Who Was Rowland H.?
Rowland H. lived during turbulent times. Born in 1881, the heir apparent of a well-established Rhode Island family, he married, fathered four children, served during WWI and then worked in NYC during the Spanish Influenza. He later divorced, left Wall Street and started a business (just after the Crash of 1929) depending heavily on his family’s bank account. For most of his adult life, Rowland relied on alcohol to obscure the mayhem, but he became and remained sober for the last eight years of his life by following the Oxford Group’s “steps” (later adapted by Alcoholics Anonymous). For decades his remarkable feat remained unknown to his family. An Anonymous Gift is written so that others may marvel at the lengthy list of “defeats” and take hope in his ultimate “victory”.
Photos from An Anonymous Gift
