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The Alano Club of Portland needs help from those it's helped to keep the legacy going. Please make a contribution today!
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The Alano Club of Portland was founded in 1947 by members of Alcoholics Anonymous in order to provide a safe and nurturing place where alcoholics and their families could learn and maintain a new way of life based on the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step recovery model.
The founders felt strongly that The Alano Club of Portland serve as a visible, community-based support and fellowship resource for all individuals seeking a life free from the imprisonment of active alcoholism, regardless of their economic or social status. In addition, the original members firmly believed that people will rise to the level of their surroundings, and that recovering alcoholics deserved, and would benefit from, a safe and attractive recovery facility.
Today the Alano Club of Portland is Oregon's largest and most diverse recovery support center. On average we provide a home for over 100 weekly recovery meetings and welcome over 12,000 visitors per month. Our programming has grown by leaps and bounds since our founding days, too. When the Club first opened its doors, two twelve step programs met here: Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon. Today, we host 13 distinct 12-step recovery programs, ranging from Alcoholics Anonymous to Narcotics Anonymous to Gamblers Anonymous, and many more!
1947: We have a home!
The founding members of the Alano Club of Portland make a decision to purchase a house at 1932 NW Flanders for $25,000. The original club included meeting rooms, a hobby space, a coffee bar, a lounge and a game room. The Club’s membership grew quickly in the first year. By the end of 1947, the Club boasted a membership roll in excess of 600 people. Portland’s recovery community was beginning to flourish and grow.
1962: Moving on Up!
The Alano Club packs its bags and heads up the hill a few blocks to its current location in Portland's Historic Alphabet District at 909 NW 24th Avenue. A private donor gifted the property and home to the organization, providing a much larger space to meet the Club's rapidly growing membership. The colonial mansion that has come to symbolize recovery in Portland, originally constructed in 1906, soon became home to dozens of AA and Al-Anon meetings. The new Alano Club facility quickly established itself as the heart of Portland's growing recovery community.
1989: Disaster strikes!
A fire consumes the front portion of the facility, causing the Club to temporarily close its doors, turning away thousands of weekly patrons who regularly attend meetings and recovery-related activities at the Club. Meetings were forced to relocate and the Club's membership became increasingly distraught at the prospect that the Club might not be re-built. But fortunately, fate had other plans for this community treasure. Damage from the fire was estimated at more than $500,000. Even with insurance coverage, the Club was confronted with the daunting prospect of raising over $125,000 in private funds to restore the house.
1991: Raise the walls!
Through the sheer tenacity of key Club leaders the determination of hundreds of Club members and the generous support of some of Portland's leading civic organizations, the walls were raised and the doors were once again open to all who sought refuge and recovery from alcoholism and addiction. Later in the year, the Club's Board of Directors rolled up their sleeves and got to work, spearheading a successful fundraising drive to retire the six-figure debt incurred during the reconstruction and renovation effort. The success of this fundraising campaign spoke volumes about the importance of the Club's work, and the great need in the community for the Club's recovery support services.
2004: Everything has changed, but the Club remains the same!
Fast forward 14 years - much is different, and yet little has changed. The core mission and purpose of the Alano Club of Portland has veered little over the past 60 years. We are still driven by our steadfast belief that everyone deserves an opportunity at a life free from the misery of active alcoholism: we've simply added a few other addictions to the list! The world-wide success of the 12-step recovery model has led to a great proliferation of support programs targeted at other addictive disorders. While a majority of our activities are still focused on the recovering alcoholic, we now house 12-step programs for many more people, including: family members of alcoholics, problem gamblers, nicotine addicts, co-dependents, overeaters, workaholics, drug addicts, problem debtors, sex addicts and incest survivors.
2006: Planning for a bright future!
The Alano Club of Portland has experienced substantial growth since it’s
inception in 1947. With more recovery programs and people using our facility than ever, our challenge is to ensure that this beautiful, historic resource continues to be available for the suffering alcoholics and addicts who haven’t yet found their place in recovery. At the heart of the matter is one simple fact: Our facility was originally constructed and designed to function as a residential estate, not a thriving community enterprise with more than 10,000 visitors each month. Upkeep and preventive maintenance are imperative to the long term sustainability of this important community asset. Currently our facility is in critical need of exterior and interior repairs and infrastructure improvements that could total more than $150,000. In the near future, we will be launching a capital improvement campaign to address this need. Visit the Donate page to find out more about our fundraising campaign and how you can get involved!
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