History of the Get It Together Group
We at GIT are lucky to have two members that are still around and can shed some light on the early years of the Get It Together Group. Although they were not at the start of the group they were members early enough to recall the stories of the founding of our group. GIT was founded in 1978 0r 1979, we are not exactly sure but we are about 28 years old according to the number of annual picnics we have had! We have grown as a group and have moved several times since our inception as an AA group. Our members with the longest membership in the group are Warrene W. and Harry R., and these are some of their memories of the early years of GIT.
The founders of the Get It Together group were Val and his wife (name and last initial unknown), Joe H, Larry W. and Jim M. and when Warrene W. and Harry R. came around in 1980 it was a small but growing group. Some of the other members around when they came in were; Bob F. ( current member) Dugan and Mike from Wisconsin, Old George and Montana Jim, Jo, who always said she was a wino and her husband Harley who was a co- alcoholic, Cowboy Norm and Phyllis, aka the dragon Lady . The GIT group was an off shoot of an earlier Chandler meeting that met in a large house. No one knows what the resentment was that caused the break off but the other group is no longer in existence.
GIT used to have anniversary parties, very classy dinners at Williams field Air Force Base and a dinner dance at the Elks Lodge. There was a dinner party every year and at some point they began to have the anniversary dinner in the yard at the Smoke house with a potluck and an auction! This has evolved into our annual fall picnic! GIT also used to have a cake for each individual home group member on their birthday and we have become so large in members we can only do a monthly birthday meeting with cake these days.
The group started on Boston Street in downtown Chandler but no one recalls the address. During Warrene’s first AA meeting they were talking about moving to a place on Arizona Avenue and the discussion was heated on whether the group could afford the added expense. Joe H. was very much in favor of the move and it turned out to be good for the group and they were there for many happy years! The types of meetings were very much like today’s; Open and closed, noon meetings, every night at 8 pm, a women’s meeting on Saturday morning, Men’s Meeting and the Sunday 11th step meeting have always been a part of our schedule!
GIT has moved over the years. They were on Arizona Avenue for 7 to 8 years. They had to move from there because the attorney that owned the building wanted to do something else with it. We spent one year in the vacant old hospital on Chandler Blvd and then moved to the “Old smoke house” on Chandler Blvd. and were there about 8 years. GIT moved from there because there was a caretaker (an AA Member) living in the house and some felt that was a violation of AA principles. We tried then to become an Alano Club so we could keep the caretaker whom was needed to satisfy the lease and maintain the lawn. This issue caused so much dissension that we lost members over it during very heated discussions! We then made the move to Alma School and Ray location and were there for a few years! We eventually made the move to 393 W. Warner in around 1996 or 97. We moved to a larger Suite (105/106), next door, in July of 2012.
Today GIT is flourishing with an approximate membership of 400 or so recovering alcoholics! We really don’t know because we keep no records of members. We have around 40 AA meetings per week and are committed to carrying out AA’s primary purpose to “stay sober and help Alcoholics to achieve sobriety”! Put the plug in the jug and come see what we are about! We look forward to seeing you and helping you to stay sober!