Sister Ignatia started the use of coins in medallions in Alcoholics Anonymous.
She was a nun who helped start the program at St. Johns hospital. She would give
the alcoholics a heart medallion after they had reached five days of sobriety. She would
remind them that the token meant that they were making a commitment to god, AA, and to themselves to remain sober. If they were going to drink they had the responsibility of
giving the heart medallion back to sister. Then the use of coins and medallions started growing.
There are birthdays in AA. Your birthday is your anniversary of the day you stopped drinking. On certain days you receive a new coin for sobriety and you get a coin on your birthday. They range in sizes, but they almost always have the serenity prayer on them or a saying of AA.
The coins are very encouraging to the people of AA. It gives them something to show for their sobriety and it means a lot to them. Most people get really excited to get coins and it is their inspiration to keep going. Coins in AA are a very important factor in the success of the program.
I thought this artifact was a great choice, because I wasn't aware that people in AA received mini gifts.
ReplyDeleteI understand that the coin is very important to them, but I don't see your own personal opinion of how valuable this artifact is to you.
Is this the only artifact possible for this subculture? I could not think of any artifacts for AA other than a pamphlet.
This is a very interesting artifact. I was intrigued in the beginning and drawn into your artifact because I had no idea that people in AA get gifts or that there were any symbols regarding AA. This would be something that you could look up the history on them like you have and use it in your paper. I am unaware of any other artifact that you could use for this group and therefore I think this one is very good.
ReplyDeleteThis was a great artifact to choose because it sounds like there is a lot of history that goes along with it. I want to know more about it.
ReplyDeleteIt just sounds like you researched this on the internet. It would sound better if you talked about a place you went to.
Why would people take the coin so seriously?
I think it was a good choice to choose this artifact to use. It represents what people go through to get sober. I wonder what people do with the coin once they receive it? What is your opinion on the coin? I would like to know more details of the coin. Some of your own input would be nice, instead of just the research!
ReplyDelete