"Bill W."

"Bill W.". . , William G. Wilson, known as "Bill W.," co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous, which has affected millions of lives. Born in Dorset, he moved to Rutland in childhood, and credited his upbringing here with instilling the traits that determined his success in life. "It was during this period that I can see how my willpower and distinction, later to keynote my whole life, was developed," he said., Wilson gained sobriety in 1934, and co-founded AA in 1935. A doctor's statement that alcoholism was an illness rather than a character flaw, as was incorrectly believed at that time, led Wilson to write some of the core tenets of AA and the 12 Steps. He died in 1971, was buried in East Dorset, and was named by "Time Magazine" as one of the 20th Century's 100 most influential people., This sculpture, designed and created by a team including Alessandro Lombardo, Kellie Pereira, and Stephen Shaheen, is one in a series honoring regional history and planned through collaboration with The Carving Studio and Sculpture Center, Vermont Quarries, MKF Properties and Green Mountain Power. It was funded anonymously, and donated to the City of Rutland.