Honoring Joseph D. McQuany
Hazelden Betty Ford renames treatment unit for influential Black A.A. leader, best known for Joe & Charlie Big Book Study Tapes
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Joseph D. McQuany was the first Black member of Alcoholics Anonymous in Arkansas and entered A.A. in 1962, just a few years after the violent resistance to forced school integration in Little Rock. According to the book Heroes of Early Black AA, McQuany was initially allowed to attend AA meetings only on the condition he not arrive early or stay late to socialize and not drink any of the coffee. As he said, “Little Rock was no place for a Black man to be looking for help in 1962.” He persevered despite those early insults and went on to find recovery, develop a remarkable spirituality through the Twelve Steps, and become a prominent Big Book scholar and teacher — one half of the duo behind the influential Joe & Charlie Big Book Study Tapes.
With the support of generous donors — Tela Gallagher Mathias and her company PhoenixTeam — Hazelden Betty Ford in St. Paul named its unit for male-identifying residents in honor of McQuany. The dedication took place during Black History Month 2023.
“We usually have 45 to 50 people living in our residence; several hundred in and out of our building each day in services; and tours with staff, patients, and visitors every week. Being able to tell Joe’s story and honor his legacy by naming our unit after him is incredibly meaningful to us, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to show his name in such a prominent way,” said executive director John Engebreth.
Unit names at Hazelden Betty Ford treatment centers across the United States hold special meaning for many alumni. Thousands have healed and experienced life-changing moments while living on units such as Silkworth, Shoemaker, and Cronin, to name a few.
At Hazelden Betty Ford in St. Paul, the newly named Joseph D. McQuany Unit is adjacent the Marty Mann Unit, a residence for female-identifying patients. Named in 2015, the Marty Mann Unit honors one of the pioneers in AA and recovery advocacy history.
“I continue to be impressed by the transformative leadership of our St. Paul campus,” said Andrew Williams, the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation’s director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. “The decision to rename a residential unit in honor of Joseph McQuany sits squarely at the intersection of racial and gender inclusion. It sends a strong message to the African American community and all those with diverse gender identities that we see you and are committed to recovery equity.”
1n 1962, McQuany was denied access to a Little Rock addiction treatment center that was “for white men only.” So, he went to the only alternative nearby — the Arkansas State Hospital, which had a segregated “Black section.” It was there, in the so-called asylum, that he was introduced to AA by members who brought meetings into the institution, and there where his recovery began.
Ten years into his recovery, McQuany established Serenity Park, an extended-care sanctuary for all in need of recovery regardless of race or financial circumstances. In the same year, he founded a program called “Recovery Dynamics” and authored a book entitled “The Steps We Took,” a study and suggestion guide for working the Twelve Steps.
The following year, in 1973, McQuany got the opportunity to introduce Charlie Parmley as the AA speaker at an Al-Anon Convention. McQuany and Parmley soon discovered they both shared a love for the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. Traveling 225 miles between their homes to discuss the Big Book became a regular event. Eventually, others were invited to join their discussions, and in 1977 they met together as a group in Oklahoma — a gathering that led to an invitation to speak at an AA home group. Their presentation to the home group, as fate would have it, was recorded. As others heard the four-tape recording, “Joe & Charlie” began to receive invitations to present at AA conventions, roundups and special events. Their tapes began to spread throughout the AA fellowship.
In 1978, McQuany established the Kelly Foundation to help facilities implement his Recovery Dynamics Model. In 2002, he wrote Carry This Message — a guide to Big Book sponsorship. And, in 2007, just a few weeks before his passing, McQuany was able to realize his last great dream by creating a treatment center for women within Serenity Park.
Today, McQuany’s legacy lives on in many ways. The Kelly Foundation carries on his work. The Joe and Charlie Tapes are online, continuing to provide people everywhere with the nourishment of Twelve Step wisdom. And now, for years to come, staff, patients and visitors at Hazelden Betty Ford in St. Paul will learn about the man who was met with racism when he first arrived to the AA fellowship and then helped it grow in more ways than one.
