History of Gamblers Anonymous

The fellowship of Gamblers Anonymous began with a chance meeting in January of 1957 by two men. Both of these men were suffering the trouble and misery that is part of being obsessed with gambling. They agreed to meet on a regular basis to help each other to quit gambling and as time went by, neither one of them continued to gamble.
During their meetings, they discussed their needs and what it took to refrain from gambling. They felt that the only way to stop gambling was to make changes in their own character as this would prevent a relapse. They understood that many other people with compulsive addictions of other things had been successful by using certain spiritual principles so they did the same. The word spiritual is defined as that best part of you, that kindness, honesty and humility.
As a way to solidify their own abstinence, they passed on their message to other compulsive gamblers. Publicity by a well knows newspaper columnist helped the first group to meet in Sep. of 1957 in Los Angeles, Calif.