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Alcoholics Anonymous history in your area
Johnsonville, South Carolina
http://www.area62.org/area62/kit.htm
Twin City Group
District # 80
1971 - Present

I, Nelson G.D., took my last drink November 11, 1970. Moved back to Johnsonville, in August 1971, to my home place across from the Methodist Church on Hwy. 41-51. Where I met preacher Bill E. I told him I was a recovering alcoholic and that one of the ways to stay sober was to help other alcoholics get sober. And if he knew anyone that needed help to let me know. He said that was God sent, that “they” the church was trying to start a group. They had a house rented and money in the bank to support it. I told him that I didn’t think that was the way it worked. AA members, not the church, started those AA groups and that seemed to confuse him. I left a copy of the Big Book for him to read and thought the book would explain better than I could. After a week, I spoke to him again, and he said he understood completely what I was talking about. And that he knew another known alcoholic in the area and that was Dalton T. Who I went to visit and met for the first time. We became instant friends and we started going to meetings together in Florence, Georgetown and Myrtle Beach. There was only one group in Myrtle Beach. It was downtown and upstairs in 2 small rooms. Dalton and I traveled many highway miles going to meetings. My AA birthday was coming up November 11, 1971. Dalton and I drove to Goldsboro, NC where I picked up my one-year chip. My sponsor was Morton C., who spoke at our first area meeting in Johnsonville. He shared the program with his wife, Martha. While in NC, Dalton and I decided to start a group. A friend in Goldsboro, Wade W. a recovering alcoholic, who worked with the crisis line, gave us a box of AA literature to start our group, under one condition, that we wouldn’t get drunk on the way back to Johnsonville.

Dalton and I contacted Dr. King (Mrs.) in Florence, who was in charge of the health center in Johnsonville, who gave us permission to hold our AA meetings, once a week. We started out on Thursday Nights, so it wouldn’t conflict with other group meetings. The reason we chose the health center was so we wouldn’t appear to be affiliated with any church.

Primarily visitors from other AA groups supported us. Many times there was only I, my wife Gloria, Dalton, and his wife Lucille.

We were so thankful that the other surrounding groups supported and visited the Twin City Group, to help keep us alive.

Thanks to the AA way and God, Dalton stayed sober until he died in 1996, and Gloria and I are still together, sober and happy.

Nelson G.D.

Copyright © June 2002 Area 62 of Alcoholics Anonymous, K.I.T. Newsletter
http://www.area62.org/

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