$26 a Night in Cuba Included Breakfast, Dinner, and a Bottle of Rum — I Didn’t Get the Rum for Some Reason 😅 – Scott H.

About This Speaker Tape

Scott H., a Trustee at Large for Canada, shares his experiences carrying the message of Alcoholics Anonymous to countries around the world. He describes attending the 24th World Service Meeting, where delegates from 41 countries gathered to share highlights from their structures. He relates moving stories from Romania, Poland, Ukraine, and Slovenia -- countries operating on annual budgets smaller than most home groups -- yet still reaching out to help neighboring countries like Moldova establish meetings in correctional facilities.

Scott devotes significant time to his visits to Cuba, where AA is not officially recognized by the government. Because everything in Cuba is government-owned, AA cannot get a phone line, rent meeting space, or hire caterers -- the answer is always "AA doesn't exist." Literature must be shipped through the Catholic Church. He describes the delicate diplomatic reality: recognizing AA might imply the government has failed to meet its people's needs, and how reframing AA as a supplement to existing services rather than an admission of failure might open doors.

He shares vivid stories from zonal meetings (the Redella) across the Americas -- a trustee from Honduras who rode a bus 48 hours each way to attend, Nicaraguans who spent seven days on a bus, and the contrast with his own complaints about 15 hours in coach. He notes that in these countries he never hears "I've done my share, it's someone else's turn" -- only "What more can I do?" He reflects honestly that this devotion exposes his own comfort and selfishness.

Scott closes with a powerful scene from Peru where 800 people in a room each light a candle passed from the newest member, transforming darkness into light -- a metaphor for what AA does everywhere. Throughout, his message is clear: alcoholics are the same worldwide, the work of carrying the message is the same twelfth-step work we do individually, and what we give is always less than what we get.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Scott introduces himself as Trustee at Large Canada and frames the talk about international AA service work
• 4:30 Describes the 24th World Service Meeting -- 61 delegates from 41 countries sharing highlights from their structures
• 8:00 Romania's bimonthly magazine with 200 subscribers; Poland's history of AA being smuggled behind the Iron Curtain in 1974
• 12:00 Ukraine and Slovenia operating entire AA structures on $3,500 and $3,000 annual budgets -- less than his home group
• 18:00 Cuba: AA not recognized by government, literature shipped through Catholic Church, cannot get phone lines or meeting space
• 26:00 Mother Teresa visa story -- reframing AA as supplement to government services rather than admission of failure
• 32:00 Zonal meetings (Redella) in Mexico and Costa Rica; challenges of multiple AA structures in some countries
• 40:00 Honduras trustee who rode a bus 48 hours each way; Nicaraguans who spent seven days on a bus to attend a weekend event
• 48:00 Chairing AA Around the World at the 2015 International Convention; meeting Marshall from Uganda on the escalator
• 55:00 Peru candle-lighting ceremony -- 800 people in a room passing the light of AA from newest member outward