, 1941 - Local news reports 1st AA Group in New Haven, CT. Oct 1, 1957 - Book "A.A. Comes of Age" published. Oct 2, 1944 - Marty M. founded National Committee Education Alcoholism, later became National Council on Alcoholism. Oct 3, 1945 - AA Grapevine adopted as national publication of AA. Oct 5-7, 1972 - 2nd World Service meeting held in New York. Oct 5, 1988 - Lois Burnam Wilson died. Oct 6, 1941 - 900 dine at Cleveland dinner for Bill D, AA #3. Oct 8, 1988 - Memorial Service for Lois W at Stepping Stones, NY. Oct. 9-11, 1969 - 1st World Service meeting held in New York with delegates from 14 countries. Oct 10, 1943 - 6 of 1st 9 AA's attend clubhouse anniv. in Toledo. Oct 10, 1970 - Lois reads "Bills Last Message" at annual dinner in NY.
Oct 10, 1988 - Lois is buried next to Bill in Manchester, Vermont. Oct 13, 1947 - "The Melbourne Group" held its first meeting in Australia. Oct 14, 1939 - Journal of American Medical Association gives Big Book unfavorable review. Oct 15, 1904 - Marty M, early AA woman, is born in Chicago. Oct 17, 1935 - Ebby T, Bills sponsor, moves in with Bill and Lois. Oct 20, 1928 - Bill wrote promise to Lois in family Bible to quit drinking. By Thanksgiving added second promise. Oct 21, 1939 - Cleveland Plain Dealer begins series of articles on AA of by Elrick Davis. Oct 22, 1963 - E M Jellinek, alcoholism educator and AA friend dies. Oct 24, 1942 - L.A. Times reports AA groups in 14 California cities. Oct 24, 1943 - Wilson's start 1st major A.A. tour, returned Jan 19, 1944. Oct 24, 1973 - Trustee's Archives Committee of AA has its 1st meeting. Oct 28, 1994 - National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence celebrates 50 years.
Copy
From: schaberg43 . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/1/2006 9:10:00 AM IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII --- In AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com, Shakey1aa@... wrote: > > With so many new AAHL's out there, I would like to know > if any have seen a multilith copy (pre-production) of > the book Alcoholics Anonymous stamped "loan copy." > > I have heard that they may exist but I have never seen > one. > > YIS, > Shakey Mike > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >
from his niece in 2001). Interestingly, the title page has the hand- written notation: "#2 Copy / Dec. 8, 1938". There is not mention anywhere in this copy of it being a 'loan' copy - stamped or otherwise. I was also able to personnaly inspect the multilith copy sold at auction a few years ago - this one being the 'master' copy where all of the suggested corrections and edits to the Big Book were recorded. (NOTE: this copy was clearly NOT the 'printer's' copy since some of the suggestions listed there did not make it into the first edition, first printing of our Book. I remember, for instance, that the New Jersey psychiatrist had suggested that the last line of Dr. Bob's story - Your Heavenly Father will never let you down! - be amended to remove the "Heavenly Father" language.) This copy, being
the 'master' office copy, did not have any 'loan' stamp either. I know that there are other copies surviving but these are the only two that I have actually seen. None of the other reports of multilith copies that I have read over the years, by people who have visited archives and private collection, mention a 'loan copy' stamp.
since 1935 From: JOHN e REID . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/30/2006 9:11:00 PM
that AA's 12 Steps have had on the world at large. While I do not have the mental capacity to do it again, for current figures, about 10 years ago, I did a time line of the 60 years that the 12 Steps had been in existence. And at the time, I worked it (guestimated-approximated/mathematically) out that up to that time, over 40 million people had had their lives changed as the result of one alcoholic sharing their common problem with another in 1935, and thus changed the course of history. Today every second soapie out of USA and now UK, has some reference to a 12 Step Program. This in its self supports the claim by eminent scholar Huxley who gave Bill W the "handle" as the social architect of the 20th Century. Kind Regards, John R ----- Original Message ----- From: "ArtSheehan" To: Sent: Friday, September 29, 2006 1:03 AM Subject: spam: RE: [AAHistoryLovers] Counting Members 1993 vs 2006
> sources of record. The first is a May 1953 Grapevine article titled > "How Many AAs." It offers estimates of worldwide membership counts
> from 1935 thru 1953. There are many caveats in the Grapevine article > explaining both the derivation of the numbers and their > interpretation. Group and membership count data began to be reported > in the final reports of the General Service Conferences from 1954 on. > The counts apply to the prior year of the Conference report and are > typically dated as of January 1 of the current year. In past years the > data were dated as of April of the current year which further > complicates year-by-year comparisons. The count data are also reported > in the Grapevine and Box 459. These data are dependent on groups > submitting new group information forms and group information change > forms to their respective General Service Offices. The US/Canada GSO > consolidates this information for annual reporting to the Conference > and Fellowship. > > The data reported in the May 1953 Grapevine article and Conference > reports must be interpreted very carefully, very skeptically and in > proper context. Group counts include only those groups asking the GSOs > to be listed (thousands do not). Groups may or may not report > membership estimates or update estimates over time. Members can be > counted in multiple group estimates and the composition of the numbers > has changed at various points in time from "reported" to "estimated." > All too often these data are interpreted as being precise and they are > not - they are "best guesstimates." Between the period of 1955 to
> 1981, GSO included a statement in the reported counts giving an > "estimated" count of membership which was typically 3 to 4 times > higher than the so-called "reported" numbers. No information is > provided on where these "estimates" came from. Their validity and > precision appear to be dubious and I'd caution against taking them too > literally. GSO abandoned the practice of offering "estimates" from
> 1982 on. Also from the period of 1951 to 1984 group and membership > counts were reported for Hospitals. GSO stopped reporting this > category of counts as of 1985. > > For purposes of conducting a census, the definition of what is an AA > Group should be pretty straightforward. But you'd be surprised by how > much of an issue it was in the past for the Conference to come up with > a definition of what is an AA Group that could be put into AA > literature. What first gave rise to this was the AA Directory (it's > basically a phone book that lists all the groups in a certain part of > the country/world). In the 1960s complications arose over what groups > and count data to list in the directory because of the emergence of > groups that became involved with problems other than alcohol and > conducted so-called "alcohol and pill" meetings. There were also
> groups that were men only, women only, physicians only, lawyers only, > etc., etc. On top of that, there were groups that were essentially > merging with Al-Anon and conducting so-called "Family" or "Family
> After" meetings. The winnowing of the group data removed "alcohol and > pill" and "Family" meetings" among others. > > For a period of time AA literature (specifically "The AA Group" > pamphlet) suggested subdividing AA into the categories of "groups," > "meetings" and "gatherings." If a group was in line with Tradition 3 > (long form) then it got called a "group." If it went off into other > areas it was labeled a "meeting" and not counted as a group. And if it > was really out in left field it was called a "gathering." Needless to > say, many AA members were not very enthusiastic about those types of > classifications and wanted more clarity in the definition of what an > AA group is. This gave rise to something called the "6-point > definition of an AA group." The 6-point definition was replaced by a > 1990 decision of the General Service Conference that defined an AA > group with the long form of Traditions 3 and 5. Then in 1991 the > Conference approved a definition that consists of the long form of > Tradition 3 and "Warranty 6" of Article 12 of the Permanent Conference > Charter (which is also a part of Concept 12). > > From 1992 to 1994, overseas count estimates were revised and a major > revision occurred in the US/Canada GSO's counting methods and record > system. The number of groups reported no longer included those > described as "meetings" which chose not to be considered "groups." > Such "meetings" (typically special interest) are included in prior
> year's data and inflate that data. The 1992-1994 revisions can > erroneously be interpreted as a steep drop from 1993 to 1994 > membership and groups when, in fact, it simply reflects a procedural > change in counting methods. The doom and gloom crowd of AA often > erroneously refer to these counts as a drop in AA membership (which > might give a hint as to the inadequacy of the research methods that > sustain their negativity). > > AA is in more than 180 countries (with 57 autonomous GSOs overseas). > Each year, the US/Canada GSO attempts to contact overseas GSOs and > groups requesting to be listed in their records. From the beginning, > the count numbers are at best, "fuzzy" and likely understated and do
> need to be interpreted prudently to avoid drawing erroneous > conclusions. GSO cautions that the information they report "does not > represent an actual count of those who consider themselves AA > members." The autonomous and anonymous characteristics of AA groups
> make the derivation of accurate and complete counts a difficult matter > to say the least. The data reported are not an accurate measure of a > specific year's increase or decrease. However, trends over the decades > are indicative (but not exact) of AA groups reaching more places and > more AA members achieving recovery. > > The 2006 final Conference report offered an estimate of 1,068,761 > members for the US, 110,449 members for Canada, 702,769 members > overseas and 65,843 members in prison groups for a total of 1,947,662 > worldwide. Because of the thousands of groups that do not register > with GSO and/or update their membership estimates, my sense would be > that the US numbers reported by GSO are likely understated rather than > overstated. > > To help put some things in a different perspective regarding counts, a > 2006 issue (number 16) of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health > (NSDUH) report carries an article titled "Alcohol Dependence or Abuse: > 2002, 2003 and 2004." One of its major findings is that "Among persons > aged 12 or older, 7.6 percent (18.2 million) met the criteria for > alcohol dependence or abuse in the past year." Even though AA may have
> a worldwide membership "guesstimated" at almost 2 million, in the
> United States alone there are over 18 million persons that would > benefit from hearing the message of recovery that AA carries. There > appears to be much work left to do. That 18+ million number would > probably be a far more useful one to cite at AA functions. > > Cheers
> Arthur > > -----Original Message----- > From: AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com > [mailto:AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of mbrandfssr > Sent: Monday, September 25, 2006 7:27 AM > To: AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com > Subject: [AAHistoryLovers] Counting Members 1993 vs 2006 > > > I saw this on AA History Buffs > > "GSO changed the way membership counts were calculated after 1993." > > Can anyone offer insight into the change? I was at an AA function > last month where a guy made slight reference to this and claimed our > membership is probably more like 600,000-700,000 in the US > >
> > > > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > >
> > > > > > > IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ++++Message 3749. . . . . . . . . . . . Re: Chairs of the GSB From: Jeff Your . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/2/2006 9:19:00 AM IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Bernard B. Smith ..........................1955-1956 Leonard V. Harrison .....................1956-1961 John 'Jack' Norris.......................... 1961-1977 Milton A. Maxwell, Ph.D. ............1977-1981 Gordon M. Patrick ........................1981-1989 Michael Alexander........................ 1989-1993 Jim Estelle..................................... 1993-1997 Gary Glynn ....................................1997-2001 Elaine McDowell, Ph.D................2001-2005 Leonard M. Blumenthal, LL.D.... 2005-
In grateful service, Jeffrey A. Your 216.691.0917 home Alternate Delegate 216.397.4244 work Area 54, Committee 55 216.397.1803 fax Northeast Ohio General Service 216.496.7594 cell [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ++++Message 3750. . . . . . . . . . . . 12 and 12 Search Engine From: Jeff Clymer . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/2/2006 2:49:00 PM IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HI, Does anyone know of a 12 and 12 Search Engine? Jc IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ++++Message 3751. . . . . . . . . . . . The new GSO archivist on the chairmen of the trustees From: Filiatreau, Amy . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/1/2006 1:42:00 PM
chairmen of the Board of Trustees. Amy Filiatreau, the new GSO archivist, sent us this response.
aa.org)
Greetings from the G.S.O. Archives! I hereby inaugurate my first message to this list; I usually just sit back and learn from all of you on this list. I've been fortunate to meet many of you, at least via email. For those of you I haven't yet met, I am the new Archivist for G.S.O., having been on the job since February.
will be out of the office tomorrow (Monday), but I can email you this list first thing Tuesday. I am sorry you didn't get a response from us in the past. I'm not sure whom you contacted at the G.S.O. with your original request, but you - and all of you - can always email me directly at archives@aa.org (archives at aa.org) and I daresay I can guarantee you will get a response. The most critical thing we do is respond to requests for information from the Fellowship, since we work for you. I hope all of you will call on us anytime we can be of service to you. Thanks! Amy Amy Filiatreau, CA Archivist AA World Services, Inc. 212-870-2568 filiatreaua@aa.org ________________________________ From: AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com [mailto:AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of khemex@comcast.net Sent: Friday, September 29, 2006 5:33 PM To: AAHistoryLovers@yahoogroups.com Subject: [AAHistoryLovers] List of Chairmen of the Board of Trustees?
and I can usually find the historical data that I'm looking for through the usual channels but this time I've got to ask for help. Where can I find a list of all of the chairmen of the Board of Trustees for AA and its predecessor the Alcoholic Foundation. I've e-mailed GSO and haven't gotten any acknowledgement. Thanks for your help! In Love and Service to Others Gerry W.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ++++Message 3752. . . . . . . . . . . . RE: List of Chairmen of the Board of Trustees? From: ricktompkins . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/3/2006 6:09:00 PM
Allow me to add two items to the "Misc." postscript and Art's excellent research. Miscellaneous milestone #3, about the AF Board: Earl T. from Chicago replaced Dr. Bob in 1949 and he served the Alcoholic Foundation Board of Trustees until 1953. In 1947 at least once (maybe twice), Earl filled in for Bill, participating on the Board with Bill's proxy. The beautiful perspective about Earl, to me, was that here was a sponsee of Dr. Bob that Bill considered a full equal partner and compatriot when it came to AA World Service. Earl's tenure on the Board may have been nondescript but he served as another Pioneer toward the General Service Conference and the enlargement of the AF "Headquarters (after 1953 formally called the General Service Office)." Earl suffered a stroke in 1954, shortly after returning home to Chicago, where Chicago AA's Policy Committee voted to obtain his services as a paid employee of the Chicago Central Office. Earl's responsibilities were to be Group Coordinator and Public Information. Unfortunately, the Twelve Traditions were manipulated by some Chicago AAs for discussion that Earl's employment was a conflict of interest with Tradition Nine, and additionally that the Policy Committee members had not properly searched for a full consensus. The result? Two Intergroups broke away from the Metropolitan Chicago Delegate Area for the next 19 years. Earl could do very little to repair the rift after his stroke. Miscellaneous milestone #4, yet to happen... Any of us who have the current AAWS Archives Workbook can find a single page in the "Oral Histories" chapter, submitted by my Area to Trustees Archives
in 2003. The set of guide questions can be misleading when its header and its intent were not included in the Workbook-- the list was assembled and submitted for the interviewing of Class A (non-alcoholic) Trustees to preserve their stories, either by taping or writing in response to the survey-type list. One particular question "what was involved in your application" is an example of a question that has no real place in a regular personal history. My Area 20 Archives Committee recommended, as part of the Workbook's 2006 review, to at least delete the 'application' question. Otherwise, the set of a baker's dozen questions would work well when interviewing any past Area Delegate, or, a Class A or Class B (AA member) Trustee. In 2003 and 2004, the Trustees Archives Committee took no action on the "Class A Trustee History Project" but the list made it into the Workbook in the 2005 revision. While many Class A Trustees and General Service Board Chairs had Download 13.83 Mb. Share with your friends:
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