Jimmy Kinnon was a very outgoing boy. At the age of seven he even befriended the town drunk, Mr. Crookshank. Far from the lovable, mischievous type, Mr. Crookshank often found himself passed out, injured from his numerous fights — or worse. One day Jimmy found Mr. Crookshank bleeding, in particularly bad shape, requiring medical assistance. Mr. Crookshank was taken away and did not come back for weeks, to the growing alarm of the boy. Finally, his mother relented, and Jimmy went to see Mr. Crookshank, now wheelchair-bound, at a local facility. After the visit, Jimmy stoically promised his mother he will grow up to help men like him.

On this day, August 17, in 1953 the adult James Kinnon hosted the first meeting of the Narcotics Anonymous, a sister group of Alcoholics Anonymous, which Kinnon briefly belonged to, but focused on habit-forming drugs.

For a period in his life, Kinnon also drank excessively and began using drugs. While AA helped with the alcohol, they discouraged any talk about other addictions, and as Kinnon found other there were few good institutions to foster an AA-style support group for former drug users. Jimmy K. borrowed the name of one such unofficial and struggling group, and convinced Alcoholics Anonymous to lend him permission to use their 12-step program to help his fellow Narcotics Anonymous members.