Carrying the message of recovery

The 5th tradition of all 12-step organizations is to carry the message to those who are still suffering from addiction to whatever the primary focus whether it be alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling, food, etc.

Many members carry the message on a personal level. On an organizational level in my hometown, the outreach committees have nearly always consisted of one person from what I have seen. It would be nice if there were more members carrying the message. On the bright side, there is endless opportunity for me to carry the message in whatever way I see fit to do.

We are blessed to have some funding by members so we can try a variety of proven methods to carry the message. We have put on educational lunches for professionals, signs on Metro buses, information packets for non-members, business cards for police to hand out to "potential members" and placing literature in libraries, doctor's offices and hotel lobbies. It is a program of attraction, not promotion that can simplistically be thought of as the difference between an invitation and a command imperative ("you should go to a meeting of….").

I am currently serving a two-year term as the local Public Information (PI) committee chair. Today we had a quarterly meeting for like minded members in Western Washington in Kirkland. It is rejuvenating to see all the great activities others are doing to carry the message in their communities.

My planned big project for the term is to get large bookmarkers (2.2" x 8.5" = 5/page) with contact information including websites & phone numbers in all of the King Country libraries (KCLS). I hope I succeed and that this works really well. The KCLS checks out more book than any other library system in the country. All I have to do now is to persuade the powers that be at the KCLS to accept the bookmarkers, design the bookmarkers, get them printed, and then distribute them to the libraries. A key element of the plan is being able to drop the bookmarkers off at library HQ.

I am grateful for the many opportunities to help carry the message of recovery in my community. It is not a matter of how well I succeed in 'saving' others. It is about my being of service to others and getting out of my own self-indulgent thinking. Of course, it is more fun to be successful.