BUT, FOR THE GRACE OF GOD… How Intergroups & Central Offices
Carried the Message ofAlcoholics Anonymous in the 1940s
by Wally P.
This book was published by The Bishop of Books in Wheeling, West Virginia in 1995.
This is a First Edition from June 1995, Limited Printing- 2,000 Copies.
During the early days of Alcoholics Anonymousโฆ
They burned the A.A. Archives in Akron. Talk about a “resentment!”
In Missouri, the A.A. Club was raided by police and the “Springfield Seven” were arrested, tried, and convicted of “betting on games.”
“Toodles,” a New York drunk down to her last $3 million, arrived at A.A. in a limo with chauffeur.
Cleveland A.A. financed its A.A. District Office with minstrel shows and boxing matches that racked in over $1,000 per event!
Denver A.A. had a “turf war” between the “Big Book Thumpers” and the “Touchie-Feelies” over how quickly the 12 Steps should be worked.
These stories and others reveal that Alcoholics Anonymous certainly was NOT dull back in the 1940s, and Wally P. has researched it all. Traveling the U.S. and Canada for three years, he’s uncovered the origins of A.A. Intergroups and Central Offices in over 25 major cities.
The former Arizona A.A. Archivist has documented the beginnings of the Fellowship’s explosive growth across North America and the critical role these early Intergroups, Central Offices, and Clubs played in carrying the A.A. message to tens of thousands of hopeless alcoholics.
After years of hard work, Wally has given the A.A. Fellowship a clear picture of the debt it owes to those anonymous office volunteers who answered the phones, went out on Twelve-Step calls, and were the vital link between the suffering alcoholic and the A.A. groups.
This book contains humorous ‘drunk yarns,’ Clubhouse battles, Central Office debates, and great history from the 1940s. This is the first time the founding and growth of Central Offices and Intergroups has been documented.
Hammered out on the anvil of experience, it’s a great read!
