The Challenge of Sponsorship

Right from the start, AA spread simply by one drunk talking to another. Bill W. called on Doctor Bob in 1935 in Akron and AA was born. A physician, Dr. William Silkworth, who had worked intensely with alcoholics, was quick to see the possibilities for growth in this approach. But he was also vocal and emphatic about the physical aspect of our illness. Our bodies are not normal. We are allergic to alcohol. But the promise of recovery, he believed, would be through the simple expedient of one drunk talking to another.