Riverside Mission

[programmer_guy]

I was involved in the Riverside Scientology Mission in the 1970s. I was recruited on a college campus.

I attended the intro lecture. This was before Joe Yazbeck was the lecturer. I don't remember his name BUT some people remarked at how much the guy resembled LRH in his facial features. Anyway, he eventually discussed what TRs were about (although he didn't call them that... for newbies). Frank Walker was there too... talking to people (raw meat).

I signed up for the Comm Course while I was still in college. At that time Jim Hamre and Joanie Mongello (wife of the deputy ED, Bobby) were the Comm Course sups in an old house before the move to the YMCA building (I posted the YMCA building pics on OCMB, should I post them here also?). Once in awhile Rebecca Dickson and Susan Green would sup also. (Yeah... we screamed at an ashtray outside the building.)

After the Comm Course, Super Literate, and Life Repair... I joined staff.
(BTW, Jeff Kovak was my reg during all this. No one else could reg me but Jeff because I liked him.)

The conditions of my joining staff were that I would get auditing up through Grade IV. Ha. That never happened! After I joined staff THIS was quickly changed to training up through Level IV. I just accepted this (and I was young and naive) as the greatest good etc.

Meanwhile I was put on Div6 as a disseminator (What? I was being trained as an auditor... wasn't I?). I didn't like it.

More later...

 

[programmer_guy]

I had tried to dissem to some old college friends on campus. They would have nothing to do with this. (In retrospect, I don't blame them at all.)

Eventually, I couldn't do dissemination anymore as I wanted to be an auditor. So, I blew for a short while.

I came back and wound up as a course sup... which I could do pretty well. I liked it. After awhile I was sent to ASHO (on Temple street) to do the HPCSC.

I finished the packs and started internship. Apparently, some at the Riverside Mission thought that I was taking too long to complete. So someone told me to return to the Mission. This meant that I had to blow the HPCSC to follow these orders. I did so. I returned to sup at the mission. Finally, I was sent back to complete the HPCSC (which I did). I had to do amends to get back on course. It wasn't that hard to do for me. I got out of the lower ethics conditions within a day or two.

Still, I was reluctant to MAKE people do things that they didn't want to do. Dana finally broke me in Qual. I got tough... which is what they wanted. When I got out of Qual (after a thorough cramming) I sent a chronically late student to ethics as I had had enough - he was either going to be dedicated to what he was doing or not. I wrote it up and gave it to him and told him, "route yourself to ethics". (I never saw him again before I left.) I don't know how BUT Dana was there and witnessed this. She told me something like, "okay, good job, you are completing this now". I don't remember the exact words... I just remember her intent.

Then I returned to the Riverside Mission.

More later...

 

[programmer_guy]

Whle I was on course at ASHO for HPCSC I stayed at The Manor (this is now Celebrity Center in L.A.). I shared a room on the 2nd floor. There was a shuttle van to take people from one place to another. I took the van to and from The Manor and ASHO. There were other stops along the way - like L.A. Org, old Celebrity Center, AO.

One of my room mates turned out to be the ex-husband of a lady on staff at the Riverside Mission. What a small world we live in! He played guitar. (I still remember when he played "Rocky Raccoon" in that room in the evening after we were all done with class or auditing.)

Surprisingly, among others, I met a few people at The Manor that were gay and/or bi-sexual. I only mention this because you might find this interesting given what Hubbard had to say about this. (No, I am not gay.)

I would get to ASHO and buy a donut from a vending machine in a small area between the course rooms.

The examiners were at card tables out in the open (i.e. not in private rooms). I don't know why this was so. I was surprised. Maybe this was a temporary thing because of renovations? I don't know.

Sometimes, before class started, I would go out back and peek at the S.O. muster that happened every morning. It was very military-like with staff in uniform and standing in rows. (We never did this at the Riverside Mission.)

Getting through the HPCSC course materials was easy. However, the internship was tough. There is a big difference between reading about it and actually doing it. But this is also the way it is in any practice... even outside Scientology.

Before internship, while I was on course, I attended both Day and Foundation to get through the course quicker. Once, after course, a tape by LRH was played... during this he mentioned his "encounter" with a mile-high being. (At that time I was amazed BUT now I think that it is nonsense.)

 

[Emma]

Hi PG,

This is interesting stuff.

I joined to become and auditor and ended up doing the Sup thing as well.

Greatest good and all that.

 

[Sky]

Hi PG,

Thanks for the interesting story. I never really saw what it was like to be a mission staff while I was in.

Emma, I also joined to become an auditor and ended up training as Course Sup. I was promised that I would train to be a Class V auditor but then our Course Sup left and they talked me into training as a Sup. At my org we had every single Course Sup leave staff before or when their contract was up. Not one re-signed their contract. Which gave us a high demand for Sups.

I actually started a rant on this subject but decided it belonged on a different thread. So anyway...

I also had the same problem with dissem that you did PG. I couldn't do it.

Sky

 

[programmer_guy]

Rewind my story a bit (to L.A.):

At the time I was interning sup at ASHO SHSBC was when Chick Corea was a student there on Day (yes, I am name dropping). He sat way back at one end of the course room and seemed to keep to himself. I was surprised to see him there. I was familiar with his music/work in his "Return to Forever" jazz band. (He was/is a talented musician HOWEVER I think that he already had this talent before his involvement in Scientology.)

It was during this time that I went to the Greek Theatre in L.A. to see music by "The Eloquent Elephant" and "Rocking Horse" - this was a Scientology event.

At another event, Diana Hubbard gave a speech. This was when and where they were offering "The Marriage Hat" in the entry way.

 

[programmer_guy]

This is the Riverside Mission building as it is now

 

[programmer_guy]

This is a pretty picture... down the left side.
I had posted this on OCMB and I post it here also.

 

[programmer_guy]

When I decided to leave Scientology I planned how I would do it - and told no one on staff.

I applied to my old college to re-enter. I waited for the response. I got it. Except the dean wanted to interview me in person. I showed up at this interview and did not tell her that I had been on staff at the Scientology Mission at Riverside. She wanted to know why I left and why I wanted to re-enter. I told her that physics was not what I wanted to do anymore - I wanted mathematics and computer science.

This worked and I was accepted to return to college. And I loved it! IF she had ONLY known... really, I felt like I could have hugged and kissed her for this. And the last part of my junior year and senior year were my best years at college. I loved it. I did well.

 

[programmer_guy]

And I was married when I left Scientology.
The name of my wife was Marilyn. We left together.

 

[Emma]

And you lived happily ever after

Great story PG. Thanks for telling it.

 

[Lulu Belle]

Isn't the Riverside Mission one of the ones that went "squirrel"? Am I thinking of the wrong one?

 

[programmer_guy]

And you lived happily ever after

Not exactly BUT it was much better.

 

[programmer_guy]

Isn't the Riverside Mission one of the ones that went "squirrel"? Am I thinking of the wrong one?

Yes... long after I left in 1976, Bent split from the official CofS and continued with SCN-type stuff for awhile (I think it was "Scio Logos" or something like that). The reasons he split is spelled out in his book "L. Ron Hubbard: Messiah or Madman?".

Bent Corydon is a good guy. I really liked him.

 

[programmer_guy]

Actually, I think after I left, many missions were accused of squirrelling. My impression (right or wrong) is that Bent pretty much stuck with the tech UNTIL he finally ditched the whole thing.

The only alteration at the Riverside Mission that I remember, before I left, was that a short intro comm course was given before the Comm Course. The students were not required to look up every single M/U... sometimes it was just explained to them by the sups. After this they went to the real Comm Course.

Also Bent went to a 9div org board instead of a 7div board. He said that he found this in earlier LRH materials? (Don't ask me about this because I don't know what THAT was all about.)

 

[programmer_guy]

At one point in time, I was living in an apartment in Riverside with two others on staff: Peter (don't remember his last name) and Steve Rothchild.

Steve liked to watch Johnny Carson late night TV. I had gone to bed early BUT those two stayed up to watch TV. Peter was making popcorn and burned his hand with hot oil. Did Steve give him 1st aide or a touch assist? NO! Steve came to my room and woke me up to get me to give Peter a touch assist WHILE Steve returned to watch TV. I was very pissed off at Steve and I only did this because I knew that Steve would not do it.

Steve was so self-centered that I finally did not like him at all. And he was a senior sup at the Riverside Mission.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Rodney Michaelson had been my auditor and finally came down to sup the Standard Dianetics course with me. (He had been an auditor and taught me a lot on how to do assessment lists. I was "educated" on how voice inflection made a difference on meter "reads". Remember? Early reads don't count.)

More later...

 

[Emma]

I'm reading Messiah or Madman at the moment, a bit each night. Your story of Riverside Mission is fascinating because I'm just reading Bent's perspective of it. It's great timing.

 

[Romuva]

Emma,I really liked that book.Not sure why.

 

[programmer_guy]

I'm reading Messiah or Madman at the moment, a bit each night. Your story of Riverside Mission is fascinating because I'm just reading Bent's perspective of it. It's great timing.

I think that Bent did a good job on that book. It was different than all the rest (being a collection of personal stories and interviews). But I am biased because I was there for awhile AND I liked Bent (See? I admit it.). I posted my views on barnes&noble
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780942637571&itm=1

But Bent did NOT tell much about the people at the Riverside Mission. It is an expose of the Church of Scientology. He reported on the most notorious stories in the Church BUT NOT MUCH about the Riverside Mission.

It's still a good book. I hope that you read all of it. (I cried when I read it the 1st time.)

 

[Romuva]

I remember Bent was satan incarnate as far as scientologists were concerned
when that book came out and the same with Ron jr.

I could never figure out Ron jr.'s deal totally though.I think he was just
screwed up from all those years with his father.Least it seem.



I have the copy where they pulled the book cover design .Something
about it wasn't the original book cover design intended because of
litigation.

I like Bent though from what I read .He just seemed like an upfront
guy.It was funny when I would read the COS version.What bullshit.

It was like COS couldn't do a good enough job of bullshiting after a while.