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Melbourne Org, a Disaster in the Making.

Cheryl Wickens has been the CO of Melbourne day since the early '90s, she and her mean eyed husband have been there on garrison duty since being banished from the SO for having children many years ago. She was the ED of the same org back in the '80s too before joining the SO in a fit of stupidity.

Under her guidance Melbourne has remained the only successful org in Australia. No one could say it's been upstat, but has any Scientology unit been upstat since 1982?

So, how has she made Melbourne survive? First of all, Melbourne staff and field have a more than healthy disrespect for International management, it's closer to actual contempt when you see how it manifests.

Cheryl has kept the org alive by actually ignoring the IG Network Bulletins, the constant stream of demands and telexes. She keeps concentrating on "Birthday Game 339r" because she hates the interference from management and RTC with a carefully concealed passion.

Both her and Tony have been relentless in keeping their two daughters Rebbecca and Alexandra away from SO recruiters, the girls are at wog university and technical college, God forbid! Even more fascinating they have bought their own home at Seaford when Tony came into an inheritance, talk about duality, these guys are so disaffected that they've set up completely wog lives outside the church, quite bizarre for Sea Org members!

When she'd get hauled up to AOSH ANZO for the regular corrections she would even make a pact with the other people she was brought up there with not to talk about their children. Good idea!!


Cop ya later!
 
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Another erstwhile ED of Melbourne is Leanne Faye, now a NOTS C/S in the S.O. at AOSH ANZO. Through her misfortunes Cheryl can absolutely learn what NOT to do with regards to her children.

Leanne's son Matt was RPFed several years ago and just last month was shipped out to do his time in another country. More than anything and like many RPFers Matt wants to leave the Sea Org which is part of the reason INT likes to ship it's RPFers to other countries, it makes them easier to keep as prisoners if they have no where to go, no money and no passport in a strange land. Hard to make a break for it under those conditions.

Cheryl would have had nightmares at the thought of her kids being shipped out away from her.

Imagine Matt's position, he's a prisoner in the SO in a distant land and one of his keepers is his own mother. If he leaves he will lose her love.

Gotta love the Sea Org!

Cop ya later!
 

Free to shine

Shiny & Free
I am very interested in your opinions on this BIA.

What exactly do you see as the disaster? Could it be that the only thing holding Melbourne together is Cheryl and Tony and if they finally crumble under the pressure exerted on them, Melbourne will be no more?

I'm not sure if many people know that Melbourne has the status of it's very own "3rd dynamic engram". This was almost a badge of honour in my days on staff and I wasn't even sure what it referred to exactly. :duh: I presume it was surviving the early days when the org was disbanded and then again when the org burnt down in the early 80's.

I do know that "ANZO case" (doing the opposite of what you are ordered) is also highly regarded, if not publicly. When I worked with Elaine Allen I know this is how she survived the mountains of programs and orders, just the same way that Cheryl does. :D
 
The field has so little respect for INT that several years ago they decided to renovate the old org. It really was a shit hole and the roof leaked, in fact it was in danger of getting condemned like Castlereagh st. has been and that was despite Int pgms previously put in to upgrade both the HGC and the academy for the GAT releases.

Andrew Rinder and Gary Catt hatched a plan to fix the place despite INT landlord and the myriad of garbled and confused mandates from them. They raised the money and got the place looking like it belonged to a real group. They even put in a cafeteria.

This really caused a flap at INT, you know, someone actually DID something without a CSW! Andrew later boasted publicly that David Miscavige asked him, "Are you the guy who renovated an org without approval?" and he responded that he did because it was too hard to deal with the bullshit from INT.

The real hero of the new ideal org at Ascot vale is OTVIII Gary Catt of Catt Architects, he has done some enormous developments for billion dollar corporations and boasted that each development only ever filled one or two ring back binders. Before he'd even gotten a DA through for Ascotvale the traffic from INT had come to fill 27 binders, he was utterly convinced that the CofS management were incompetent idiots as is the balance of the Melbourne field, in fact the sentiment down there is that they deliver Scientology despite management and RTC.

Gary was trying to get the Int landlord to renovate the building in three steps, he argued that with the GI from the combined orgs rarely being more than $20k per week and sometimes being zero that they could not even afford to run the AC on what was left for the org after payments to management at their current level, and as a businessman with some experience he knew that building a flashy new org wasn't about to bring in any more public or money. Of course he was told "no way" in no uncertain terms.

When they gave him a TM to get the Development Application through council in some instantaneous fashion he told them it would take a year, he was told in multiple telexes that a year was "completely unacceptable". Twelve months later almost to the week the approval came through despite all the OTs burning resources and filling Gary's ring back binders to "make it go right" in an impossible time frame.

Gary was so disturbed by the traffic from INT that he wrote a manual for them to follow on subsequent projects, he dubbed it "Ideal Orgs for dummies", but of course he didn't tell them that he'd called it that!

Cop ya later!
 
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Mrs Pattycake

Patron with Honors
Andrew Rinder and Gary Catt hatched a plan to fix the place despite INT landlord and the myriad of garbled and confused mandates from them. They raised the money and got the place looking like it belonged to a real group. They even put in a cafeteria.

This really caused a flap at INT, you know, someone actually DID something without a CSW! Andrew later boasted publicly that David Miscavige asked him, "Are you the guy who renovated an org without approval?" and he responded that he did because it was too hard to deal with the bullshit from INT.



Thanks BIA.

Yes Andrew is as cunning as a shit house rat - as the saying goes.

He did the above mentioned renovations of the old building as a part of the OT committee. Andrew was the real OT committee chairman - the one steering their own programs and organising to actually get things done - but in true no bull shit style - he had another OT appointed as the "official" OT Committee Chairperson.

It was this persons job ( as far as Andrew was concerned ) to keep ALL the comms from INT and CLO off his lines so that he did not have to be devt-ed by them. Good onya Andrew :thumbsup:

>
 
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I am very interested in your opinions on this BIA.

What exactly do you see as the disaster? Could it be that the only thing holding Melbourne together is Cheryl and Tony and if they finally crumble under the pressure exerted on them, Melbourne will be no more?

<<<cut>>>

:D

Freetoshine, I nearly deleted the following because I didn't want to give David Miscavige any unsolicited advice, but, what the hell!

The org is barely surviving and what's more on the strength of the efforts of a few people who despise the upper management. It's totally unsustainable, especially when said people get smashed for some minor glitch that occurred under the usual impossible working conditions provided by church "management".

Now they are heading to an "Ideal Org" where their costs are increased and they have to pay the INT Landlord more rent, if this goes the way of previous ideal org cycles their will be a crash and a mystified upper exec strata will erroneously blame the people who hold it together despite the CofDM top heavy management style.

They couldn't possibly find that the ideal org pgm. or any other DM pet project was the why, could they?

Cop ya later!
 

Emma

Con te partirò
Administrator
If Tony & Cheryl REALLY believed in Scn why have they kept their kids away from it for so long?

There is a crack in there. It can only get wider.
 

Mrs Pattycake

Patron with Honors
I'm not sure if many people know that Melbourne has the status of it's very own "3rd dynamic engram". This was almost a badge of honour in my days on staff and I wasn't even sure what it referred to exactly. :duh: I presume it was surviving the early days when the org was disbanded and then again when the org burnt down in the early 80's.

I do know that "ANZO case" (doing the opposite of what you are ordered) is also highly regarded, if not publicly. When I worked with Elaine Allen I know this is how she survived the mountains of programs and orders, just the same way that Cheryl does. :D



That is right Free To Shine. Melbourne has a very cliquey group of hard core Scios. I definately think part of this was the win of surviving the Anderson Inquiry and keeping Scientology alive during that time.

They now have second and third generation Scientologists and are very proud of this.

They are also very happy to be a long distance away from Management comm lines and pity Sydney Orgs who have CLO on their door step.

There is also a broader group of less hard core Scios in Melbourne - those who just sort of dabble. These guys are amazing - they are able to socialise with dissaffected and even declared SPs and it does not come up as an ethic scene. I asked one of the dissaffected ones about how this actually occurs ? The answer was simple - they are all good mates so when they get together no one mentions Scientology or the Org !

Ha so simple .... it just would not work in Sydney !!!

.
 

Free to shine

Shiny & Free
Freetoshine, I nearly deleted the following because I didn't want to give David Miscavige any unsolicited advice, but, what the hell!

The org is barely surviving and what's more on the strength of the efforts of a few people who despise the upper management. It's totally unsustainable, especially when said people get smashed for some minor glitch that occurred under the usual impossible working conditions provided by church "management".

Now they are heading to an "Ideal Org" where their costs are increased and they have to pay the INT Landlord more rent, if this goes the way of previous ideal org cycles their will be a crash and a mystified upper exec strata will erroneously blame the people who hold it together despite the CofDM top heavy management style.

They couldn't possibly find that the ideal org pgm was the why, could they?

Cop ya later!

It's ok BIA, I have no doubt that your advice will not be heard or heeded.
Most orgs are in this situation and have been for a very long time. :)

The fact that Melbourne still survives is a testament, in a way, to the true grit Aussies are capable of. It's continued existance rests on the shoulders of a few, who in fact do their own thing despite INT orders, as you posted.

I totally agree that the "Ideal Org" move could bring that house of cards down. How much more abuse can staff survive? And that abuse is inevitable when the rent can't be paid.
 

Free to shine

Shiny & Free
That is right Free To Shine. Melbourne has a very cliquey group of hard core Scios. I definately think part of this was the win of surviving the Anderson Inquiry and keeping Scientology alive during that time.

They now have second and third generation Scientologists and are very proud of this.

They are also very happy to be a long distance away from Management comm lines and pity Sydney Orgs who have CLO on their door step.

There is also a broader group of less hard core Scios in Melbourne - those who just sort of dabble. These guys are amazing - they are able to socialise with dissaffected and even declared SPs and it does not come up as an ethic scene. I asked one of the dissaffected ones about how this actually occurs ? The answer was simple - they are all good mates so when they get together no one mentions Scientology or the Org !

Ha so simple .... it just would not work in Sydney !!!

.

You're right Mrs P! I have experienced that very thing a few times although I was never really accepted into the clique (you have to be OT Blah to be totally accepted) and they eventually turned on me.

That socialising thing was the reason I (and many others) were able to stay under the radar for so long. There is an unspoken agreement I think that mateship comes first, in true Aussie fashion. Though if the disaffected/SP person is made a head on a pike and it could affect them directly, then the 'friends' scatter faster than rats leaving a sinking ship, in true scientology fashion.
 
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Mrs Pattycake

Patron with Honors
Gary was trying to get the Int landlord to renovate the building in three steps, he argued that with the GI from the combined orgs rarely being more than $20k per week and sometimes being zero that they could not even afford to run the AC on what was left for the org after payments to management at their current level, and as a businessman with some experience he knew that building a flashy new org wasn't about to bring in any more public or money. Of course he was told "no way" in no uncertain terms.

Hey BIA, this is reminding me of my last trip to Flag where I spent a fair bit of time with Gary and his wife Ally.

You are right that Gary did recommend that the Ideal Org renos got done in three stages as he calculated that they would not be able to pay for the air conditioning bill if the whole building was renovated at once :duh:

But there was also another reason that Gary wanted it in three stages.

You see ... there was a limit to the number of carpark spaces he could design to be within the grounds of the new complex. The limit was way under the number needed to meet the Ideal Org quota of number of public that should be filling the new course and auditing rooms, not to mention staff. The locals and council were not happy to have the excess vehicles parking in the streets clogging up the parking spaces of the local residents. This had to be addressed as part of getting council approval.

Gary's plan was to build the Org up slowly / gradiently. So that initially there would be sufficient carparking spaces. And during this period the Org should run a very good PR campaign in the community, allowing community groups to access some of the new Org spaces for community functions etc. - to get in good with the locals. So that when the Org was fully renovated and the influx of new Scios meant that cars were parked all around the neighbourhood the locals would not complain to the council !

Hmmmm ... so wonder how they have solved that problem.

.
 

Mrs Pattycake

Patron with Honors
Hey FreeToShine, aren't you glad you didn't fit in with the "in-crowd" - cause now you're here with us !

But seriously, Gary Catt is a really great guy and so is his wife. Two of the nicest and most fun Scios I ever met.... But they are so heavily committed to this game. Not only are they both OTVIII's, both high contributors to the IAS and other CofS scams, have spent thousands of hours on the Ideal Org renos but they also have their son at CMO INT.

When I last saw the Catt's their son Adrain was at Flag being "fast tracked " to CMO Int. Even though they had travelled from Melbourne and happened to be there at the same time as he was, they were barely allowed to see or talk to him. I think they got to have one small meal break with him.

I felt that they were both feeling concerned for him as well as feeling that they should be proud that their son had been selected at such a young age to be taken into CMO INT.

I feel sorry for them that they are so trapped - looking outside the square now would surely mean loosing their son.

And for that matter look at the Rinders. They have a daughter Stephaine at INT and their son James is married to a Scio and was, last I heard on staff at Melbourne.

How carefully must they have to play the game. But like you say FTS, the ANZO case runs deep down there - so who knows what they are really up to.


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Free to shine

Shiny & Free
Hey FreeToShine, aren't you glad you didn't fit in with the "in-crowd" - cause now you're here with us !

But seriously, Gary Catt is a really great guy and so is his wife. Two of the nicest and most fun Scios I ever met.... But they are so heavily committed to this game. Not only are they both OTVIII's, both high contributors to the IAS and other CofS scams, have spent thousands of hours on the Ideal Org renos but they also have their son at CMO INT.

When I last saw the Catt's their son Adrain was at Flag being "fast tracked " to CMO Int. Even though they had travelled from Melbourne and happened to be there at the same time as he was, they were barely allowed to see or talk to him. I think they got to have one small meal break with him.

I felt that they were both feeling concerned for him as well as feeling that they should be proud that their son had been selected at such a young age to be taken into CMO INT.

I feel sorry for them that they are so trapped - looking outside the square now would surely mean loosing their son.

And for that matter look at the Rinders. They have a daughter Stephaine at INT and their son James is married to a Scio and was, last I heard on staff at Melbourne.

How carefully must they have to play the game.


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Yes, for all the 'mateship' they have to be very careful indeed.

I edited my post to add that to be acceptable to the clique, you needed to be an "OT" and I wasn't. :D Very status oriented, not my thing.

I don't know the Catts personally, and I do feel for any parent in this situation. There are way too many. :grouch:

Here's to the truth being revealed to them very soon.

:cheers:
 
Now I understand why there has been so much *trouble* for Scientology in OZ. I guess I already knew about that mateship thing, but now I'm seeing how the disaffected ones were never really disconnected from the group as they are in other countries. NZ was the same, they had to think up ways to creatively hide their CI to many of the uplines demands, but really they were quite stubborn when pushed to carry out unrealistic demands. A quiet sort of *fuck you* attitude to superiors is part of the Anzo tradition. Although in NZ now it is probably more resigination and defeat. Madge Allsop with PTSD.
 

Mrs Pattycake

Patron with Honors
So given the Opening is on the 29th January, I'm wondering if DM is coming down for that ?

Hard to say - given the FU attitude of the Melbournites - but then again there are some big "donors" and high profile "names" that might not appreciate being snubbed if he decides to send a replacement. It could build more of a rift. Then again - maybe they don't give a rats and would prefer the opening without all the hoopla and BS that a DM event would generate.

Maybe DM is gonna be flat out micro managing the Rex Fowler case. Coming up with an explanation of how Rex wasn't really a Scio in good standing. Oh ...hang on... he was on OTVII ... well explaining how some evil purpose must of been restimulated... but hang on he just had 27 intensives of FPRD at Flag to get on to OT VII ... so maybe he just was not auditing OTVII correctly ... but wait he was trained at Flag, and we all know that Flag is the Mecca of Technical Perfection ... Oh well he must of had a psychotic break ... oh NO... OTVII creates a being at cause over life ....

Yeh he could be a bit tied up with that.


Hope there is going to be a good protest for the Opening. I liked Emmas point the other day about suggestions for signs - I really think any signs have to hit the Melbourne Scio mindset.


.
 

haiqu

Patron Meritorious
Under her guidance Melbourne has remained the only successful org in Australia.

I'd dispute that. Sydney org has always been more successful when I've visited. The remaining facts are new to me and I'm surprised, but then my visits to Mel Org were usually on Foundation hours, where the place was a morgue under Johnny C.
 

haiqu

Patron Meritorious
I'm not sure if many people know that Melbourne has the status of it's very own "3rd dynamic engram". This was almost a badge of honour in my days on staff and I wasn't even sure what it referred to exactly. :duh: I presume it was surviving the early days when the org was disbanded and then again when the org burnt down in the early 80's.

The Anderson enquiry.
 
I'd dispute that. Sydney org has always been more successful when I've visited. The remaining facts are new to me and I'm surprised, but then my visits to Mel Org were usually on Foundation hours, where the place was a morgue under Johnny C.

JC did run a quiet org, didn't he!

Have you been to Sydney in the last few years?

Cop ya later!
 

haiqu

Patron Meritorious
No, not since the late 1990's. I hear it's changed a bit.

Last time I visited Mel org was strange, in an "OT coincidence" kind of way. I walked in during Day hours, which I never do, and ran into Martin Bentley and his g/f Renee. He looked at me and immediately said, "Not THE Arthur Dent?"

(That's not my real name, but will do for the example.)

I replied, "No, just AN Arthur Dent, we come in six packs."

Martin replied with a grin, "That's VERY good!"

It wasn't until I did OT III that the joke sank in fully.
 

haiqu

Patron Meritorious
By the way, your posts in this thread have explained why I never felt comfortable in Melbourne org. As someone who started off in Sydney I could never crack into the clique, and as I'm officially "only Clear" probably never would have.
 
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