Responsibility and the Linkage Between the Groups and the Foundation – 1945 – Hellen B.

About This Speaker Tape

DOS - 1945

Hellen B. traces the early scrappy days of the Boston central service office where a treasury of $39.72 and a lack of a sign on the door led the police to suspect the office was a 'boogie joint.' She describes the friction between the 'old parents' and the progressive younger members over the need for organization and her own time as secretary navigating the chaos of early recovery. The narrative shifts to her work with Bill W. in New York detailing the high-stakes drafting of the Third Legacy Paragraph to ensure the movement's survival after the passing of its founders. She dismantles the argument that organization is 'politics' or a threat to simplicity arguing that without a structured linkage between the groups and the foundation the fellowship would collapse into strife. The talk culminates in the urgency of the General Service Conference as a safeguard for future generations.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:45 Laughter: The 'old parents' shrieking about the cost of a central office.
• 2:10 Hellen B. describes the early days of the Boston office and the $39.72 treasury.
• 4:15 The story of the police visiting the 'mysterious office' at 39th Avenue.
• 6:00 Conflict with Johnny, a belligerent member on his 29th slip of the year.
• 8:20 Transition to her move to New York to work as a secretary for the Alcoholic Foundation.
• 10:15 Discussion of the Third Legacy Paragraph and the 'perishable' nature of the founders.
• 13:00 The emotional moment of Dr. Bob's final approval of the plan just weeks before his death.
• 15:30 Dismantling the 'keep it simple' argument regarding the logistics of mailing eight tons of literature.
• 18:00 The necessity of General Service and the linkage between the groups and the foundation.