As we are present in Germany since 1984 with the first SA group starting in Karlsruhe, we have already translated the majority of the English books, brochures and flyers into German and they are used as conference approved SA literature in German SA meetings.

It was in August 1985 when two friends from SA and S-Anon in Karlsruhe presented their story during an info meeting in Bochum, Germany. They were invited by Alexander who is a friend of mine and was a member of Emotions Anonymous like me. At that day (Aug. 10th 1985) we started our SA-group in Bochum, the second in Germany.

At that time the German translation of the first WB “Sexaholics Anonymous” was not yet ready. The translation was done by some members of the first SA-group in Germany which was started in 1984 in Karlsruhe. The German translation was completed in 1986 and printed with the permission of the Sexaholics Anonymous General Service Board.

Three months after the start of our SA-group in Bochum I met Roy, the founder of SA, in Bad Herrenalb, where he gave an SA-Seminar at the clinic of Dr. Walter Lechler.

In spring time 1988 I visited Roy and his wife Iris in Simi Valley for the first time and stayed at their home for a couple of days. After my return to Germany the German fellowship decided to invite Roy to join our national convention which was held in fall time 1988 in Schneverdingen, Lüneburger Heide. During this visit Roy told me that he was working on a new and greatly revised version of the White Book and was asking if this might be translated into German after the publication in the US. Since I was a member of the SA-board at that time, I informed my fellow board members about the new WB edition and we decided to set up a team to translate it as soon as it might become available. Just before publication in the US Roy sent me a copy of the new WB manuscript enabling us to start the German translation. In the beginning we were 6 persons which started the German translation. 2 years later only 2 persons were left over, Christoph and me, who stayed with the translation task till completion. At around that time I visited Roy another time in Simi Valley and reported to him that we almost completed the German translation of the WB and gave him one preliminary copy of the printed WB.

Regrettably, the German fellowship did not accept this translation in 1991. It took another 9 years when the German SA-Board and the German SA-fellowship accepted an improved version of the German WB as a conference approved German version of the White Book, which was printed and published for the first time in 2001. A copy of this first edition of the new WB was given to Roy, too.