There are schedules available for many Districts within Area # 59, including Lebanon, York and Lancaster Counties, as well as for District 42 (Sunbury-Lewistown), District 35 (Gettysburg-Chambersburg, and Hanover), District 38 Pottsville, Northeastern Pennsylvania (Wilkes-Barre-Scranton), Reading Area, Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, Southeastern PA, and Williamsport District 48.

Carrying The Message
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.

Throughout our Conference structure, we ought to maintain at all responsible levels a traditional "Right of Participation," taking care that each classification or group of our world servants shall be allowed a voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge.

The principle of "Right of Participation" is built into the General Service Conference through the Conference Charter. Voting Members include not only delegates, but also the trustees, and the directors and staff members of AA World Services (i. e., GSO) and the AA Grapevine.

In the Same way, the boards of these two operating entities include as voting members not only trustees, but also non-trustee directors and paid administrators and staff members.

The Chairperson of the General Service Board appoints non-trustee members to the standing committees in order to have the advantage of their expertise, and staff members serve as committee secretaries. "There are no 'superiors,' no 'inferiors,' and no 'advisers.'"  New trustees on the General Service Board and new directors of the AAWS and Grapevine boards are sometimes surprised to see paid executives, staff members and outside accountants attending the board meetings. They are invited because of AA's "Right of Participation." Thus the trustees and directors" are put into direct communication with these workers, who... feel wanted and needed. Although they do not vote, these workers may freely participate."

Bill warns against the possibility of new delegates or trustees trying to "weaken, modify, or toss out" the "Right of Participation." He cites arguments by delegates to take away the trustees', directors', and staff members' votes at the Conference. Certainly, he says, "our trustees and service workers are not less conscientious, experienced, and wise than the delegates."

"It is vital," he continues, "to preserve the traditional 'Right of Participation,' in the face of every tendency to whittle it down."

Help for the Hearing Impaired
If anyone in our AA community knows sign language and is willing to be of service, there is a need in the Harrisburg Area for your help.  If you are willing to help a hearing impaired person please notify Intergroup through your Intergroup rep.

Internet Source for Recorded AA Talks
There is a new source for some good AA recording of talks from the Harbor City Speakers, Acts of Recovery.  South College Speaker Group, Steps in Action, Unity in Action, White Rose and various others.  These are free for you to download in MP3 format on your computer.  The Web address is http://greatfact.org/  You can hear speakers from the Greater Harrisburg Acts of Recovery that you may have missed.

OLD TIME AA

1- It's not old behavior if I'm still doing it.

2- If you're looking to have an image in AA, look around at the meetings you go to and take a look at whom you're trying to impress.

3- An alcoholic is a person who wants to be held while he's isolating.

4- Sobriety is the leading cause of relapse.

5- A treatment center is where you go and pay $15,000 to find out that AA meetings are free.

6- The idea that alcoholics, drug addicts, sex addicts, overeaters, smokers, etc., etc., should all just go to AA Meetings because a disease, is a disease, is a disease...was started by a treatment center that only had one van.

7- This is a 'One Day at a Time' program. If you are clean and sober today, you are tied for first place in AA.

8- If drinking is interfering with your work, you're probably a heavy drinker. If work is interfering with your drinking, you're probably an alcoholic.

9- I often obsessively pursue feeling good, no matter how bad it makes me feel.

10- When I was new, I didn't think I had any obsessions until I started thinking about it. Then it was all I could think about.

11- How come if alcohol kills millions of brain cells, it never killed the ones that made me want to drink?

12- From a newcomer reading the 'Promises' for the first time: "We will comprehend the word cemetery and we will know peace."

13- If God were small enough to be understood, He wouldn't be big enough to be God!

14- If you want to quit drinking; you are going to have to quit drinking.

15- Newcomer: How do I know how many meetings I should attend each week?

Old-timer: Gradually cut back until you get drunk. Then you'll know.

16- I would rather go through life sober, believing I am an alcoholic, than go through life drunk, trying to convince myself that I am not an alcoholic.

17- Resentments are like stray cats: if you don't feed them, they'll go away.

18- The difference between a problem drinker and an Alcoholic is that: (A) When alcohol is taken away from the problem drinker, the problem goes away.
(B) When alcohol is taken away from the Alcoholic, the problem begins.

19- Before I came into AA, I was dead, but I did not know enough to lay down.

20- I drank when I was happy. I drank when I was unhappy. Actually, I am a reason to drink.

21- You don't have to be sick to want to get well. But if you don't want to get well, you ARE sick.

22- I can't do His will my way.

23- In order to change the way we feel we need to change the way we act.  There is only one way to coast, and that is down hill.

23- The good news is you get your emotions back; the bad news is you get your emotions back.

24- All we ask is that you completely change your attitude as soon as possible.

25- I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all.

26- Joy isn't the absence of pain -- it's the presence of God.

A new meeting called the Grantville AA Group has started on Tuesday Evenings .  The meeting is an Open Discussion, Non-Smoking meeting.  The meeting is held at 146 Firehouse Rd (use rear entrance).  The building is located across the road from St. John's United Methodist Church.  Parking is available in the church parking lot.  More information is available @ 469-2577.

March Intergroup Meeting
Chairperson Kris S. opened the meeting with the serenity prayer.

February's donation to Intergroup from the local groups totaled $452.50.  Contributions were received from Winding it Up, Chapter 5 How it Works, Bill & Kathy P, West Shore Area Women, Harrisburg Area West Shore Women, and The Way Out Group.  If you are mailing donations to either Intergroup or District please use the following addresses:

Harrisburg Area Intergroup                                 District 36
1251 S. 19th St.                                                    PO Box 5325
Harrisburg, PA. 17104                                          Harrisburg, PA. 17110

Also, the addresses for contributions to Area 59  and GSO are

This Month in AA History
1935 - Bill W had a talk with Dr. Silkworth who advised him to stop preaching about his "hot flash" and hit the alcoholics hard with the medical view.  Silkworth advised Bill to break down the strong egos of the alcoholics by telling them about the obsession that condemned them to drink and allergy that condemned them to go mad or die. 

1939 - 4,730 copies of the first Ed. of Alcoholics Anonymous were published at a selling price of $3.50.  The printer was told to use the thickest paper in his shop.  The large, bulky volume became known as the "Big Book"  The idea was to convince the alcoholic he was getting his money's worth.  Ray C (An Artist's Concept) designed the "circus color" dust jacket.  The book had 8 roman and 400 Arabic numbered pages.  The Doctor's Opinion started at page 1 and the basic text ended at page 174.  29 stories were included.

1941 - After 23 years of marriage Bill W and Lois moved into their own home in Bedford Hills, NY.  It was first named Bill-Lo's Break and later renamed to Stepping Stones.  

1945 - Earl T founder of AA in Chicago (He Sold Himself Short) suggested to Bill W that he codify the Traditions and write essays on them in the Grapevine.  Initially, the Twelve Traditions were  presented as An Alcoholics Anonymous Tradition of Relations - Twelve points to Assure our Future.

1951 - The 1st experimental General Service Conference (GSC) was held in NYC.  It was composed of 37 US and Canadian Delegates plus AA's General Service Headquarter staff and Trustees.  Delegates took office for a 2 year term.  At the close of the conference, Lois W and her close friend Ann B, invited the delegates wives and local family group members to Stepping Stones to discuss an organization for what was then called AA Family Groups.

1960 - Bill W declined the opportunity to be on the cover of Time magazine.  Father Ed Dowling (Bill's Spiritual Advisor) dies in Memphis, TN.  In a talk at the 10th GSC, Bill W announced for the past 3 years he had been working on codifying principles and developing essays for the structure of the Third Legacy of Service. The principles were announced as the Twelve Concepts of World Service.