Orange County Hospitals and Institutions
Committee of AA
Our Purpose
The purpose of Orange County Hospitals and Institutions Committee (H&I) is to carry the message of Alcoholics Anonymous® to the alcoholic who is confined in a hospital or institution. H&I is a service committee as defined in the Ninth Tradition of Alcoholics Anonymous®;
“AA, as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.”
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H&I’s charter is stated in AA’s Fifth Tradition; “Each group has but one primary purpose – to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.”
Our History
In 1942, Warden Duffy at San Quentin State Prison noticed that 80% of the prisoners released ended up back in prison, and that alcohol was usually a contributing factor. He was aware of a group called Alcoholics Anonymous® who claimed recovery from alcoholism, and invited them into San Quentin to hold meetings with the inmates. Thus H&I was born in Northern CA and San Quentin Group #1 became the first group in the Hospital and Institution Committee