Hazelden Publishing Celebrates 60th Anniversary

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Jul 07, 2014, 10:19 ET

CENTER CITY, Minn., July 7, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Hazelden Publishing, a part of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation and located in Center City, Minnesota, is celebrating 60 years as the leading publisher of prevention, intervention, addiction recovery and self-help resources.

This important legacy began in 1954 with the publication of Richmond Walker's Twenty-Four Hours a Day, or more affectionately known throughout the world as "The Little Black Book." The meditation book, which appeals to a broad range of people, still enjoys an immense popularity today, with more than 10 million copies sold.

"It was the vision of Hazelden's second president, Pat Butler, to take a chance on Richmond Walker, who was publishing and distributing this profound meditation book for recovering alcoholics," said Mark Mishek, president and CEO of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. "That key decision has helped millions of individuals and families understand the complicated disease of addiction and find inspiration for a lifelong journey of recovery."

Kris Van Hoof, Interim Publisher and Executive Director of Content Innovations and Management, pointed out that "with the many challenges facing the publishing industry, Hazelden has thrived by embracing technology and innovation and continuing to develop new resources and solutions to meet the needs of consumers and professionals throughout the world."

"Today, in addition to books, e-books, video streaming, downloadable client resources, online assessment tools and other resources, we have dozens of recovery 'apps' available for smartphones," she continued. "In fact, our award-winning Twenty-Four Hours A Day app now makes Richmond Walker's inspiring thoughts available to people anywhere, anytime throughout the world."

Hazelden Publishing's historical highlights include:

1954, Hazelden buys the rights to a little meditation book, Twenty-Four Hours a Day and sells almost 5,000 copies the first year.
1982, a classic meditation book for women, Each Day a New Beginning by Karen Casey is published and the millionth copy is sold in 1989.
1984, groundbreaking ceremony is held for the Richmond Walker building on Hazelden's campus in Center City, Minnesota.
1986, Codependent No More by Melody Beattie is published and becomes a New York Times bestseller. Codependent No More is available in over 20 languages, as a smartphone app and eBook, and boasts a cumulative total of over five million copies sold.
2003, Today's Gift daily email begins offering free inspirational messages and now reaches more than 104,000 subscribers each day.
2006, My Ongoing Recovery Experience (MORE®) is implemented--a web-based component of a recovery continuing care program.
2010, Hazelden publishes the original working manuscript of Alcoholic Anonymous (called The Big Book), The Book that Started It All.
2013, The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown, a research professor and thought leader on the issues of vulnerability, courage and shame, reaches #1 on The New York Times bestseller list. And as of the end of June, it has been on the list for 38 weeks.
2013, the Mobile MORE "Field Guide to Life" app receives the White House Behavioral Health Patient Empowerment Challenge award. The app provides crucial first-year support to people newly recovering from addiction.
2014, Healthline.com names Twenty-Four Hours A Day app as one of the Best Alcoholism iPhone and Android Apps of the Year.

Special promotions to celebrate 60 years of publishing will be announced each Thursday as part of Hazelden Publishing's "Throw Back Thursday" offers to celebrate their 60th anniversary, beginning today. To learn more, please visit the Hazelden Publishing bookstore at hazelden.org/bookstore http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/publishing.page

Hazelden Publishing creates and disseminates knowledge through innovative media and service solutions, based in evidence, to help youth and adults recognize, understand and overcome substance abuse, addiction and closely related issues. Based on decades of research, its extensive collection of school- and community wide curricula and multimedia classroom resources is designed to engage and inspire students, parents, faculty and staff to take a unified stand in creating a healthy environment.

About the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
The Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation helps people reclaim their lives from the disease of addiction. It is the nation's largest nonprofit treatment provider, with a legacy that began in 1949 and includes the 1982 founding of the Betty Ford Center. With 15 sites in California, Minnesota, Oregon, Illinois, New York, Florida, Massachusetts, Colorado and Texas, the Foundation offers prevention and recovery solutions nationwide and across the entire continuum of care for youth and adults. It includes the largest recovery publishing house in the country, a fully-accredited graduate school of addiction studies, an addiction research center, an education arm for medical professionals and a unique children's program, and is the nation's leader in advocacy and policy for treatment and recovery. Learn more at www.hazeldenbettyford.org.