Sobriety News
JANUARY 2002

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The Sobriety News is a publication of the Harrisburg Area Intergroup of Alcoholics Anonymous. It is written, edited, and read by AA members, and those interested in the AA program of recovery from the disease of alcoholism, linking one alcoholic to another.

Our desperation to find relief from the bondage of alcoholism has led us to this program as a new "design for living". Many members utilize meetings, sponsorship, self examination, amends, prayer, meditation, AA literature, service to fellow alcoholics, and many other tools to maintain their recovery. This publication is intended as one more tool to live a life of recovery. Because each AA member has an individual way of working this program, divergent views to recovery, within the concept of the Program of Alcoholics Anonymous, are welcome. An effort is made to print all viewpoints in this forum. Articles are not intended to be statements of AA policy, nor does publication of any article imply endorsement by AA or the Harrisburg Area Intergroup.

January  Calendar of Events*

Looking Ahead

* Look for more information about these events in Sobriety News.

Your Help for the Calendar of Events

A complete Calendar of Events depends on our active members contributing information about their coming events, participation of Intergroups in surrounding Districts, and our ability to gather information. We feel it is worth trying. Let us know what you think. Often, we miss opportunities within the fellowship because the message didn't get out. We all want to carry the message to other alcoholics. This will be one more way we can accomplish that.

UPDATES TO SOBRIETY NEWS

We now have the capability to update Sobriety News during the course of the month, so events can be added to the Calendar. You may, therefore, find it helpful or informative to check back to the website periodically to see what has been added. Your group has access to a printed copy of Sobriety News through your Intergroup Rep. As changes are made to the Internet copy in http://www.aaharrisburg.org your group will have no way of knowing new information about upcoming events unless a group member with internet access brings the information to the group. This can be another option for service that members can perform to maintain sobriety through action. The HAI index page has various links which gradually will become more active. Flyers for upcoming events, and old issues of Sobriety News are available on one; current meeting schedules on another; Steps and Traditions and who knows what else may show up. Keep checking.

Hershey Christmas Party

If you just happened to show up at the Derry Presbyterian Church in Hershey December 8th at about six o'clock, you'd have probably thought it was Christmas. Indeed, there was delicious ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, vegetables, and desserts, intermingled with fellowship with a very large and joyous crowd of recovering alcoholics. Suitable to the occasion was the Christmas present of the story of Brian D (There's More to Life Group) who shared how it was, what happened, and what it's like now. It opened a window of opportunity to the listener to identify the similarities of his story with theirs, and the hope that it offers. There could be no better gift than that. If you missed this one, you can hear Brian share at the Third Annual Out of the Dark Anniversary Meeting at 9:00AM January 6th at the Wormleysburg Boro Hall at 2nd and Market Streets in Wormleysburg, and a brunch buffet will follow.

APRIL AT BUG LIGHT

If you heard April D give her inspiring and informative message on the Twelve Concepts at PENNSCYPAA XII, then you won't want to miss this opportunity to hear her story on January 26th at 7:00PM in York. The Bug Light attracts speakers with strong recovery messages, and I'm sure April's talk will be no exception. Her husband Dave, delivered his stirring message at the 3rd SOS Conference and also at the Bug Light on Dec 8th, and this will be a chance to hear the other side of the story. You can find directions in the December 2001 past issue of Sobriety News, or you can take Mount Zion Road south from Rt 30 to about 100 yards past the intersection with Rt 462 (Market Street). The Address is 125 Edgewood Rd, Yorkshire Methodist, York, PA. It will be worth the trip.

Acts Of Recovery In York - Mini-Conference

What a special experience was had by those attending the Eighth Acts of Recovery mini-conference in York on December 8. There were four speakers whose sharing were as follow: What It Was Like, Graceanne G; Sponsorship and The Home Group, Richard McC; The Twelve Steps, Alicyn J; and Passing It On, Dave S. There was a FREE light lunch and good fellowship.
  Graceanne offered a high energy and humorous tale of a little girl uncomfortable in her own skin. A story of her distorted perception of the world and her place in it, and how, short of death she made it into the rooms. Following the directions of good sponsors she has learned to face life, often recognizing the self doubts and fears that led her to crave acceptance of others. The program taught her to wash the dishes and make her bed because she used them. If you clean up the chaos on the outside, eventually it will remove the chaos on the inside. With the honesty that sets one free, she warmed the large audience to the coming speakers.
  Richard was told early that AA is about getting closer to your higher power, we do that by getting closer to other people, and we do that by working the steps. Could you summarize the topic of Sponsorship and the Home Group any more succinctly. His talk was filled with his fervent belief that these two things are extremely important to long sobriety. Richard is moving to Chicago, and though he's never been there he already has a safety net in place through his AA contacts and thinks he has his new home group picked out, and that's the deal.
  Alicyn always had felt totally inadequate until she was thirteen and went on a double date with her girl friend. They drank too much alcohol and she found that she could carry on conversations with people, and she felt beautiful. She knew she was going to be grounded in the morning, but then and later she felt that she was willing to pay the consequences as a fair trade for the feeling alcohol gave her. She detailed how she worked the steps both with and without a sponsor. and guess which works better. She incurred large credit card debt, she was stealing from her husband (while sober and lying to her sponsor) and her marriage was on the rocks. She thought maybe it would be a good time to do the fourth step. Through that first honest inventory and sharing it with God and her sponsor she started on the course that has led to self respect. She believes perhaps the most important result of the steps is that our darkest secrets can become our greatest assets. Through the steps we connect with God and that helps connect us to people, and because of our flaws, we can help others by sharing them.
  "Indian" Dave wrapped up the event by weaving a fascinating story of moonshine, the 'shakes', pancreatitis, Indian reservations and culture, high steel working, arctic winters, and the Great Depression. He talked of the AA fellowship in New Jersey when he finally got sober in the seventies, and how they didn't place much importance to the Steps and Traditions. He told how in desperate poverty with a lot of children to feed, he put one of his dogs out in the twenty below night, and in the morning couldn't open the door because the dog was frozen dead on the doorstep. The guilt he carried for many years, that he had done that to one of God's creatures, was finally relieved when he shared the story with prison inmates in his efforts to practice the steps. He spoke of the importance of the contributions of men such as Rowland Hazard, Dr. William Silkworth, and Rev. Sam Shoemaker. He believes reading the book Pass It On should be a prerequisite to reading the Big Book , as it develops the real beginnings of the three pertinent ideas that are the essence of AA and how the message reached the world. Pass It On is available from the HAI bookstore for $8.00

Celebrate Recovery

The Harrisburg Area Intergroup and Al-anon jointly sponsored a celebration of Recovery from 1:00PM till 4:00PM on December 30, which was well attended. There were desserts and refreshment till 1:30, and then speakers from both Al-anon and AA were followed by fellowship. The event was held at the Wormleysburg Boro Hall, corner of Market and Second Streets across from City Island. Louise M, an al-anon and an alcoholic shared her story first and enlightened us alcoholics about the way we alcoholics distort the perceptions of others' own self images and worth. Her view of herself and her role in the universe was deeply affected by the way she learned to respond to the actions of the alcoholics in her life. The wreckage we alcoholics cause in those individuals affected by our actions does not change just because we stop drinking, She found the need for al-anon to help her change herself to be able to cope with the world that existed outside her distorted view. Our Alcoholic speaker, Bob S's story really meshed with Louise's story when he said he came to AA for his drinking, but he stayed for his thinking. He found little success until he was willing to surrender to the program and his higher power, and work the Steps. Bob could not understand, three days sober, why his family was still upset with him. Sometimes we don't realize that WE are not the only ones affected by this disease. What a great way to celebrate the holiday season with friends and allies. A life of recovery is a process, rather than event, and participating in events like this makes us part of, rather than apart from this process. The rewards are commensurate with the effort.

ANGER IS THE HOT WIND THAT
EXTINGUISHES THE LIGHT OF REASON

The Joy of Giving

The Joy of Living Group wishes to thank everyone for their support of the Christmas Party for children of recovering families. Special thanks to Janice G (Joy of Living) for her efforts in preparing the room for the party; Kathy and her son John (Winding It Up) for sending Honey the Clown to the Party; Mark E (19th Street) for being Santa; and Bob S for assisting Santa in his wardrobe.

This year there was a tremendous turnout, but like last year, no child left without a toy. This was all accomplished through the generous contributions of the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous. The fellowship has truly upheld the slogan on the back of our meeting schedules, "I Am Responsible," for the hand of AA was there for the children.

Volunteers for Hotline

You can help assure that help is available for the suffering alcoholic, alcoholics needing meeting schedule information, literature, or other assistance by volunteering to operate the central office hotline, or by getting your group to take the cell phone for a month. Why not give Tina H a call at home (238-3545), or Email (spicee308@aol.com), or you can volunteer through your Intergroup Rep. Central Office needs phone volunteers to handle the phone during the day to help reduce the burden on the cell phone volunteer. This is rewarding service work, and Central Office hours are pretty flexible.

This-n-That

Don't forget the Harrisburg Area Intergroup meeting Thursday the 3rd at 6:45PM. The District 36 General Service Rep meeting will be on Monday January 14th at 6:30PM; all GSRs or alternates should be there. 

The dance at Fellowship House on 19th Street on January 18 will be held as usual, starting at 8:30PM. It costs only $3.00 for adults, and please, no children under age eleven. Isolation is not a good alternative to enjoying the fellowship of dance. Come and have a good time.

Keep in mind that PENNSCYPAA XIV will be held this year July 26-28th in Pittsburgh at the Ramada Plaza Suites & Conference Center at One Bigelow Square, Pittsburgh. The handle for the conference will be ROCKETED INTO A 4th DIMENSION. Tickets will be $12 until June 28, and rooms run from $90 per night. The committee has mailed out registration forms, so they will be around; there will be more on this as we get closer to June.

The Intergroup Bookstore at 19th Street is still open Saturdays from 10:00AM till 11:00 AM for Groups to restock their literature cabinets with books and pamphlets.

"Never Mistake Motion for Action"

January Speakers

The Friday 8:30pm speaker meetings for the 19th Street Group for Jan4, Herbie G; Jan 11, Mary J; Jan18, James C; and Jan25 is Anniversary Night. The Sunday 8pm Bridge Street speakers are: Jan 6, Ben T from the Trinity Group; Jan 13, Larry B from the Trinity Group; Jan 20, Dick J from 40th Street Group; and Jan 27, Troy M from the Middletown Groups. The January 5 speaker at Hershey will be Sherri S from the 19th Street Group. The Middletown Survivors speakers for January 17, 24, and 31, in some order to be determined by a higher power will be Joe G, Diane, Brian , Craig, Charna, Charles, and Vicki.

Pearl of the Month  contributed by Jim M.  c: Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions page 131

Countless times, in as many cities and hamlets, we reenacted the story of Eddie Rickenbacker and his courageous company when their plane crashed in the Pacific. Like us, they had suddenly found themselves saved from death, but still floating on a perilous sea. How well they saw that their common welfare came first. None might become selfish of water or bread. Each needed to consider the others, and in abiding faith they knew they must find their real strength. And this they did find, in measure to transcend all the defects of their frail craft, every test of uncertainty, pain, fear, and despair, and even the death of one.
    Thus has it been with AA. By faith and works we have been able to build upon the lessons of an incredible experience. They live today in the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, which - God willing - shall sustain us in unity for so long as He may need us.

 Traditions Checklist*

TRADITION ONE: Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity.

  1. Am I in my group a healing, mending, integrating person, or am I divisive? What about gossip and taking other members' inventories?
  2. Am I a peacemaker? Or do I, with pious preludes such as "just for the sake of discussion," plunge into argument?
  3. Am I gentle with those who rub me the wrong way, or am I abrasive?
  4. Do I make competitive AA remarks, such as comparing one group with another or contrasting AA in one place with AA in another?
  5. Do I put down some AA activities as if I were superior for not participating in this or that aspect of AA?
  6. Am I informed about AA as a whole? Do I support, in every way I can, AA as a whole, or just the parts I understand and approve of?
  7. Am I as considerate of AA members as I want them to be of me?
  8. Do I spout platitudes about love while indulging in and secretly justifying behavior that bristles with hostility?
  9. Do I go to enough AA meetings or read enough AA literature to really keep in touch?
  10. Do I share with AA all of me, the bad and the good, accepting as well as giving the help of fellowship?

*The Traditions Checklist Questions were originally published in the AA Grapevine in conjunction with a series on the Twelve Traditions that began in November 1969, and ran through September 1971. Sobriety News prints the Checklist for the number of the month that corresponds to the number of the Tradition that it deals with, because of the prohibitive length of all twelve. It is important that we be aware of the Twelve Traditions in our lives of recovery, because they help assure that AA will continue to be here for us, and for others who want it.

OBITUARY S. B. ELSE

It is with great sorrow that we note the passing of one of the Fellowship's staunchest workers and most loyal members. Having been active in AA from almost the founding of this organization, and the one person who so many depended upon, we wonder how can we ever replace SB? When someone had to open the doors of the meeting hall, start the coffee brewing, set up for the meeting, and clean up afterwards, we always depended on him. When there were Twelfth Step calls, the hotline needed volunteers, it was time to rotate service positions, we knew who we could count on. Who has time for all that extra work involved to keep things going, like Intergroup meetings and events, General Service obligations, and all those things that would require action on our part. But we can't leave it for good old SB anymore, because he's gone. The next time there is a need for someone to show up for an AA commitment, we won't be able to say, "Let Some Body Else do it."  because that's dead.

ANGER = ANY NO GOOD ENERGY RISING

NOT NECESSARILY NEW MEETINGS

The Double Trouble Meetings, formerly held at the Edgewater Psychiatric Center on Wednesdays at 7:00PM and Fridays at 7:30PM have moved to the Gaudenzia Common Ground at 2835 North Front Street (basement entrance), Meeting times will remain the same.

The new Colonial Park Any Lengths Group which meets Thursdays at 7:00PM has become so popular, that they have added Tuesday and Sunday meetings at the same time. All are closed discussion. The 4th Sunday, however is a closed speaker meeting. For those so inclined, all meetings permit smoking. The meetings are held in the Central Penn Installations Building (strip mall), across from Goodall Pools, at 3914b (downstairs) Jonestown Road.

The Mid-City Group which meets Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 7:30PM needs your support. The meetings are held in the German Methodist Church on Vine Street, just off South Front Street at the beginning of Shipoke. Tuesdays and Thursdays are closed discussion; Saturday is open discussion; and all are non-smoking meetings.

The Progress Group has voted to make the last Wednesday of the month a closed, non-smoking Tradition meeting. The location is the Ridgeway Community Church is on the corner of Progress Avenue and Elmerton Avenue. 

The Harrisburg State Hospital is starting a new Thursday night Step and Tradition meeting at 7:00PM. Intergroup voted to supply a dozen copies of "The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions" to help it get started. If you would like to help get this going, see your Intergroup Rep, or contact Leeann C at 766-8099. Both the Tuesday and Thursday 7:00PM meetings will be named Turning Point. The Tuesday meeting is open discussion.

Groups Continue Supporting Intergroup

For the month of December, contributions from five groups totaled $410.00. We would like to thank the following groups for their contributions to the Harrisburg Area Intergroup Fund. They were 19th Street, Hershey, Progress, Rebellion Dogs, and the West Shore Area Women's Groups. We would also like to thank all the groups and members who continue to donate time toward Intergroup's activities. These activities include men and women's prison meetings, literature, the AA Hotline, and the many other vital AA functions that help alcoholics recover in our community. Intergroup performs those services for our community which no single group is prepared to handle, and it coordinates activities between the 56 groups it serves. Remember that we can do together what none of us could do alone.

Correctional Facility Service Opportunity

To carry the message to prison inmates can be a tremendously rewarding experience. Our alcoholic imaginations can give a very distorted idea of what this service work is about. A very large percentage of prison populations worldwide, and in Pennsylvania, are incarcerated because of their inability to consume alcohol like 'normal people'. If you can relate to that, you must know that those who attend meetings inside prison walls are not so different from us after all. Helping these alcoholics can have great benefits for them, and society, but even more so for those who carry the message to them. Crime rates inside prisons are generally much lower than anywhere else outside the confinement, so you need not fear for your safety. Really, aren't you just a little bit curious about what it's like at a meeting in there?

Camp Hill State Correctional Facility: Men's Meetings Tuesday & Wednesday 7:00-8:00PM Contact - Bob I 432-2773 or Kurt Kressler 737-4531

Community Correctional Facility: Speaker/Discussion Men's Meetings 2nd & 4th Thursdays 6:00-7:00PM  Contact - Jim D 566-7244, Moses B 238-3924, Ron M 652-2991

Cumberland County Prison: Women's Meeting - Tuesdays 7:00-8:00PM Contact Gail S 796-1554.  Men's Meetings Fridays 7:00-9:00PM  Contact Chet A 249-3028

Dauphin County Prison: Women's Meetings Fridays 7:15-8:15PM Contact Diane R 330-7122 or John Addison 558-1100.  Men's Meetings Mondays 5:00-6:00PM and Fridays 6:00-7:00PM Contact Moses B 238-3924.

The contact persons listed above are available and willing to receive and discuss concerns related to qualifications, actually carrying the message of AA, and the responsibilities of a Bridging the Gap Person.

December Intergroup Meeting

At the December Intergroup meeting discussions were held about the options for purchasing a new computer, monitor, and printer. A vote was made to authorize Tina H and Andrew B to use their judgment to purchase the new equipment for up to $400. The Out Of The Dark Group handled the cell phone for December, the  Bridge Street Group will take it for January. The Lambda Group conducted the December Harrisburg State Hospital meeting in December, and the Millersburg Group will chair in January. The Middletown Trudgers volunteered to take the first Thursday Step and Tradition meeting (Turning Point) at the State Hospital. The first order of the new fourth edition of Alcoholics Anonymous has been received and sold. Another larger order has been received, as sales are going hot and heavy. There is still a supply of Third Edition Big Books on hand at the bookstore. Intergroup Reps voted to donate leftover books to the prisons and hospitals. Groups are encouraged to donate 3rd edition copies to Intergroup so they can be donated to prisons and hospitals. Each Big Book Meeting group will have to decide at what point they may want to start using the fourth edition.

The following groups were represented at the December Intergroup meeting: 19th Street, Ain't You Had Enough, Bridge Street, Chapter 9 Family, Dillsburg, Fellowship House, Hershey, Joy of Living, Keep It Simple, Late Night, Middletown Survivors, Middletown Trudgers, More to Life, Out of the Dark, Pine Street, Progress, Rule 62, Up The Creek, and Winding It Up. Were you represented?

Intergroup's Antiquated Computer

The Intergroup Reps voted at the December 6 meeting to go ahead and purchase a new computer, monitor, and printer to meet current needs, because the current antiquated equipment does not. Contributions for the new computer will still be appreciated. Our new computer, printer, and monitor will be able to at least handle Windows 98 to meet the needs of those who use it for service work. The committee has selected and ordered the new equipment and it is scheduled for delivery the first week of January. The new computer will allow your Intergroup to better serve the needs of the AA community in carrying the message to the alcoholic who still suffers.

ANNOUNCE YOUR EVENT - GIVE YOUR OPINION

Let the AA community know what's going on in your group, express your opinion on any AA topic you want to share about, or contribute material you find helpful or meaningful in your recovery. You can inform the editor and get your information out by sending your material to Sobriety News, Harrisburg Area Intergroup, 1251 S 19th Street, Harrisburg, PA 17111, or Email me at (asdungan@mindspring.com)