clearwater scientologist: MARLENE CABENDA’S

EXTRAORDINARY LIFE

Marlene Cabenda was a trusted and admired human rights lawyer and insurance executive, yet she knew something was missing—until she found Scientology. Her profile is one of 200 “Meet a Scientologist” videos available on the Scientology website atwww.Scientology.org.

Scientology in Clearwater on Scientology.org

When Marlene Cabenda sets her mind to do something, the results are remarkable.

When Cabenda was growing up in her native Suriname, there was no university. She applied to study in the Netherlands, won acceptance and a scholarship, and at 18 moved on her own to Europe to study law.

She returned home a corporate attorney with a specialty in insurance and rose to the top of her field, eventually becoming the most senior executive in her firm—her country’s highest-placed woman in the industry.

While advancing her career, Cabenda dedicated herself to the purpose that originally led her to study law—to help those in need. She devoted her energy to humanitarian law, practicing pro bono as counsel for the Suriname Red Cross, where her work was so highly regarded she was asked to take over as president in 1985.

“I was a businesswoman. I made good money, had a nice house, traveled around the world,” says Cabenda. “But I always felt something was missing.”

Introduced to Scientology by her sister Ingrid, in 1997 Cabenda received her first auditing—spiritual counseling, from Latin audire, “to hear or listen.”

“I had been searching on a spiritual level for a very long time,” she says. “I found the answers I was looking for in my very first auditing session.”

Cabenda retired at 46, moved to Florida with her one-year-old daughter Kimberly, and began a second career—as a Scientology auditor.

“I always wanted to help,” says Cabenda, 58. “Now I really knew how.

As an auditor, no matter what the person across from you is going through, you know he or she will be smiling by the time you end the session. Their relief and happiness is also mine. That’s about as high as you can go this side of heaven.”

View the Marlene Cabenda video at www.Scientology.org.

Scientology expansion in Clearwater

"Nowhere is the growth of the Scientology religion more in evidence than at Flag, its spiritual headquarters in Clearwater, Florida. Planned to ensure the most important Scientology religious retreat continues to meet the increasing need for its services, what began with a single property in 1975 now spans a complex of some 50 buildings over a nine-mile grid, totaling upwards of two million square feet. Here follows a brief but incisive history of that expansion:

First there was the opening of the 172,000 square-foot Oak Cove on January 1, 2008. Its renovation provided both religious retreat accommodations for visiting Scientologists and space devoted to the ministry of Flag religious services in 14 languages.

Next was the grand opening of the new Fort Harrison on March 14, 2009, with more than 6,000 Scientologists from over 50 nations filling the streets and sidewalks as Mr. David Miscavige officiated. The renovation and restoration of all 267,000 square feet of the Fort Harrison beyond its original 1926 grandeur marked the end of phase two.

The final phase of construction on the 377,000-square-foot Flag Mecca building began in March 2009, immediately following completion and dedication of the new Fort Harrison."

Fashions with Flair 8th Annual Fashion Show at The Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization's Historic Fort Harrison

Church of Scientology's Fort Harrison Rolls Out the Red Carpet for Clearwater's Leading Ladies Fashion Show.

Clearwater Community Volunteers of the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization announces its 8th Annual “Fashions with Flair” Silent Auction and Fashion Show Fundraiser on Saturday, August 7th, 2010 11 AM – 2:30 PM. The event will be held at the historic Fort Harrison which is owned by the Church of Scientology and is located at 210 S. Ft. Harrison Ave. Clearwater, Florida. The show is sponsored by Clearwater Community Volunteers, a volunteer arm of the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization in Clearwater, a non-profit charitable organization made up entirely of volunteers.

Clearwater, FL, July 21, 2010

Scientology in Clearwater on Scientology.org

Youth for Human Rights Creates Awareness Against Racial Discrimination

I found this interesting article about Youth for Human Rights in Clearwater. These kids to a great job to raise awareness of human rights issues:

Youth for Human Rights Florida stepped out onto the streets on March 20th to create awareness against racial discrimination. March 20th was International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, a day when people around the world came together in their communities to work toward ending racism. The group, which promotes education of the 30 human rights based on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, went to the people in the streets, gathering hundreds of signatures on a petition to get human rights taught in schools.

Youth for Human Rights Florida believes that when people fully understand human rights, they will demand their rights and respect the rights of others. Making racial discrimination a priority, the group works toward tolerance and peace through various avenues. They have marched on Martin Luther King Jr. Day; represented youth at Passing the Torch to America’s Youth—the historical fight at Selma, Alabama to gain voter’s rights for all races; and represented the USA in the International Walk for Human Rights on UN Human Rights Day, when the United Nations stated their motto as “Embrace Diversity—End Discrimination.”

“The dream of a world free of racial hatred and bias remains only partially recognized, as according to FBI statistics racial hate crimes in America are on the rise,” said Youth for Human Rights Florida President Dustin McGahee.

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was first established in 1966 because of the shocking violence on March 21, 1960, when 69 young students peacefully protesting against apartheid laws in South Africa were massacred. The United Nations General Assembly called upon the international community to work together throughout the world to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination.

Youth for Human Rights Florida is a secular, non-profit organization with the mission to educate people of all ages about their rights. The uniqueness of the program lies in the educational materials created in collaboration with the Human Rights Department of the Church of Scientology International. Its founder L. Ron Hubbard in fact stated: “Human rights must be made a fact, not an idealistic dream.”

Designed to present the subject of human rights in multimedia formats suitable for all ages, the materials include “The Story of Human Rights,” a documentary video that illustrates the history of human rights through the ages; booklets; public service announcements that educate youth and adults on the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; and teaching aids that include a study guide, activities manual and educator's classroom kit. For more information about the 30 human rights go to: www.youthforhumanrights.org


Scientology in Clearwater on Scientology.org

Scientologist Chairs Fourth Annual Human Rights Walkathon to Raise Awareness of Abuse and Solutions

St. Petersburg, FL—More than 1,200 Tampa Bay residents of all ages walked quarter-mile laps around Straub Park in St. Petersburg Saturday, March 6, to raise human rights awareness. Ms. Linda Drazkowski, Founder and President of the Human Rights Group Inc., Scientologist, mother of two and Clearwater resident, created the Human Rights Walkathon four years ago, and has chaired it every year since. The fourth annual Human Rights Walkathon, produced by the Human Rights Group in partnership with Florida Coalition Against Human Trafficking and the Tampa Bay Academy of Hope, featured performances by hip hop artist MC Lyte, recording artist David Pomeranz, and the Dundu Dole Urban Ballet. Speakers included Mrs. Anna Rodriguez, founder of the Florida Coalition Against Human Trafficking; Mr. James Evans, founder of the Tampa Bay Academy of Hope; Rev. Alfreddie Johnson, founder of the World Literacy Crusade; and Dustin McGahee, president of Youth for Human Rights Florida.

The day before the walkathon, an article in the Fort Meyers, Florida, News-Press pointed out the vital role education plays in protecting human rights. A 15-year-old Guatemalan girl living less than 150 miles south of St. Petersburg, in Immokalee, might still be enslaved and forced into sex, pornography and field labor today had it not been for the alertness of a Florida woman who suspected she was the victim of human trafficking and reported it to authorities.

Some 800,000 men, women and children are trafficked across international borders each year. “People who know and understand human rights will not only stand up for their own rights but also for the rights of others,” said Drazkowski.

To raise awareness of this and other crucial human rights issues, the Human Rights Group uses educational booklets, DVDs and an educators’ guide created by Youth For Human Rights International in collaboration with the Human Rights Department of the Church of Scientology International.

For more information on these programs and materials, visit United for Human Rights at www.humanrights.com.

This is a photo of the grand opening of the newly refurbished Fort Harrison Hotel in Clearwater. The celebration occurred in March 2009. It was dedicated by David Miscavige, Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center.

David Miscavige Dedicated the New Oak Cove

Last year David Miscavige dedicated the Oak Cove, fully refurbished. This then made it possible to do the full renovation of the Fort Harrison Hotel which is opened in March this year.

By the Numbers: Scientology members
in the Clearwater Community

(Freedom Magazine Report) Since the Church moved its spiritual headquarters to Clearwater in 1976, Scientologists have become an integral part of the community. Not only do they travel from all over the world for extended stays while participating in religious services, many Church members and families have made Clearwater their home. The presence of the Church generates thousands of jobs, boosting the economy and revitalizing the area. Independent studies on the overall economic impact of the Church found its presence had a decisively positive effect. At the end of the 1990s, the Church and its members accounted for 5.4 percent of the area’s sales, 10.7 percent of its employment and 3.4 percent of area income. While direct spending by Scientologists totaled almost $100 million, the Church’s greater impact on the Clearwater economy was estimated at almost half a billion dollars which, in turn, generated more than 5,000 jobs. The studies reported that without the Church’s stabilizing presence, the entire city would be far less viable economically. Today, 10 years later, the economic influence of Scientologists in the community is commensurately higher.

• 9,523 Scientologists live in the Tampa Bay area.
• There are 22 Church of Scientology facilities in downtown Clearwater.
• The Church is the largest property taxpayer in downtown Clearwater, paying nearly $1 million in property taxes last year.
• 1,500 Church staff provide religious services at the Scientology facilities in downtown Clearwater.
• 8.2 percent of Clearwater’s population are Scientologists.

Scientology Bursting at the Seams in Clearwater

It's pretty exciting being in Clearwater these days. New OT VII completions at every Friday night graduation. Literally hundreds of people completing courses on the new editions of the Scientology and Dianetics books and a totally new level of optimism and cooperation.

David Miscavige was here in March at the celebration of L. Ron Hubbard's birthday and he promised even more to come. I can't image what could top the last year!

Quilt Exhibit Celebrates African-American Art

In celebration of Black History Month, Clearwater City Hall is honoring the achievements of African-Americans with a display of quilts created by artist Anthony Jones.
Jones continues the American tradition of quilting that is hundreds of years old yet explores innovative techniques in his work. “My work is grounded in the traditional, yet is hopefully a thoroughly modern expression of that tradition,” he says.
Now through March 28, the quilts will be on view. The exhibit is free to the public in the building’s lobby at 100 S. Osceola Ave. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For further information, contact Elizabeth Minor in the city of Clearwater’s Cultural Arts Division at 562-4814.