marinadock.org

Non-Profit Corporation

The Marina Dock Newsletter February 2002

Dear Marina Dock members and patrons alike,

Thank you for your continued support.  The newsletter is a little behind schedule this month due to circumstances beyond my control. By the way, many people have given me very favorable feedback regarding the newsletter over the last year or so and look forward to receiving it. This, in a way, presents problems for me. Although I love the compliments, I have to continually come up with ways to make it interesting every month and somehow weave in the matter of finances without appearing pushy or solicitous.

16 Years Serving the Recovery Community

February 2002 is our 16th Birthday. Thank you one and all for your continued support since 1986. You can read more about our history on this website, and also read some of the testimonials from people we have helped since we first opened as the Dry Dock.

The Inside Jobs Continue

Richard W is hot again. I have actually seen him down there in his overalls on three or four days in a row now. The overalls are the signal that things are happening. Richard, I have to say, is a loyal and dedicated friend of the Marina Dock and mine. One of those solid New England types - slow as molasses in June, but solid ... real solid and reliable. He is currently working on three different projects. The Middle Room wall is being stripped of old plywood and the lower part will be refinished and painted. The West Room will have more light which will hopefully change the mood. He is also installing a new bench seat along the East Room wall where the old closets are now located. This seat will curve around in a semi-circular configuration to allow more seating. I happened to be there on Saturday morning during the 10:00 am meeting and there was standing room only in the East Room. We are working on it, believe me.

Frank B Celebrated Sixty Years Continuous ...

On Sunday, 20 January, a special meeting was held at Saint Anne’s at Fourth and Lake for Frank. I saw many people that I had not seen in a while. Chicago Mike was there and he explained why he is called "Chicago Mike". Apparently, when he first came around there were too many Mikes. Ed C shared about the time he called up Frank to seek his counsel on what he considered a very serious spiritual matter. He said Frank listened for a while to his request for clarity and then, in his inimitable Frank way of cutting to the chase, responded "Ed, life is not a series of periods ... just commas." Walking Don conducted the meeting and to my surprise called on me to share a Frank B experience.  I found this flattering but somewhat daunting given the fact that there were many heavy hitters in the room with a combined total of about a million years of recovery.

A Frank B Moment

There are many, but the one I shared was, I thought, fitting and apropos. It was about ten years ago at the Dry Dock on one of those dark and rainy November evenings when the whole world appeared to be gathered there. It was just before the 5:15 pm meeting. Everyone was animated and jovial and Frank was in his element. The banter was fast and furious. Then the meeting started and the social room emptied. For no particular reason, Frank lingered and appeared to want some quiet time. Over on the corner of the other sofa we both noticed for the first time an old guy who had kind of drifted in from Seattle. He had been there for most of the day. He informed us that he was lonely, terminally ill, but sober a lot of 24 hours. After a while, Frank got up from his chair, went to the counter and got a cup of coffee and a cookie for the fellow. He introduced himself quietly and without fanfare. He sat down next to the guy and assured him that he was not alone and that ultimately no matter how things went for him he would be all right. I told this story because it embodies the principles that we so dearly cherish - doing the basics, reaching out to others, without an audience, sans the spiritual hilltop. Just simply being there for someone at a spiritual level that they can relate to. I was merely there to observe this fleeting moment of tenderness and human kindness.

It Is Better To Give Than Receive

Today, instead of constantly asking, I feel the need to give back. Therefore, this Valentine’s Day, Thursday February 14, there will be one beverage and one snack available free for the taking for everyone at Marina Dock. This day will be observed as a tribute to a friend of the Marina Dock who is no longer in our midst. I felt this day is fitting because our friend, in addition to be being an incurable romantic, was a truly humble, sensitive and giving human being. Thank You Again, RC.

Updates on Workshops and the Website

Finally, stay tuned for information about a whole range of recovery-related workshops taking place at the Marina Dock. Schedules and details of these will be available soon. Also, check out the new and improved look to our website at www.marinadock.org.

The solution is love.  Until next time.

Sincerely, Anthony T. Murray ("Irish Tony")