TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE ALCOHOLIC FOUNDATION
Bedford Hills
New York
April 8, 1947
Dear Friends;
Following our past year of deliberation on questions touching the A.A. Headquarters policy and structure, I have ventured to prepare the enclosed material under the title: The Alcoholic Foundation of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.
The first section, The Alcoholic Foundation of Yesterday, is purely historical. It is designed to show the evolution of our central structure since its small beginning in 1937. This section, published serially in the Grapevine, could help greatly to inform every A.A. about us and clear away a certain amount of misunderstanding that has quite naturally arisen for sheer lack of printed facts. May we have your consent to publication?
Section two, The Alcoholic Foundation of Today, is, to some degree, a misnomer, because it has been written as though the several suggested changes in structure and money policy still under consideration were already in effect. Doctor Bob and I wish to place this section before the Foundation Reorganization Committee for their study and recommendations.
Section three is an attempt to construct a central structure for A.A. of the future —— one which might stand a better chance of survival than our present incomplete design. This would involve changing the name of the Foundation and the creation of a yearly Conference. This too, is, of course, a matter first for the Reorganization Committee and then for the Board of Trustees.
Should we be able to agree on sections two and three, or some better modifications of them, it might then prove desirable to incorporate all three sections into a pamphlet to be distributed to our whole membership.
Meanwhile it seems right to Dr. Bob and me that this material be placed before all the Trustees pending the study and report of the Reorganization Committee.
Appreciatively yours,
William G. Wilson
OUR A.A. GENERAL SERVICE CENTER
THE ALCOHOLIC FOUNDATION
OF
YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW
By Bill
PART ONE
THE ALCOHOLIC FOUNDATION OF YESTERDAY
Thousands of newer A.A. ‘s inquire "Just what is The Alcoholic Foundation, what is its place in A.A., who set it up, why do we send it funds?"
Most members, because their Groups are in frequent contact with our Headquarters at New York, understand that place to be a sort of a general service to all A.A. Reading THE A.A. GRAPEVINE each month they know THE GRAPEVINE to be our principal monthly journal. But the history of the Alcoholic Foundation and its relation to these vital functions, and to A.A. as a whole, they scarcely understand at all.
Now for a bit of history. During its first years, Alcoholics Anonymous didn’t even have that name. Anonymous, nameless indeed, we consisted by late 1937 of but three small clusters of alcoholics —-— Akron, Ohio, the first Group, New York City, the second, and a few members at Cleveland, our third Group to be. There were, I should guess, about fifty members in all three cities. The very early pioneering period had passed, Dr. Bob and I having first met at Akron in the spring of 1935. We were becoming sure we had something for those other thousands of alcoholics who didn’t yet know any answer. How were we to let them know; just how could the good news be spread? That was the burning question.
Much discussion in a little meeting called by Dr. Bob and me at Akron in the fall of 1937 developed a plan. This plan later proved to be approximately one-third right and about two—thirds wrong —— familiar process of trial and error. Because the development of the first Groups had been such a slow hard process we then supposed that none but seasoned pioneers could start new ones. Though we had misgivings, it seemed inevitable that about twenty of our solid members would have to lay aside their personal affairs and go to other cities to create new centers. Much as we disliked the idea, it appeared as if we must take on, temporarily at least, a squad of A.A. missionaries. Plainly, too, these missionaries and their families would have to eat. That would take money - quite a lot of it, we thought!
But that was not all. It was felt we needed A.A. hospitals at Akron and New York, these places being regarded as our twin "Mecca’s." There excellent medical care and high power spirituality could, we were sure, be sprayed on drunks who would flock in from all corners of the nation -— once the magic word "cure" got around. Even as many newer A. A. ‘s still have such fancies, we old-timers did dream these very dreams. Providentially, neither the A.A. hospital nor our missionary dreams came true. Had these then materialized, A.A. would surely have been ruined. We would have gone professional on the spot.
Then there was still a third dream. That was to prepare a Book of Experience -- the one we know today as "Alcoholics Anonymous." We were sure that unless our recovery experiences were put on paper, our principles and practices would soon be distorted. We might be ridiculed in the press. Besides, did we not owe at least a book to those alcoholics who couldn’t get to our hospitals, or who, perchance, weren’t reached right away by our advancing missionaries! As everybody knows, the A.A. book dream did come true -- the other dreams didn’t.
But it surely looked, in 1937, as though we must have considerable money. perhaps it was because I lived at New York, where there is supposed to be lots of it, that I was delegated to set about raising funds so our nameless movement might have its "field workers", hospitals and books. How simple it appeared. Did we not already have (in prideful imagination) the beginning of one of the greatest social, medical, and spiritual developments of all time? Weren’t we drunks all salesmen? Hadn’t I been a Wall Street man? How easy to raise money for such a cause as ours!
The awakening from that money dream was rude. It soon appeared that people with money had little interest in drunks. As for our grandiose scheme of banding alcoholics together in squads, platoons and regiments -— well, that was plainly fantastic, wasn’t it? Drunks, people said, were difficult enough, one at a time. Why present each American community with an organized regiment of them. Hadn’t the donors better put their money into something constructive -- like tuberculosis or cancer? Or, why shouldn’t they invest in the prevention of alcoholism? One more attempt to salvage hopeless drunks couldn’t possibly succeed. Such were the answers to our plea for money.
Then, one day, in the midst of discouragement, something momentous happened. It was another of those critical turning points in A.A. of which we have seen so many that no man can call them coincidence. At the office of my physician brother-in-law, I was bemoaning, in typical alcoholic fashion, how little we poor drunks were appreciated, especially by men of means. I was telling my relative for the tenth time how we had to have money soon —- or else. Listening patiently he suddenly said, "I’ve got an idea. I used to know a man by the name of Dick R. He was somehow connected with the Rockefellers. But that was years ago. I wonder if he is still there. Let me call up and find out." On what little events our destinies somehow turn! How could we know that a simple phone message was to open a new era in A.A.! That it was to inaugurate The Alcoholic Foundation, the book "Alcoholics Anonymous" and our A.A. Central Office.
Two day’s after my brother-in—law’s call, we sat in the Rockefeller offices talking to "Dick" R. The most lovable of men, "Dick" was the first of that early series of non-alcoholic laymen who saw us through when the going was very hard; and without whose wisdom and devotion the Alcoholics Anonymous movement might never have been. When he had heard the story, our new friend showed instant understanding. He immediately translated understanding into action. He suggested that some of our alcoholic brotherhood meet with several of his own friends and himself.
Shortly afterward, on a winters evening in 1937, this meeting took place at Rockefeller Center. Present were "Dick" R., a LeRoy C., since known as "Chip", Albert S., Frank A., and my brother—in-law, Leonard S. Dr. Bob and Paul S. came down from Akron. The New York ex-topers were half a dozen. Of course we alcoholics were delighted. Our money troubles, we thought, were over. If money was the answer, we had surely come to the right place!
Following introductions, each alcoholic told his own personal story, after which (with becoming reluctance!) we brought up the subject of money. As our hearers had seemed much impressed by our recovery stories, we made bold to expand on the urgent need for hospitals, "field workers" and a book. We also made it clear that this would take money -— quite a lot.
Then came one more turn in A.A. destiny. The Chairman of the meeting, Albert S., a man of large affairs, and profoundly spiritual in his nature said in substance, "I an deeply moved by what I have heard. I can see that your work, thus far, has been one of great good will -— one alcoholic personally helping another for the love of the thing. That is First Century Christianity in a beautiful form. But aren’t you afraid that the introduction of hospitals and paid field workers might change all that? Shouldn’t we be most careful not to do anything which might lead to a professional or propertied class within your ranks?"
These were great words for Alcoholics Anonymous. We alcoholics admitted their weight. Disappointed that our hope of substantial money help seemed to be fading, we confessed, nevertheless, that we often had such misgivings. But, we persisted, what are we going to do? It has taken us three years to form three groups. We know we have a new life for those who die or go mad by thousands each year. Must our story wait while it is passed around by word of mouth only, becoming hopelessly garbled meanwhile? Finally our friends agreed that something needed to be done. But they did continue to insist our movement ought never be professionalized. This struck the key note of our relation to these men of good will for all the years since. Rightly enough they have never secured us large sums of money. But each has given of himself to our cause, generously and continuously; how much, a few A.A. ‘s can never know.
Seeing clearly that we must now spread the recovery message faster, they then suggested we might carefully experiment with a small rest home at Akron. This could be presided over by Dr. Bob who was, after all, a physician. Whereupon Frank A., on his own time and expense, went to Akron to investigate. He returned most enthusiastic. He was inclined to the opinion that $30,000 ought to be invested there in a center for alcoholics. Our friend Dick R. showed Frank’s report to Mr. John D. Rockefeller Jr. who at once manifested a warm interest. But Mr. Rockefeller also expressed anxiety about professionalizing us. Nevertheless he gave us a sum which turned out to be, however, about one-sixth of the amount Frank had suggested. His gift came in the Spring of 1938 and its result was to help Dr. Bob and me through that very trying year. We could not have actively continued without it. Yet, money wise, our budding movement of alcoholics was still left very much on its own -— just where it should have been left too, however difficult that seemed at the time. We still had no "field staff", no hospital and no book.
These were the events which led to the formation of The Alcoholic Foundation. The need for a volume describing our recovery experiences loomed larger than ever. Were such a book to appear a great flow of inquiries from alcoholics and their families might start. Thousands, maybe. These appeals would certainly have to be cleared through some sort of Central Office. That was most evident.
For these same purposes, our friends suggested the formation of a Foundation to which givers might make tax free contributions. We alcoholics endlessly discussed this new project with them, consuming hours of their business time. Frank A. and a friendly attorney, Jeff W., out much effort on the original Foundation Trust agreement. The lawyer had never seen anything like it. The new Foundation should, we insisted, have two classes of Trustees - alcoholics and non - alcoholics. But, legally speaking, what was an alcoholic anyhow, he queried and if an alcoholic had stopped drinking, was he an alcoholic anymore? Then, why two classes of Trustees? That, said our attorney, was unheard of. We explained that we wanted our friends with us. And besides, we urged, suppose all of us alcoholics should get drunk at once, who then would hang on to the money! Surmounting many such obstacles The Alcoholic Foundation was finally inaugurated. It had four non-alcoholics and three alcoholic Trustees. They could appoint their own successors. It was chartered to do everything under the sun except lobby for prohibition. So it had everything -— except money!
During the summer of 1938 we solicited the well—to-do for contributions to fill that grand new receptacle, our Alcoholic Foundation. Again we encountered a strange indifference to drunks. Nobody was interested. We didn’t get a cent that I can remember. We were pretty discouraged; apparently Providence had deserted us. With the modest fund from Mr. Rockefeller running out, it looked like a lean winter ahead. There could be no book, no office. What good, we complained, was an Alcoholic Foundation without money!
By this time there had been roughed out what are now the first two chapters of the book now known as "Alcoholics Anonymous". Our friend Frank referred us to a well known publisher who suggested the possibility of advancing royalties to me so the book could be finished. That made us feel fine until it was realized that if I ate up a lot of royalties while doing the book, there could be no more payments for a long time afterward. We saw, too, that my 1O% royalty would never carry the office expenses of answering the pleas for help that would surely follow publication. Nor might a commercial publisher, anxious for sales, advertise it as we would like.
These reflections led us straight into a typical alcoholic fantasy! Why not publish the book ourselves? Though told by almost everybody who knew anything about publishing that amateurs seldom produce any but flops, we were not a whit dismayed. This time, we said, it would be different. We had discovered that the bare printing cost of a book is but a fraction of its retail price and a national magazine of huge circulation had offered to print an article about us when our book was finished. This was a clincher. How could we miss? We could see books selling hundreds of thousands -- money rolling in!
What a promotion it was! An A.A. friend and I hastily organized the Works Publishing Co. My friend, Hank P., then bought a pad of stock certificates at a stationary store. He and I started selling them to brother alcoholics and any who would buy at the bargain price of $25.00 a share. Sure fire proposition, folks, you can’t miss, we chanted. Our confidence must have been boundless. Not only were we selling common stock on a book to cure drunks —— the book itself hadn’t yet been written. Amazingly enough, we did sell that stock, $4,500 worth, to alcoholics in New York, New Jersey, and to their friends. No one of the original 49 subscribers put up over $300.00. Almost everybody paid on monthly installments, being too broke to do otherwise; save, of course, our good friends at Rockefeller Center. They pitched in, several of them subscribing.
Our agreement with the Works Publishing subscribers was that out of the first book income they were to get their money back; also that The Alcoholic Foundation was to receive the 1O% royalty I might have had from a Publisher. As for the shares of the Works Publishing, the 49 cash subscribers were to have one third, my friend Hank one third, and I one third. We also obtained a loan of $2,500 from Charles B.T., proprietor of a nationally known hospital for alcoholics. A friend indeed, he was to wait years to get his money back.
But, as anyone could then see, everything was all set —- everything, of course, but writing and selling the book! Hope ran high. Out of the new financing we could keep a small office going at Newark, New Jersey. There I began to dictate the text of "Alcoholics Anonymous" to Ruth H. (our first and adored National Secretary). Rosily we saw scads of money coming in, once the book was of f the press. Still more, we expected the new book would turn right about and help finance our poverty stricken foundation -- which, strangely enough, it really did years later.
Finally came April 1939. The book was done. Tales of recovery for its story section had been supplied by Dr. Bob and Akron brethren. Others were supplied by New Yorkers, and New Jerseyites. One came in from Cleveland and another from Maryland. Chapters had been read and discussed at meetings. I had thought myself the author of the text until I discovered I was just the umpire of the differences of opinion out of which it arose. After endless voting on a title for the new work we had decided to call it "The Way Out." But inquiry by Fitz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the fact that twelve books already bore that title. Surely we couldn’t make our book the thirteenth. So we called it "Alcoholics Anonymous" instead! Though we didn’t
know it, our movement then got it’s name —- a name which because of the implication of humility and modesty has given us our treasured spiritual principle of anonymity.
Five thousand copies of "Alcoholics Anonymous" lay in the printer’s warehouse, except the few we joyously passed around. Each stockholder and each story writer got one free. The New York Times did a good review. We hastened to the National Magazine to tell them we were ready for their promised article. We could see A.A. books going out in carload lots!
What a debacle. At the office of the great monthly periodical we were gently told they had entirely forgotten to let us know, nine months before, that they had decided to print nothing about us. The editors had concluded we drunks were too controversial a subject! This stunning announcement left us in a daze. The whole Alcoholics Anonymous movement could buy less than a hundred books, as it had only one hundred members. Besides, we had given away 79 free ones! What were we to do with those other thousands of books? What could we say to the printer, whose bill wasn’t half paid? What about that little loan of $2,500 and those forty-nine subscribers who had invested $4,500 in Works Publishing stock. How would we break the awful news to them? How could we tell them that since we had no publicity we could sell no books. Yes, that A.A. book venture was, I fear, very alcoholic.
Thus was the good book "Alcoholics Anonymous" born into bankruptcy. Some of the creditors got restive; the Sheriff actually appeared at our Newark office. The promoters were very low —- financially and otherwise. The house in which my wife and I lived at Brooklyn was taken over by the bank. We took up residence in a summer camp loaned by an A.A. friend Horace C. and his family. My friend Hank fared no better. Things certainly looked bleak. Still only three active groups, we had acquired besides a bankrupt A.A. book, one unpaid but loyal secretary, a tiny Central Office that might have to close any day and an Alcoholic Foundation with no money in it. That was the score after four years of Alcoholics Anonymous.
How we ever got the book and our office through that summer of 1939 I shall never quite know. Had it not been for a truly sacrificial act on the part of Bert T., an early New York A.A., I’m sure we couldn’t have survived. Bert loaned the defunct Works Publishing Co. $1,000. This he obtained by signing a note secured by his own business, then in a shaky condition. His act of faith was followed by two more pieces of good fortune which barely got us through the year. In the fall of 1939 LIBERTY magazine published a piece about us. This produced a flood of inquiries. Some of those writing in bought the A.A. book. Those few book receipts kept our articles in the CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER. This started a prodigious growth of A.A. out there and created a little more demand for the A.A. book which helped a lot.
Nor were our friends at Rockefeller Center idle. One day, "Dick" R., greeted us at a Foundation meeting with the broadest of smiles. It was then February 1940. Dick hastened to say that Mr. John D. Rockefeller Jr. had been following our progress with intense interest; that he would like, for the inspiration of his guests and for the benefit of Alcoholics Anonymous, to give a dinner. Mr. Rockefeller proposed inviting several hundred people, including personal friends and associates. This was a ten strike.
In March, 1940, the dinner came of f. Mr. R. ‘s friends turned out in force. An A.A. member was placed at each guest table. Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick, who had superbly reviewed our book, spoke of A.A. from the spiritual viewpoint. Dr. Foster Kennedy, noted neurologist, gave his hearers the medical outlook. We alcoholics were asked to talk also. At the conclusion of the evening Mr. Nelson Rockefeller, explaining that his father had not been able to come because of illness, went on to say that few things more deeply affecting or promising than Alcoholics Anonymous had ever touched his father’s life; that he wished his friends to share this experience with him.
Though great wealth was present at the dinner meeting that night, little was said touching money. Hope was expressed that A.A. might soon become self—supporting. But the suggestion was made, however, that until such a stage was reached, a little financial help might be needed. Following the dinner meeting Mr. Rockefeller wrote a fine personal letter to each guest, expressing his feelings about A.A., and concluding with the observation that he was making us a modest gift. Accompanying each letter was a reprint of the talks given at the dinner and a copy of the book "Alcoholics Anonymous." On receipt of Mr. Rockefeller’s letter, many of his guests responded with donations to the Alcoholic Foundation.
This so—called "Rockefeller dinner list" has since been almost the whole source of "outside" money gifts to The Alcoholic Foundation. These donations averaged around $3,000 annually and they were continued for about five years --1940 to 1945. This income The Foundation divided between Dr. Bob and me so helping us to give A.A. a good part of our time during that critical period. Not long since, The Foundation Trustees were able to write the original dinner contributors, with great thanks, that their help would no longer be needed; that the Alcoholic Foundation had become adequately supported by the A.A. Groups and by income from the book "Alcoholics Anonymous"; that the personal needs of Dr. Bob and myself were being met out of book royalties.
Back now, to 1940. The significant thing about Mr. Rockefeller’s dinner, of course, was not the money it raised. Here came an influential citizen wise enough to see that our great need was not money. What we did really need was favorable public recognition; we needed someone who would stand up and say what he thought and felt about Alcoholics Anonymous. Considering the fact that we were then few in number; that we were none too sure of ourselves; that not long since society had known us as common drunkards, I think Mr. Rockefeller’s wisdom and courage was great indeed.
The effect of that dinner meeting was instantaneous; the news wires all carried the story. Hundreds of alcoholics and their families rushed to buy the book "Alcoholics Anonymous." Our little Central Office was flooded with pleas for help. It soon had to be moved from Jersey to Vesey Street, New York. Ruth H. got her back pay and forthwith became our first National Secretary. Enough books were sold to keep the office going. So passed 1940. Alcoholics Anonymous had made its national debut.
Just a year later, the SATURDAY EVENING POST assigned Jack Alexander to do a story about us. Under the impetus of Mr. Rockefeller’s dinner and CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER pieces, our membership had shot up to about 2,000. Our Clevelanders, had just proved that even a small group could, if it must, successfully absorb great numbers of newcomers in a hurry. They had exploded the myth that A.A. must always grow slowly. From the Akron - Cleveland area we had begun to spill over into other places, Chicago, Detroit, and the like. In the east, Philadelphia had taken fire. Washington and Baltimore were smoldering. Further west, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco were putting down roots. Growth continued at Akron and New York. We took special pride in Little Rock, Arkansas. It had sprung up with no A.A. help at all, except books and letters from the Central Office. It was the first of the so—called "mail order" Groups now commonplace all over the world. Even then, we had stated correspondence with many isolated alcoholics who were to form Groups later on.
Despite this good progress, the approaching SATURDAY EVENING POST piece set us aghast. While our Cleveland experience had given wonderful assurances that our few established groups would survive the impact of heavy publicity, what could we possibly do with the thousands of burning appeals that would now swamp our little New York office which, by the way, then consisted of but one small room where sat Ruth H., a typist and myself? What could we three people do with five, or maybe ten thousand, frantic inquiries? The A.A. book income had barely taken care of the two girls and the office rent. The POST article would bring more book sales, but not enough to handle this emergency. We had to have more office help -— and quickly.
We realized we simply must, for the first time, ask the A.A. groups for assistance. The Alcoholic Foundation still had no money save the $3,000 a year "dinner fund" which was helping to keep Dr. Bob and me afloat. Besides, some of the creditors and cash subscribers of Works Publishing (the A.A. book company) were getting anxious again. When, they asked, were they going to get their money back? Then, too, I had made the disheartening discovery that "promoters" are not always popular in A.A. Fantastic stories circulated about our connection with Mr. Rockefeller and vast "personal profits" on the Works Publishing book stock. This, despite the fact that the tiny book income had been spent to support the office, and the further fact that the so—called "promoter’s book shares" had never been issued to us at all, but had, at our request, been transferred to The Alcoholic Foundation instead. By this time I had been thoroughly cured of the desire to "promote" anything! Yet our little Central Office simply had to have funds, else we must throw thousands of heartbreaking appeals to the wastebasket.
With some trepidation, two of the alcoholic members of our Foundation traveled out among the A.A. Groups to explain. They presented their listeners with these ideas: That support of our Central Office was a definite necessary assistance to our "12th step work"; that we A.A. ‘s ought to pay these office expenses ourselves and rely no further upon outside charity or insufficient book sales. The two Trustees also suggested that The Alcoholic Foundation be made a regular depository for Group funds; that the Foundation would earmark all Group monies for Central Office expenses only that each month the Central Office would bill the Foundation for the straight A.A. expenses of the place,; that all group contributions ought to be entirely voluntary; that every A.A. Group would receive equal service from the New York office, whether it contributed or not. It was estimated that if each Group sent The Foundation a sum equal to $1.00 per member per year, this might eventually carry our office, without other assistance. Under this arrangement the office would ask the Groups twice yearly for funds and render, at the same time, a statement of its expenses for the previous period.
Our two trustees, Horace C. and Bert T. did not come back empty handed. Now clearly understanding the situation, most groups began contributing to The Alcoholic Foundation for Central Office expenses, and have continued to do so ever since. In this practice the A.A. tradition of self support had a firm beginning. Thus we handled the SATURDAY EVENING POST article for which thousands of A.A. ‘s are today so grateful.
The enormous inpouring of fresh members quickly laid the foundation for hundreds of new A.A. Groups and they soon began to consult the Central Office about their growing pains, thus confronting our Service Headquarters with group problems as well as personal inquiries. The office then began to publish a list of all A.A. Groups and it furnished traveling A.A. ‘s with lists of prospects in cities which had none. Out-of -towners we had never seen before began to visit us, so starting what is today the huge network of personal contact between our General Office staff at New York and A.A. Groups throughout the world.
The year 1941 was a great one for the growing A.A. It was the beginning of the huge development to follow; our Central Office got solid group backing; we began to abandon the idea of outside charitable help in favor of self—support. Last, but not least, our Alcoholic Foundation really commenced to function. By this time linked to the A.A. Central Office because of its responsibility for the Group funds being spent there, and to Works Publishing (the book "Alcoholics Anonymous") by partial ownership, the trustees of our Alcoholic Foundation had become, though they did not realize it, the Custodians of Alcoholics Anonymous -- both of money and of tradition. Alcoholics Anonymous had become a National institution.
Quietly, but effectively, the evolution of our Foundation has since continued. Several years ago the trustees had a certified audit made of the Alcoholic Foundation and Works Publishing from their very beginnings. A good book keeping system was installed and regular audits became an established custom.
About 1942 it became evident that the Foundation ought to complete its ownership of Works Publishing (the book "Alcoholics Anonymous"). So the Trustees invited the outstanding cash subscribers of Works to deposit their stock with the Foundation. Most of the original cash subscribers still needed their money, and had to wait a long time for it. Several thousand dollars were obviously required. Of course Group funds could not be used for this purpose.
So the Trustees, spearheaded this time by our old friend "Chip", turned again to Mr. Rockefeller and his "dinner list." These original donors most gladly made the Foundation the Necessary loan. This enabled the Foundation to acquire full ownership of our A.A. book (Works Publishing, Inc.). Meanwhile, Works Publishing, being now partly relieved of supporting the Central Office, had been able to pay its own creditors in full. Later on, when our of A.A. book income the Trustees offered to pay of f the Foundation debt, several of the lenders would take only a part payment —— some none at all. At last we were in the clear. This event marked the end of our financial troubles. Let me again thank our non—alcoholic friends of the Board of Trustees. Time after time, these busy men have personally attended to such vital but unexciting tasks as I have been describing. The few of us who fully realize what they have done and continue to do would like every A.A. to share our appreciation.
The last few years of A.A. have been so fantastically phenomenal that nearly everybody in America knows about us. Seemingly, the rest of the globe will soon learn. A.A. travelers are going abroad, our literature is being translated into other tongues. In this country we make the headline daily. A full length moving picture is in prospect. New proposals for major publicity are weekly occurrences. Today our General Service Headquarters has a staff of twelve. Because of our prodigious growth and our continuous entry into more foreign countries, we shall presently need twenty. Popularly known to thousands as "Bobbie," our A. A. General Secretary now serves world A. A. On the Board of the Alcoholic Foundation three of our earlier friends remain. New faces are seen at quarterly meetings, each as anxious to serve as the original group. The A.A. GRAPEVINE, our principal monthly journal, made its appearance two years ago and is now taking its place among our General Headquarters’ Services. Our acute money problems, praise be, have disappeared; the A.A. Groups support the General Office; The A.A. Grapevine is almost paying its own way. Out of its Works Publishing (A.A. book) income the Foundation has accumulated a prudent financial reserve against a possible time of business depression and unemployment. That reserve now stands at more than a full year’s headquarters expense, which, by the way, still remains not much above the very low figure of $1.00 an A.A. per year. Two years ago the Trustees set aside, out of A.A. book funds, a sum which enabled my wife and me to pay of f the mortgage on our home and make some needed improvements. The Foundation also granted Dr. Bob and me each a royalty of lO% on the book "Alcoholics Anonymous." This, we wish to say, is now our only income from A.A. sources. We are both very comfortable and deeply grateful.
This account of our stewardship of Alcoholics Anonymous during its infancy has now reached down into present time —- the year 1947. So Dr. Bob, the Trustees and I now would like every member of Alcoholics Anonymous to see in more detail how our General Service Headquarters is structured at the present. We would like all to know just how the Foundation Trustees, as Custodians, the A.A. General Secretary and General Office Staff, as Service members, THE GRAPEVINE Editor and staff as Editorial members are related, one to the other, and to Alcoholics Anonymous as a whole.
Part two -— "The Alcoholic Foundation of Today," follows next.
Part Two
Our A.A. General Service Center
The Alcoholic Foundation
Of Today
In Part One of this Foundation story we saw how an informal group of early A.A. ‘s and their non-alcoholic friends banded together in 1938 to spread the A.A. message as best they could; how this group formed The Alcoholic Foundation, and how some of them became its first Trustees. We saw how the Foundation helped Dr. Bob and me through difficult years; how the book "Alcoholics Anonymous" and the A.A. Office came into being and how, later, the Foundation acquired ownership of the A.A. book. We observed that the Foundation was chosen by the Groups in 1941, as custodian of their voluntary contributions for the support of the A.A. General Service Office at New York. We also have learned that, more recently, the Foundation assumed a responsibility for effectiveness and integrity of THE A.A. GRAPEVINE and that some time ago the A.A. Groups designated the Foundation Trustees as the overseers of our general public relations. Then early last year, on publication of "The Alcoholics Anonymous Tradition --— Twelve Points to Assure Our Future," the Trustees of The Alcoholic Foundation were named the Custodians of these traditions as well.
Such has been the gradual process of evolution and common consent by which the Foundation Trustees have come to be regarded, first nationally, and now internationally, as THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS —-Custodians of A.A. Tradition, General Policy and Headquarters Funds.
In the early A.A. years Dr. Bob and I performed many of these duties ourselves. Some A.A. ‘s seem to think we still perform all of them. But that is scarcely the case. From the beginning we never had anything to do with A.A. Group funds, though we often urged the Groups to support their General Office at New York by contributions to the foundation. Bob and I were once concerned with the preparation, financing and publication of the book, "Alcoholics Anonymous." But the Foundation now owns this book and oversees its printing and distribution. Likewise, we used to perform, in our small way, those services today rendered by the General Service Office. But these functions have been mostly transferred to the General Office staff. Hence the money and service functions of our A.A. headquarters are already lodged in more permanent agencies than Dr. Bob and me. The same kind of transfer is still going on with respect to matters of general policy. In a few years more that, too, ought to be complete. The thought is that Dr. Bob and I would like to leave, at the very middle of A.A., a simple Center of Service. Within this Center the coming generations of Custodians, Secretaries and Editors will, we trust, be accepted as our successors in such affairs.
Let us now consider the A.A. General Service Headquarters as it stands at present. The structure is simplicity itself. Mainly it consists of one principal committee and three related ones. Each, for permanence and business convenience, is incorporated.
The principal committee or Board is, of course, The Alcoholic Foundation. This is now manned by four older A.A. members and five non—alcoholic friends of the A.A. movement. As Board members (Trustees) they serve without compensation. Though there is no fixed term of office, the alcoholic members feel they should nominate their own successors about every three years. New non-alcoholic Trustees are elected by the whole Board. Unlike the Rotating Committee of a local A.A. Group, the Foundation Trustees cannot be personally known to everyone. Hence the presence of non—alcoholics on the Board has always inspired a confidence and assured a certain stability the Foundation, no doubt, would otherwise lack. Necessarily, the Board members have to choose their own successors; the election of Trustees by thousands of A.A. Groups is obviously impossible. In addition to these, the A.A. General Secretary and THE GRAPEVINE editors are ex-officio members of the Foundation and qualified to vote on all questions save their own compensation for special services.
The Foundation’s non-alcoholic members are, at this writing: Willard R. and A. Leroy C. (remembered from Rockefeller Center days as "Dick" and "Chip"), Leonard S., a physician; Bernard S., a lawyer and Leonard H., a social service authority. For alcoholics we have Horace C. and Tom K., early New York members; Dick S. formerly of Akron, Cleveland and Chicago, and Tom B., formerly of New York, now of Atlanta —— both early and experienced A.A. ‘s. The ex-officio members are Bobbie B., A.A. General Secretary and Tom Y., GRAPEVINE Editor -—each alcoholic of note, and hard workers. Dr. Bob and I know these as our close associates; we recommend them to you all.
The Foundation’s three related Committees are: The General Office Committee, The General Policy and Publications Committee and The Grapevine Committee. To give these committees permanence and to enable them to transact business, each one, like the Foundation itself is incorporated. The General Office Committee is incorporated as A.A. General Services Inc., The Central Policy and Publications Committee as Works Publishing, Inc.; and The Grapevine Committee as The A.A. Grapevine, Inc. The Foundation, of course, owns the entire beneficial interest in each of these small corporations which are only, it must be emphasized, mere business conveniences for their respective Committees.
To assure a close working relationship between our Headquarters people, The General Office Committee is composed of three Foundation Trustees and two members of the Central Office staff; The Grapevine Committee is formed of two trustees, The Grapevine Editor, and two members of The Grapevine staff. The General Policy and Publications Committee is serviced by three Trustees, The Grapevine Editor and the A.A. General Secretary.
Our General Office Committee is responsible for the business policy and effectiveness of that place. The A.A. General Secretary is charged with its executive management. The Grapevine Committee is responsible for the business conduct of The Grapevine. The Grapevine Editor is chairman of this committee. The Grapevine Editor and his voluntary staff are responsible for the editorial policy of the journal, the Editor having the final choice of what is printed. In case of conflict between editorial policy and general A.A. policy or tradition the matter will be decided by the General Policy and Publications Committee or the Foundation staff.
The General Policy and Publications Committee has the duty of settling those new questions of Headquarters policy which The Grapevine editor or the General Secretary cannot well decide alone, but which, in the judgment of the Committee, need not warrant a special meeting of the Foundation. The General policy and publications Committee is also charged with the editing, printing and distribution of all Headquarters books and pamphlets, new or old. This important Committee is intended to be a common Headquarters meeting ground where prompt action can be taken on policy question of medium importance. But it is understood by everyone that any decision important enough to greatly affect A.A. as a whole must be taken at a special or regular quarterly meeting of The Alcoholic Foundation. AT this level the Trustees have the final word.
This development of our internal structure has taken place slowly and always on the basis of experience and need. In like manner, our thinking about Foundation policies has undergone a gradual evolution. In fact it is a revolution, respecting the use of Foundation money and the status of outside enterprises like hospitalization, research, and alcohol education. Once we imagined we ought to fill the Foundation with huge sums financing, besides A.A., all sorts of outside projects. We thought in terms of money solicitation and money charity. The Foundation was formerly chartered to do all these things. But today, in common with most A.A. Groups, the Trustees have entirely abandoned such concepts. Never, do we think, should the Foundation finance or endorse any outside project, however worthy. Foundation money, we believe, should be spent for A.A. General Service purposes only. These purposes should always be universal in character, never of local or minor benefit. For some years now the Foundation has solicited no outside funds, and unless there comes a dire emergency, it will not solicit again. This is because the A.A. movement itself is becoming fully committed to the principle of self—support; we prefer to pay our own way. Neither should the Foundation become wealthy through large gifts; these will surely be declined. We hope A.A. Groups will continue to support the General Office, The Grapevine subscribers, The Grapevine and we believe that Foundation income from the book "Alcoholics Anonymous" will always provide us a prudent reserve against any foreseeable headquarters emergency. That is our money policy.
There must be few societies or organizations in the whole world whose General Service expenses are as modest as ours: One dollar a member a year of voluntary contributions. We therefore think that our necessary Headquarters Services should be the very best -— that our few full time workers should be paid, not by charity standards but by business standards; that since most of us, thanks to A.A., earn excellent livings at business, we should not ask our special workers to do with less.
The Alcoholic Foundation is no longer seen as an institution or a moneyed charity, it has become, instead, The General Service Board for Alcoholics Anonymous, a collective conscience of our A.A. society. The Foundation’s responsibility now extends well beyond that of handling our few dollars and services. As the principal custodian of our tradition and policy it acts, usually through The Grapevine or General Office staffs, to inform the whole world of our A.A. message and point of view. THE GRAPEVINE, the "Voice of A.A. Experience" reaches out to A.A. members. The General Office, in cooperation with the General Policy Committee, conducts our public relations and is consulted in difficult intergroup situations. When serious questions arise, the Trustees may deal with them directly, making perhaps, a public statement. But no action is ever taken in the spirit of discipline or authority. For our Headquarters is a service only —— not a government.
In the field of A.A. Tradition and overall policy, Dr. Bob and I still do function. We are frequently consulted on questions which arise. But we now feel that, while always glad to help, we should be less and less heard in A.A. councils. Only in this way can our Service Headquarters Custodians, Editors and Secretaries be accustomed to function, as they must one day, when we so-called "founders" are no more.
Meanwhile, our active arms of service have been developing their own methods and traditions. At the General Office the vast outcome of nine years exciting experience reposes in our files and in the heads of our two Secretaries. Because of their station at the heart of A.A. they are bound to have a broader view than most of us. Out of strenuous experience they have developed effective ways of handling the multitude of problems and situations that press for answers. They have an immense personal acquaintance that stretches all over the globe. With them a "crisis a day" is routine. We are coming to see that a permanently successful operation of the General Office will depend on the preservation of these accumulated experiences and contacts. Lest these immense assets be someday lost, we shall always need several assistant secretaries in training. And may we always remember that these secretarial servants of A.A. have a most strenuous vocation. They are entitled to our fullest appreciation and backing —— theirs is no sinecure.
Being the most active spot in A.A., the New York General Office last year (1946) answered 15,000 pleas for help from alcoholics and their families; it shipped half a million pamphlets and 25,000 A.A. books; it had about 12,000 telephone calls; it prepared and shipped 3,000 Group lists; got out a new printing of the A.A. book; arranged for a Spanish translation of the A.A. pamphlet; saw 2,000 visitors; registered and wrote to 500 new Groups; arranged much publicity, notably the MARCH OF TIME film and the READER’S DIGEST piece; discussed the preparation of a full length movie; wrote innumerable letters to Groups about their problems and still found time to help the development of A.A. Groups in foreign countries.
All this was done by a staff of twelve people -- three alcoholics and nine "nons." It cost the A.A. Groups about $36,000, still averaging a dollar a member for 1946, a year of steeply rising expenses. Some A.A. Groups contributed much more than a dollar per capita, some much less. No A.A. dollars can be better spent than those sent the Foundation for General Office expenses. Dr. Bob and I want to thank the Groups for their loyal support. May it never lessen!
Our newest development, THE A.A. GRAPEVINE, has a like promise. It is one of the finest volunteer undertakings we have seen. Its 6,000 subscribers (1946) are to be found in every state of the Union and many foreign lands. Its Editor and volunteer staff burn oil many nights a month at a little room in Greenwich Village. Here, during the day, two full time workers look after THE GRAPEVINE routine and correspond with the network of GRAPEVINE reporters at home and abroad.
Like the earlier people who assembled the Foundation, the A.A. book and the Central Office, THE A.A. GRAPEVINE began two years ago among several newspaper-minded A.A. ‘s who thought we needed a monthly periodical. They were willing to contribute a little money and boundless effort to make it a success. At the beginning, this group of A.A. ‘s had no special authorization from anyone. They just took of f their coats and did a job, a job so well done that at the end of a year they found their paper in National distribution. There was no sponsoring nor much promoting. Like the A.A. book venture, the General Office, and the Foundation, THE A.A. GRAPEVINE became a part of A.A. life on its own effort and merit.
Arrived at this point, members of THE GRAPEVINE staff came to the Trustees to discuss the future of their publication. They also asked me to write some pieces and requested me to ascertain if the groups would like to have their periodical as the principal A.A. monthly journal. Hundreds of groups and individual subscribers came back with and enthusiastic "yes." There was scarce a dissent. So, THE A.A. GRAPEVINE was incorporated and its beneficial ownership transferred to the Foundation.
As one of the Grapeviners recently put it, "We think that The A.A. Grapevine ought to become the ‘Voice of Alcoholics Anonymous’ bringing us news of each other across great distances and always describing what can be freshly seen in that vast and life-giving pool we call A.A. experience." Never taking part in the controversial issues of religion, reform or politics, never seeking profit, never lending itself to commerce or propaganda, always mindful of our sole aim to carry the A.A. message to those who suffer from alcoholism -— such is our ideal for The Grapevine."
With these sentiments Dr. Bob and I heartily concur. We hope that A.A.’s everywhere will feel it to be their newspaper; that our able writers will contribute freely; that all Groups will send in news of their doings which may be of general interest; that THE GRAPEVINE will presently take its place in the minds of all A.A. ‘s as one of our essential general services close alongside the Foundation, the A.A. book and the General Office.
This concludes what I hope has proved a welcome account of our stewardship of your A.A. General Service Center at New York -- The Alcoholic Foundation of Today.
Now, what the future? What about The Alcoholic Foundation of Tomorrow?
On coming pages I shall try to tell you of our thoughts on that subject.
Part Three
Our A.A. General Service Conference
The Alcoholic Foundation Of Tomorrow
Knowing that we are not prophets, and that great decisions about our future ought to be taken in the meditations of many hearts rather than a few, the Trustees, Dr. Bob and I would like to share the following reflections and proposals with every A.A. member.
Alcoholics Anonymous, we think, will always need a world center -— some point of reference on this globe where our few but important universal services can focus and then radiate to all who wish to be informed or helped. Such a place will ever be needed to look after our over—all public relations, answer inquiries, foster new Groups and distribute our standard books and publications. We shall also want a place of advice and mediation touching important questions of general policy or A.A. Tradition. We shall require, too, a safe repository for the modest funds we shall use to carry out these simple, but universal purposes.
Of course we must take care that our universal center of service never attempt to discipline or govern. Conversely, we ought to protect our good servants working there from unreasonable demands or political demands of any kind. No personal power, no officials or resounding titles, no politics, no accumulation of money or property; none but vital universal services to Alcoholics —— that is our ideal. To do without such a Center would be to invite confusion and disunity; to install there a centralized authority would be to encourage political strife and cleavage. Some little organization of our services, securely bound by tradition, we shall surely need —- just enough, and of such a character as to permanently forestall any more.
At the middle of A.A. we now have the excellent body of custody and service described in Part Two of the narrative. There we saw how our Foundation Trustees have gradually come to symbolize the collective Conscience of A.A., how our General Office acts in the manner of a Heart which received problems through its veins and pumps out assistance through its myriad arteries, and how The GRAPEVINE tries to record the true voice of Alcoholics Anonymous. Such is the happy state of our central affairs that we surely must take pains to preserve and protect, we trust, into a long and useful future.
Therefore, our headquarters problem of the future will, in all probability, consist in guarding and preserving, in its main outlines, what we already have. How then, shall we best keep intact our ideal of service; how shall we avoid national or international politics; how can we best devise against any possible breakdown of the present A.A. Service Headquarters and how shall we give each A.A. in the world a continual assurance that all is well with it; that it continues to perform its task effectively, so meriting his warm support, moral and financial?
To these problems of tomorrow many are giving prayerful reflection. A. A. ‘s are commencing to say "what, or who, is going to guarantee the operation of our General Headquarters when the old-timers who inaugurated it are passed of f the scene, especially very early ones like Dr. Bob and Bill. Known so well to us from the pioneering period of A.A., these early ones still occupy a unique position. They command a wider confidence and still wield more personal influence than anyone else could again, or for that matter, ever should. Having helped set up our universal Service Center they asked the rest of us to have confidence in it. And we do have that confidence, not that we much know the present Trustees, but because we know Bob and Bill and the other oldsters. In the long future, when these oldsters can no longer assure us, who is going to take their place? Does it not seem clear that the A.A. movement and its Service Center must soon be drawn closer together? Though we know our General Office and our GRAPEVINE fairly well, shouldn’t we somehow draw closer to our Trustees? Shouldn’t we take steps to allay our feelings of remoteness while the older ones are still around, and there is still time to experiment?" Such are the questions now being asked, and they are good ones.
Perhaps the best suggestion for closing the gap between our Alcoholic Foundation and the A.A. Groups is the idea of creating what we might call the General Service Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Though this might be the work of several years and the result of much experimental trial and error, I would now like to indicate what some of us now think such a Service Conference could be and how it might be started. This Conference, we think, ought to be composed of a fair number of good A.A. members meeting annually, at which time we would seat our present Headquarters down in their midst. Our Service Headquarters’ people -— Trustees, general Office Staff and Grapevine would be members of the Conference also. We might add our ex—trustees. The Conference would then hear the reports of each headquarters’ department, making whatever recommendation it chose in that connection. The Conference would, at its conclusion, issue a full report of its proceedings to every A. A. in the world.
The General Service Conference, like the present Headquarters, would be no body of authority. It could recommend or suggest, it might approve or disapprove. But it would never command or direct, either the Headquarters people or A.A. as a whole. It ought never, we believe, have the slightest political complexion. Neither delegates nor headquarters people would consider themselves political representatives of any cause or locality. They would, instead, regard themselves as servants of world—wide A.A. charged with sitting at its yearly table to render all of us a few simple services.
It is thought, too, that our present Board of Trustees should retain the privilege of naming their successors, subject however to one important modification. It is felt that the Trustees should submit names for their successors to the Conference for confirmation —— that the Conference might, if it ever seemed desirable, reject a nomination. This would permit the Conference to exercise, if it wished, a strong influence on the choice of Trustees, yet still avoid hasty or ill—considered election. At the same time, the obvious disadvantage of outright self—perpetuation without consultation would be avoided. We think the Conference should, in general, have a privilege of rejection, but not of election or direction. Should the Headquarters members of the Conference ever be tempted to run of f on an unwise tangent, it is anticipated that the privilege of the Conference to disapprove, publicly if necessary, would act as a healthy restraint, sufficient for any contingency.
Yet it can be seen, in effect, that the creation of a yearly Conference would not radically alter the set—up of our present Service Headquarters. It would simply broaden its base to the point where it would always be sure to engage the complete confidence and support of A.A. everywhere. It would bring our Trustees into friendly contact with a representative cross section of A.A., it would enable them to feel the pulse of the movement for themselves; it would securely link them to those they serve and it would permanently close that gap of remoteness in which Dr. Bob, I, and others, are still standing.
Now how shall we actually create the General Service Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous? Certainly neither Dr. Bob, I, nor the trustees could hand pick its membership. That would be too personal. Nor could we throw A.A. international into a spasm of yearly elections. That would be too political. As no matter of government or authority is involved, we shall never need a big gathering -— just a few good A.A.’s - to see that our services are doing well. That will be enough. But how can we assemble these on a non-political basis? That’s the puzzle. Perhaps the answer is something like this:
Why not first go to our twelve largest Groups or areas asking each to designate our Conference one delegate, say every three years. The year following the appointment of this first "Panel of Twelve" we could ask the twelve Groups next largest in size to select a second panel of twelve,, and the third year we might repeat the process so deriving a third "Panel of Twelve." This would give the Conference a rotating membership of thirty-six delegates. Adding the Headquarters members we would then have about fifty in all. For any practical purpose this would seem large enough. It is possible, of course, that the Conference itself might wish to name a "special panel of twelve" which could include foreign delegates or fill in from sections containing many A.A. ‘s, but no large Groups. Under such a plan it would fall mostly to the lot of our large metropolitan areas to make the individual selections, much more of a headache perhaps, than an honor. Yet I’m sure it can be done. For the good of A.A. as a whole, we think it must be done. But how?
The other day a friend came up with a proposal: Why, said he, in areas having strong Central Committees, couldn’t we ask these committees to make the Conference designations? Couldn’t any personal feeling be avoided if a Central Committee were to make several suitable nominations and then draw lots to see which nominee would be the Service Conference delegate? And why not apply the same principle in cities having several Groups but no Central Committee? Each Group could vote its choice of a nominee. Then a drawing from among these Group nominees would determine the Conference delegate.
Such methods might not invariably produce the best possible choices but it would pretty well eliminate personal competition and would make each General Service Conference delegate realize that he had been, only by chance, chosen to do a duty rather than elected to enjoy an honor. While not perfection, this idea, or some variation of it, may have great merit for our special purpose. Of course each locality making a Conference designation must need to feel at liberty to choose its own methods. Perhaps it ought to be emphasized that Conference delegates would not necessarily have to be local leaders or super A.A. ‘s We would only require a group of good members capable of sitting down once a year at the Headquarters to report on the state of our services and A.A. in general.
It ought to be noted that these remarks about the non—political character of our Service Conference have no special bearing on the desirability of local elections for local Group purposes. Election is the democratic way of doing thing so I firmly believe in that principle when at all practical. It is only because of the tremendous importance of maintaining the pure service character of our Headquarters and the manifest impossibility of electing Trustees, Secretaries and Editors from among the thousands of A.A. Groups that I feel we should deviate, in this very special case, from the election process. Neither would it seem proper or feasible to load our small, loosely knit and rotating Service Conference with full responsibility for such choices, though the Conference should most definitely participate in them, as already suggested.
One more point should be made clear here - while our non-alcoholic trustees perform a special function at our general Headquarters, it does not necessarily follow that non-alcoholics are needed on the average A.A. group rotating committee dealing with local problems only.
To complete our picture of The Alcoholic Foundation of Tomorrow we suggest one more alteration of the status quo. The suggestion is that we change the name of The Alcoholic Foundation to that of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous and we would incorporate the Board (for business transactions only), as Alcoholics Anonymous Inc. The present trustees would then become known as members of our A.A. General Service Board.
The reasons for these changes are abundantly clear. The words "Foundation" and "Trustee" constantly suggest a moneyed institution engaged in a money charity; they also suggest formalism and authority. As these concepts no longer characterize our Service Headquarters, it is clear we ought to abandon such terms. Then, too, The Alcoholic Foundation has already, though unintentionally, set a precedent for the formation of several other "Foundations," sometimes incorporated under A.A. auspices and usually chartered to solicit funds for research hospitalization and education. As our own Foundation now has none of these aims, we see one more excellent reason to change its name.
So our next two steps would seem to be the Foundation name change and the formation of The General Service Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous. Each is a simple idea. But the latter way requires a considerable period of years to perfect. And may we urge that none consider these suggestions final, or the best possible. While we are fairly sure of the general principles involved, this is not the time to declare, in detail, the precise form of our future Center of Service. Though our present convictions on these matters are quite firm, they may prove far from infallible. Only in the fullness of more time and experience can they be tested. This is the spirit in which they are offered.
In times of imaginative reflection, Alcoholics Anonymous seems to me as a cathedral of infinite dimensions in process of building. Like the cathedrals of graceful line and stone, our structure of truthful principles will never be quite finished. There will probably be, as we better apprehend the truth for us, certain additions, refinements and perhaps, who knows, marked changes.
Yet to us thousands who now stand in peace on its vast floor, whereon is inscribed our twelve points of recovery, and gaze at the great walls and vaulted roof, now so well buttressed by our A.A. tradition and seemingly secure against the storms without and subtle perils within, we wonder that we have come so far without mishap.
But it is more to the beckoning spire that some of us now are looking. Its outlines seem clearly there; workmen are upon its scaffolds. We may not surely rest secure until we know that it is firmly anchored; that its symbolic finger points straight upward —— toward God.