december anniversary celebrations · assateague group kenny g 688443 beginner’s big book lauren z...

OCMDAA DECEMBER NEWSLETTER

“Thus started one more Journey to the asylum for Jim. Here was the threat of commitment, the loss

of family and position, to say nothing of that intense mental and physical suffering which drinking always caused him. He had much knowledge about himself as an alcoholic. Yet all reasons for not drinking were easily pushed aside in favor of the foolish idea that he could take whiskey if only he mixed it with milk!”

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PG 36-37

DECEMBER ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS “TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE”

NAME

YEARS

SOBRIETY DATE

CELEBRATION DATE

WHERE

WHEN

Dave S 1 12/12/2014 12/13/2015 Came to Believe Sun / Noon Fred V 1 12/16/2014 12/19/2015 Positive Attitude Sat / 7 PM Stephanie L 29 12/19/1986 12/23/2015 Seaside Group Wed / 6 PM Chris L 10 12/26/2005 12/27/2015 Assateague Group Sun / 6 PM Nancy P 2 12/26/2013 12/28/2015 Happy Hour Mon / 6 PM Jennie R 7 12/20/2008 12/29/2015 Come As You Are Tues / 6 PM Mike B 20 12/28/1995 1/02/2016 Positive Attitude Sat / 7 PM

Please submit all anniversary information to Laura P at [email protected] by the 28th of the preceding month of your anniversary. Include name, sobriety date,

celebration date, and where & when. Thanks!!!!

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


With approval of the General Service Board, G.S.O New York

launches a site on the World Wide Web on December 22, 1995.

With a click, users can now instantaneously access information

about the Fellowship in English, Spanish and French. G.S.O.’s A.A.

Website is constantly evolving. In spring 1998, G.S.O. New York shares the of compter-savvy A.A.’s when is issues of

list of Frequently Asked Questions for A.A. entities looking looking to set up their own Websites.

Bill W. had been a golden boy on Wall Street, enjoying success and power as a stockbroker, but his

promising career had been ruined by continuous and chronic alchoholism. Now, approaching 39

years of age, he was learning that his problem was hopeless, progressive and irreversible. He had

sought medical treatment at Towns hospital in Manhattan, but he was still drinking.

Bill was, at first, unconvinced by Ebby’s story of transformation and the claims of the Oxford

Group. But in December 1934, after again landing in Town’s hospital for treatment, Bill

underwent a powerful spiritual experience unlike any he had ever known. His depression and despair were lifted,

and he felt free and at peace. Bill stopped drinking, and worked the rest of his life to bring that freedom and peace

to other alcoholics. The roots of Alchoholics Anonymous were planted.

District 32 and the Ocean City Area Fellowship Intergroup meet every first Tuesday of the month at the Atlantic Club, 11827 Ocean Gateway (Route 50 Westbound), Ocean City, MD 21842. The District meeting starts at 5:30 PM,

followed by the Intergroup meeting at 6 PM December 5 – “Step Four – A Gift to Myself” hosted by District 32, District 29 and OCMDAA Roger M to moderate!

Saturday, 10:30 am – 3 pm St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 103rd Street & Coastal Hwy, Ocean City, MD 21842 Lunch - $5

December 31, 2015-January 1, 2016 – Alcathon Atlantic Club, 11827 RT 50, West Ocean City, MD 21842

There will be continuous meetings through the New Year’s Holiday; starting at 2:15 PM Dec 31, till Jan 1 at 4:30 PM. (except from 9:30 PM-1:00 AM) Beverages and snacks will be provided

OCAA PHONE SCHEDULE 410-600-5219

December 2015 – Happy Risers**January 2016 – Action Group

February 2016 – Fresh Air**March 2016 – Happy Hour

April 2016 – Positive Attitude

.


OCEAN CITY AREA FELLOWSHIP INTERGROUP CHAIR – Tom B ALT CHAIR – Don B

SECRETARY – Bradley S TREASURER – Tom M

GROUP INTERGROUP

REPRESENTATIVE

LOCATION

ADDRESS

DAY & TIME 164 (CLOSED)

Tom M

Stevenson United Methodist Church

123 N Main Street Berlin

Monday 8 PM

Action Group

Bradley S

Holy Savior Catholic Church

17th & Philadelphia Ocean City

Friday 8 PM

Assateague Group

Chris L

Bethany United Methodist Church

6848 RT 611 Berlin

Sunday 6 PM

Beginner’s Big Book

Joe P

Atlantic Club

11827 RT 50 West Ocean City

Monday 6:30 PM

Berlin 101 Women’s Big Book (CLOSED)

Patricia G

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

3 Church Street Berlin

Saturday 9 AM

Berlin Friendship

VACANT

Friendship United Methodist Church

Friendship Road Berlin

Monday 8 PM

Came To Believe

Jessica B

AGH (Hospital)

9733 Healthway Drive Berlin

Sunday Noon

Come As You Are

Jennie R

Seaside Counseling & Wellness Center Suite 5

11809 RT 50 Ocean Gateway Center West Ocean City

Tuesday 6 PM

Entirely Ready

Robin D

Atlantic Club


Friday 6 PM

Free To Be Women’s

Laura P

Atlantic Club


Wednesday 8 PM

Fresh Air

Allison K

Crossway Church


Tuesday 8 PM

Happy Hour

Mark W

Community Church at Ocean Pines

11227 Race Track RD Ocean Pines

Monday 6 PM

Happy, Joyous & Free Women’s Step Study

VACANT

Community Church at Ocean Pines

11227 Race Track RD Ocean Pines

Friday 10 AM

Happy Risers

Jeff C

Atlantic Club


M thru F / 7:30 AM S & S / 9 AM

Joy of Living

Bonnie B

Atlantic Club


M thru F Noon

Men’s 12&12 Step

Jeff S

Atlantic Club


Wednesday 8 PM

Not A Glum Lot

Jerome N

All Hallows Episcopal Church

109 West Market Street Snow Hill

M/W/F 7:30 PM

Positive Attitude

Rob A

Stevenson United Methodist Church

123 N Main Street Berlin

Saturday 7 PM

Primary Purpose

VACANT

St Peter’s Lutheran Church

10301 Coastal Hwy Ocean City

Thursday 7 PM

Proud To Have Served

John M

Atlantic Club


Wednesday 6 PM

Seaside Group

Stephanie L



Wednesday 6 PM

Serenity Group

Noraleesha W



Wednesday Noon


YOUR TRUSTED SERVANTS IN MARYLAND GENERAL SERVICE DISTRICT 32

GROUP NAME or SERVICE FUNCTION

SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

GROUP SERVICE NUMBER

District Committee Member (DCM) Linda C 567949 Alternate DCM Noraleesha W District Secretary Diane H District Treasurer Tony D 164 Jess V 651357 Action Group

Christa V / GSR Tom B / Alt GSR

106132

Assateague Group Kenny G 688443 Beginner’s Big Book Lauren Z 151078 Berlin 101 Women’s Big Book Patricia G 702515 Berlin Friendship VACANT 106249 Came To Believe

Tom J / GSR Edwin B / Alt GSR

PENDING

Come As You Are Jennie R 712370 Entirely Ready VACANT 707681 Free To Be Women’s Rosemary K 630308 Fresh Air John S 134324 Happy Hour Matt P 162049 Happy, Joyous & Free Women’s Step Study

VACANT

669456

Happy Risers

Mike M / GSR Karen L / Alt GSR

134126

Joy of Living

Diane H / GSR Joann W / Alt GSR

634037

Men’s 12&12 Step Study Tony D 700033 Not A Glum Lot Jerome N 708365 Positive Attitude Rob A 670055 Primary Purpose Group of North Ocean City

Rob W

668259

Proud To Have Served John M PENDING Seaside Group Stephanie L, Info Contact 106362 Serenity Group Rick B 126854

Step 12 – Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these

steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to

practice these principals in all our affairs.

“ Now, what about the rest of the Twelfth Step? The wonderful energy it releases

and the eager action by which it carries our message to the next suffering alcoholic and which finally translates the

Twelve Steps into action upon all our affairs is the payoff, the magnifcent reality, of Alchoholics Anonymous.”

TWELVE STEPS & TWELVE TRADITIONS, P 109


Between Noon Wednesday, Dec 24th, 1952 and Thursday, Jan 1st,

1953, some 120,000 members of AA will have seen their dreams of a dry

Christmas and their hopes of a sane New Year’s come safely true. It will be

the 17th Holiday season that AA has weathered, in the mutual help of

fellowship. And, based on past experiences, it will be a time of many new

hands knocking on AA’s door…. of persons whose holidays and lives have at

long last proven unmanageable. Intergroups and central offices have come

to know that the first week of January means the year’s peak of phone calls

and visits inquiry.

The first Christmas for AA was the depression year of 1935. There were three old timers to mark it….

hardly a dozen newcomers to share it with them. In Akron, Dr. Bob and Bill D, were going on their second six

months. Four recruits had from four months to two months. In New York, Bill W had 13 months since his last drink,

seven months since his historic trip to Akron and the start of A.A.

In Akron, the six gathered with their families at Dr. Bob’s. There was no ceremony, no exchange of

presents. The Twelve Steps had not yet been formulated. The Big Book was only a vague stirring that would not

even be in manuscript until three more Christmases had been achieved. But there was joy that that this most

dangerous of times for the alcoholic had arrived …. And 24 hours by 24 hours was being mastered.

“There were thanks,” remembers one of the two who survives that first Akron Christmas, “that we had

come this far. However, I am certain that there was still considerable fear and trembling…. Not fear that this new

way would not work, but doubt and uncertainty that we would be able to hold on to it. We remembered our many

failures and thanked God for what He had already granted us and prayed sincerely for continued success. ‘

“The second Christmas was, of course, a lot more joyful and celebrated with a lot more confidence. In

those first few years we stuck close together…. we were helped by each other’s presence, and we knew how much

we needed one another.”

Bill W. recalls only a quiet day in New York that Yule of 1935.There were a very few … and who could know

that in a mere 17 years perhaps 120,000 ex-drunks could want to know what happened the first A.A. Christmas?

Five years later, there was a place in New York for an A.A. Christmas party … the first A.A. Clubhouse. And

about the 24th Street Club there hangs a real Santa Claus story!!! Or rather, it is a Saint Nicholas story. Just 100

years before in 1840, the building was erected at number 334 ½ West 24th Street … the property of a family

named Moore who were large landowners in Manhattan Island’s Chelsea section. And driving across the snow

covered lawn, Dr. Clement Clark Moore began to compose (some say just as his sled runners touched what is now

the meeting room of A.A.’s first clubhouse!) his immortal gift to children of all ages … “‘Twas the night before

Christmas.”

At first, the 24th Street property was occupied by a carpenter shop, with a stable built in the west end …

then a tinsmithy … and then a speakeasy … and then a birthplace for many of those first A.A. groups that fanned

out from New York while others fanned out from Akron.

Again, this Christmas of 1952, A.A.’s will gather in the Clubhouse, and there will be, some souls say, a

twinkle just at midnight. No, not of ice cubes, they gravely assure you. No, not of glasses clinking together in a

Yuletide toast. But listen carefully, they solemnly warn you … listen, for at just the hour of twelve there are sleigh

bells that twinkle especially over this old house where eight tiny reindeer took off from the gentle mind of a good

doctor who loved Christmas and all people who can be, even for a moment, Christmas children……

The A.A. Grapevine Inc. – December 1952


“Peace on Earth”

Our A.A. co-founder Bill W. concludes his story in the Big Book by stating on page 16, “Each

day my friend’s simple talk in our kitchen multiplies itself in a widening circle of peace on

earth and good will to men.” Those are some phrases we may hear frequently during this

holiday season, but how are they to be accomplished? For A.A. members, it’s quite simple:

Don’t pick up the first dink, no matter what. Find a Higher Power. Get a sponsor and practice

the Steps as a way of life. Attend meetings. Study A.A. literature. Serve others. Pray and meditate. Cultivate

gratitude. Remain honest, open-minded, and willing. Forgive. Stay in the now. The list may be simple, but it can go

on and on. And for good reason.

As alcoholics, we are suffering from an incurable, progressive, chronic, and fatal disease which is cunning, baffling,

powerful, and patient. Without help it is too much for us, for when we harbor feelings of resentment, self-pity,

pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, sloth or fear, we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the Spirit, and set

ourselves up for trouble. As the Big Book warns on page 66, “The insanity of alcohol returns, and we drink again.

And with us, to drink is to die.”

Bill’s Tradition One essay on page 130 of the 12 & 12 expounds further on this idea: “The A.A. member has to

conform to the principles of recovery. His life actually depends upon obedience to spiritual principles. If he

deviates too far, the penalty is sure and swift; he sickens and dies.” Bill continues by explaining: “At first he goes on

because he must, but later he discovers a way of life he really wants to live. Moreover, he finds he cannot keep this

priceless gift unless he gives it away. Neither he nor anyone else can recover unless he carries the A.A. message.”

So the way to experience inner peace for ourselves and to multiply that serenity in a widening circle of peace on

earth and good will to men is to carry the A.A. message! This we can do one-on-one, in small casual conversations,

or in more formal Step work. We can attend additional meetings, volunteer for the New Year’s Eve alcathon, sign

up to take meetings into the county jail, buy someone a subscription to the Grapevine, serve as a temporary contact

for Bridging the Gap, or take a service position at our home group. We can give a call to the newcomer who showed

up at the meeting this week. We can get involved in intergroup or general service. Our options are endless, but we

must take action. We can’t recover by just talking or thinking about it.

So, how do YOU plan to widen the circle of peace on earth and good will to men? Even though we recover together,

each one of us must work out for himself or herself the manner in which our sobriety is accomplished. Peace on

earth begins with the quality of peace within us. And, as the Big Book reminds us on page 164, “you cannot

transmit something you haven’t got. See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to

pass for you and countless others.” Remember that Great Fact and you can’t go wrong. May each of you enjoy all

the blessings that your Higher Power has to offer during this holiday season, as you carry the A.A. message and

multiply our ever-widening circle of peace on earth and good will to men.

Yours in love and service,

Don B., Alternate Chair (outgoing)

Ocean City Area Fellowship Intergroup

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