Year: 2013

History:

In 1968, four recovering alcoholics who had come into A.A. in surrounding groups — Downtown Montgomery, Alexander City, Clanton, and Capitol City Montgomery — became interested in an A.A. group in Wetumpka. It was suggested by Temple C. that they talk to Jack C., who had brought A.A. from the Five Points Group in Birmingham to Alexander City twenty years before.

Jack suggested the four have a meeting conducted like any other regular meeting. He also said, “Don’t be disappointed if all four of you aren’t at the first meeting.” They assured Jack that all four would be there. Of course Jack was right. Only three made it to the first meeting, as one had to be out of town.

The group met in Penton C.’s home, where the meeting was held for about one year. The group has had six different meeting places over the years, and currently meets in the brick house at 103 West Tuskeena Street in Wetumpka, directly behind the Presbyterian Church on West Bridge Street.

The Free World Group meets Sunday nights at 7:30 pm for a closed discussion meeting. All meetings are non-smoking.

History:

In September 1993, a group of drunks in Wetumpka got together and decided to start a new group. They got together with the local sheriff at the time, who gave them the top floor of an old building, which they cleaned up. A.A. was on the top floor, and N.A. was on the bottom floor. A.A. meetings were held four nights a week.

Unfortunately, two years ago, the group was forced to move. Without a home, they met outside in a local park for the summer, until they found their current location at the County Extension Office on Queen Ann Drive off Highway 14.

The group is located in the FFA Building. According to members, “Our group is small but quaint, with a few regulars and a number of court referrals.”

P.O.S.T. Newsletter, April, 2002

The Tallassee 12&12 Group meets at 7 pm on Tuesday nights for an open step study. All meetings are non-smoking.

The Tallassee Ray of Hope Group meets at 7 pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and at 3 pm on Sunday. All meetings are non-smoking.

History:

When Ray S. got out of treatment in October, 1982, there was no A.A. group in Tallassee.  There had been several groups that came and went, but none had ever been registered with the General Service Office. Ray, being in need of regular meetings, and as a way of helping other alcoholics, was advised by his sponsor to begin a group in Tallassee, which he did in November, 1982.

Meetings were first held in the old Carrville city hall and little by little the group grew.  Ray registered the group with GSO on January 8, 1983.  The group was known as the Tallassee Group. On January 8, 1984, the group held its first anniversary celebration with 67 members and friends from many groups in attendance.

The group continued to meet in the Carrville city hall until January 1990, when the City of Tallassee needed to use the building for other purposes.  The group then moved to the old personnel office over the filter plant at Tallassee Mills, where they stayed until the winter of 1992 when the space was condemned by the city.  In the street again, they found space in the old Robertson Building Supply Store on W. Butler Street.  They held meetings there until the People’s Bank of Carrville bought the property in the winter of 1993.

When Ray passed away in 1993, the group thought it fitting and proper to rename the group in honor of its founder. In January 1994, at the 11th anniversary celebration, the Tallassee Group was officially renamed the Tallassee “Ray of Hope” Group.

After the 1993 move from the supply store, meetings were held in members’ homes until May, 1994, when the group moved to the Kent Community Center, where it remains to this day.  They thank God for this group, and all the members living and dead who have contributed to its success.

The Braveheart Group meets at 6 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays for a closed meeting. All meetings are non-smoking.

The Selma Group meets at 12:30 pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and at 6 pm on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday for open discussion meetings. All meetings are non-smoking.

History:

The archives contains a paper written by the wife of an early Selma Group member.  She wrote that a local gambler who had sobered up in A.A. had visited her husband, Glenn, in a local hospital.  He said that he had tried to start a local A.A. group here, but it folded. He felt that because of his reputation as a gambler we would hurt any group with which he affiliated, but he did tell Glenn about the Montgomery Group, its meetings and times. Glenn went to Montgomery and, as recalled by his wife, “Charlie met us at the door with a friendly greeting and warm handshake. He saw that we met everyone.”

Glenn and his wife commuted to Montgomery three times a week for five months.  Glenn then scheduled a meeting in Selma, It was to be held on August 24, 1949 in the Hospitality Room of the Alabama Gas Company, with Charlie A., Montgomery’s founder, and Hal W. as speakers. However, Glenn missed the meeting since he was in the hospital with a ruptured appendix.  Charlie and a large group of Montgomery members went to the hospital and visited Glenn after the meeting.

So it began and so it has continued with people helping people, some being successful from the beginning, others after a slip or two, but everyone having the chance to find sobriety if they really want it.

The 5th Tradition Group meets every Friday night at 6:00 pm for a closed discussion meeting. All meetings are non-smoking.

The Autauga S.O.S. Group meets for a closed discussion meeting at noon on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and for a closed discussion women’s meeting on Saturday at 9 am.

The Millbrook Serenity Group meets Tuesday nights at 7 pm for an open discussion meeting. All meetings are non-smoking.

History:

The Millbrook Serenity Group held its first meeting on January 4, 2000. This was actually the fourth time a meeting was started in Millbrook, and the second time at the First United Methodist Church.

In the beginning, as with many new groups, only one person showed up. Today you can find as many as 24, but the group averages about 12 to 15 each week. There are around seven members who attend regularly, and there are generally quite a number of new people — often court referrals.

When a newcomer is present, the meeting is directed to them, so you can actually refer to Millbrook Serenity as a “newcomers'” group. The group is located in the Hester House of the First United Methodist Church, which is wheelchair-accessible. They welcome all newcomers, old-timers, and visitors with the same Southern hospitality.

P.O.S.T. Newsletter, July 2002

The Maplesville Group meets at 8:00 pm on Sunday for a closed discussion meeting, and on Friday at 8:00 pm for an open discussion meeting. On the third Friday of every month they hold an open speaker meeting. All meetings are non-smoking.