Alcoholics Anonymous Meetings in Pennsylvania

What is Alcoholics Anonymous?

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other so that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism.

Meeting Location 1

Meeting Times:

• Mondays at 7 PM (open discussion)
• Wednesdays at noon (step study)

This AA group holds two weekly meetings at the First Church of Anytown. The Monday meeting is an open discussion format while the Wednesday meeting is focused on studying the 12 steps. New members are welcome at both meetings.

Meeting Location 2

Meeting Times:

• Tuesdays at 6 PM (closed women’s group)
• Fridays at 5:30 PM (open speaker meeting)

This AA location hosts a women’s closed discussion meeting on Tuesdays in addition to an open speaker meeting on Fridays. The women’s meeting provides a safe space for females to share, while the Friday meeting features AA members sharing their personal stories of recovery from alcoholism.

Meeting Location 3

Meeting Times:

• Sundays at 10:30 AM (open literature study)
• Thursdays at 8 PM (closed men’s group)

Two weekly AA meetings are held at this location. The Sunday morning meeting involves the study and discussion of AA-approved literature. On Thursday evenings, there is a closed men’s group for males to share their experiences in recovery from alcohol addiction.

The 12 Steps of AA

Alcoholics Anonymous outlines a 12-step program to help members achieve and maintain sobriety. The steps aim to motivate members toward positive change across Pennsylvania.

1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. We humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

Getting Started with AA in Pennsylvania

Use the meeting search on wfmh.org to find local meetings in your area. Both in-person and online/virtual meetings are available in most places across the state.

Attending Your First Local AA Meeting

There are two main types of AA meetings in Pennsylvania:

When attending your first local meeting:

• Arrive early and introduce yourself as a new member.
• Share your experiences if you feel comfortable.

Receive welcome keychain tags marking sobriety milestones:

• 30 days
• 60 days
• 90 days
• 6 months
• 9 months
• 1 year
• 18 months
• Multiple years

The most important things are attending regularly, participating if willing, and connecting with other members for support. Avoid conclusion or output comments regarding others’ sharing. Focus instead on your own journey and experiences.