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Help us maintain the legacy of Wilhelm Reich by making a tax-deductible donation.

March 2009 Update
From
The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust
& The Wilhelm Reich Museum

We thank you for your continual interest and support. For newcomers to our e-mail Update list, none of the names on this list--nor the names of any Museum visitors, conference attendees or bookstore customers--are shared with any other individuals or organizations. If at any time you wish to be removed from this list, please let us know. All previous Updates, dating from March 2004, available online.

You can access them through the Updates option at the top of this page or via the Quick Links along the left side of the page. These Updates provide the best contemporaneous accounts of the Trust's ongoing activities over the past six years.

Jazz Benefit in NYC
Seminar in NYC: 3/21/09
2009 Summer Conference
Mary Boyd Higgins: 50 Years at the Trust
The Financial Crisis and the Trust
Become a Friend of the Trust 

JAZZ BENEFIT TO SUPPORT THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST ENDOWMENT FUND
March 20th - 8:00 p.m.
475 Kent Ave. #410 - Brooklyn, N.Y.

The Connie Crothers Quartet

• Connie Crothers, piano
• Richard Tabnik, alto saxophone
• Roger Mancuso, drums
• Ken Filiano, bass

Suggested Donation: $10.00 (or more if you wish)

"Her mastery of the piano is not to be gainsaid," wrote jazz critic Gary Giddins in his 1974 review of Ms. Crothers' first record Perception. "It is her own enigmatic personality that gives this disc its special, haunting character. It clearly heralds the arrival of a pianist of stature." Ms. Crothers mentored with the iconoclastic pianist and composer Lennie Tristano, has recorded and performed around the world with the late Max Roach, and has worked with Jemeel Moondoc, Henry Grimes, Roscoe Mitchell, and Warne Marsh.

So we are pleased and honored that our friend and supporter Connie Crothers is hosting this benefit at her loft in Brooklyn, New York.

All proceeds go to The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust Endowment Fund (about which there is more information further in this Update), and light refreshments will be served. Please join us at Connie Crothers' loft for an exciting evening of music.

DIRECTIONS TO 475 KENT AVE. BROOKLYN

• L train to Brooklyn. Get out at the Bedford Ave. stop.
• By foot from the subway station (a long, but enjoyable 22-block walk through Williamsburg): go left on Bedford, turn right on Broadway, left on Kent Ave.
• By bus from the subway station: Leave the platform at the Driggs Ave. exit, take the #61 bus, get off the bus at Division Ave., turn right and walk one block to Kent Ave., turn left on Kent. Walk one block to 475 Kent.
• By car service from the subway station: Leave the platform at the Bedford Ave. exit, turn left on Bedford and walk two blocks to Northside Car Service at 207 Bedford Ave. The ride costs $6.00 plus tip.

By car or by taxi from Manhattan, get on the Williamsburg Bridge, stay in the right lane and take the first exit: "Broadway-Staten Island." Go straight across the intersection. Go two blocks to the next light (Division Avenue). Turn right. Go to the end of the street and turn right at Kent Avenue. 475 Kent is at the end of the block.

The number on the door buzzer is 410. The door to the 4th floor might be locked. Don't worry about it--someone will be right out. We hope to see you there. 

THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST IS INVITED TO SPEAK AT A SEMINAR IN NEW YORK: Saturday – March 21, 2009

Kevin Hinchey--a Director of The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust--will join several other speakers at a one-day seminar sponsored by The Institute for the Study of the Work of Wilhelm Reich:

ADOLESCENTS AND THE SEXUAL STRUGGLE OF YOUTH

This one-day seminar will comprise the following presentations:

• "Revisiting Reich's The Sexual Struggle of Youth"
  Kevin Hinchey
  
  
• "Reich's Response to Sexually Repressive Literature: The Formation of the Committee on Self-Regulation and the INS Attempt to Remove Reich's Citizenship"
  Philip W. Bennett, Ph.D.
  
  Dr. Bennett is a semi-retired college professor, currently teaching in the Graduate School of Education at Fairfield University in Connecticut.
  
  
• "Energy: The Function of the Orgasm, Anxiety, and the Socio-Cultural Construction of Childhood & Adolescent Sexuality"
  Harry Lewis, Ed.D.
  
  Dr. Lewis is an orgone therapist in private practice and the co-director of The Institute for the Study of the Work of Wilhelm Reich. He has been a member of the faculty at the New School for Social Research for the past twenty-five years.
  
  
• "An Orgonomic Perspective on the Health of Adolescents"
  Stephan Simonian, M.D.
  
  Dr. Simonian is a psychiatrist and orgone therapist in private practice in California. He is a member of the Institute for Orgonomic Science.
  
  
• "A Young Adult Speaks-out on Adolescent and Young Adult Sexuality"
  Jessica Lewis and Friends
  
  Ms. Lewis is a singer, dancer, actress in her first year at New York University.

Date: Saturday – March 21, 2009 Time: 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Location: Village Community School, 272 W. 10th Street (Between Greenwich & Washington Streets), New York, N.Y.

Fee: Prior to March 21 - General public: $70
Students and those requesting a scholarship: $50
On the day of the seminar - General public: $80
Students and those requesting a scholarship: $60

Please share this announcement with anyone who you think might be interested in attending this one-day seminar. 

2009 SUMMER CONFERENCE AT ORGONON: JULY 13 - 17

FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE ORGONE INSTITUTE:
Archival Materials – Current Projects & Research – Publishing

We are now putting together our 2009 Summer Conference that will comprise formal presentations by scholars and researchers who are currently working with archival materials for their projects or will be doing so in the near future, plus audio and visual presentations of resources from the Archives: audio recordings, films, and unpublished documents.

In an effort to remain sensitive to everyone who has been impacted by the financial crisis, this will be a four-day conference (Monday – Thursday) instead of the usual five days, with a Registration Fee of $275.

On October 29th, 2007 we posted the Index of the Archives of the Orgone Institute on our website, plus a History of the Archives and the Access Policies & Procedures. With the posting of this information, The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust began accepting applications from scholars and researchers wishing to study archival materials at the Countway Library of Medicine at Harvard University.

Since then, numerous applications have been processed and people have visited the Countway Library to study archival materials of interest. And in July 2008--instead of our regular annual summer conference--we held a first-time Archive Workshop devoted to what we consider the most sensitive and proprietary unpublished resources in the Archives: Reich's orgone motor research, the Y factor, and orgonometric equations.

To this Archive Workshop we invited scholars and researchers who had specifically requested these materials or had informed us that they planned to do so in the near future. We also invited several individuals who were working with the Trust on specific projects involving unpublished archival documents.

This summer many of these same archival resources will be presented publicly for the first time, in addition to other materials that researchers are discovering in their work at the Countway Library. Audio and visual presentations will include:

• Listening to audiotapes of:
  
  
1. Reich's laboratory work
   
   
2. Reich speaking
   
   
• Screenings of a cross-section of unpublished archival papers, including:
  
  
1. Laboratory notebooks
   
   
2. Diaries & journals
   
   
3. Miscellaneous documents
   
   
• Watching films, including:
  
  
1. Bion and cancer films
   
   
2. Historic films of Orgonon

Formal presentations thus far will include:

• "From the Archives: New Narratives about Wilhelm Reich, M.D."
  
  Kevin Hinchey – The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust & Museum
  
  An overview of the importance of Reich's Archives in clarifying and correcting commonplace distortions and misunderstandings of Reich's life and legacy.
  
  
• "From the Archives: Reich's Unpublished Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence"
  
  James Strick, Ph.D. – Author, professor, and academic historian of science
  
  New discoveries and insights from Reich's laboratory notebooks and correspondence, and their significance for Strick's new book-in-progress about how Reich's bion experiments fit into the broader context of the history of science and medicine.
  
  
• "From the Archives: Reich's Unpublished Work Democracy Papers"
  
  Philip W. Bennett, Ph.D. – Professor and long-time student of Reich's work
  
  An examination of Reich's thoughts about social organization based on work, drawing upon unpublished English texts of The Natural Organization of Work in Work-Democracy (1939) and Further Problems of Work-Democracy (1941).
  
  
• "New Medical Research: Proposal for a Study About the Effects of Medical Orgone Therapy on Patients with Gynecological Pre-cancerous Diagnoses"
  
  Tina Lindemann, M.D. Physician & medical orgone therapist – Vienna, Austria
  
  Inspired by her promising results using orgone therapy, as well as orgone blankets and accumulators in her practice, Dr. Lindemann will discuss the logistics of a proposed clinical study, and the importance of Reich's published work, his unpublished archival materials, and more recent orgonomic medicine to this study.
  
  
• "From the Archives: Sex Education, Albert Crombie, and the INS Attempt to Remove Reich's Citizenship"
  
  Philip W. Bennett, Ph.D. – Professor and long-time student of Reich's work
  
  The longest Government investigation of Reich was not by the FDA, but by the INS. It was prompted by the persistent agitation of a conservative Christian moralist. This case is examined by drawing upon archival materials from Reich, the INS, and the State Department.
  
  
• "From the Archives: New Book and Documentary Film Project"
  
  Mary Higgins & Kevin Hinchey – The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust
  
  A joint discussion that highlights the importance of specific archival materials to two of the Trust's current projects: a new manuscript and a documentary film.

We are also discussing several other presentations, including:

• "Reich's Experimental Work in Biology: Technical Issues & Questions"
  
  Examples of Wilhelm Reich's approach to the experimental demonstration of such phenomena as the cultivability of bions and biological effects of the orgone accumulator and DOR-buster will be presented and discussed in the context of subsequent attempts by others to replicate his experiments and to further develop these research areas. Areas of ambiguity and unanswered questions will be identified, and specific proposals made for further experimental work. Social obstacles to the further development of Reich's scientific work will also be identified and discussed.

We'll have detailed information in future Updates about the daily conference schedule and additional presentations as they are finalized. We hope that you'll join us this summer for an exciting program guaranteed to deepen your knowledge and your appreciation of these much-anticipated materials and their significance for the future of Reich's legacy.

ADDITIONAL CONFERENCE INFORMATION

REGISTRATION FEE: $275.00. Includes tuition, information packet, daily homemade breakfast and refreshments. A 25% discount is available for full-time college students who can document their status.

MEETING PLACE: Conference Building at Orgonon (Wilhelm Reich Museum) located on Dodge Pond Road in Rangeley, Maine

TAX DEDUCTION: IRS regulations permit an income tax deduction for educational expenses to maintain or improve professional skills.

ACCOMMODATIONS: Hotels, motels, bed & breakfasts, lakefront cottages and other rentals, and campgrounds are available in and around Rangeley. We encourage you to make reservations early as this is the busy season. For information, contact the Rangeley Chamber of Commerce: Tel. 1-800-685-2537. Or e-mail: mtlakes@rangeley.org.

TWO SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE: To apply for the Thomas E. Ross and Chester M. Raphael Scholarships, please contact us at: wreich@rangeley.org. All applications must be received by June 15, 2009.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Call us at (207) 864-3443 or e-mail: wreich@rangeley.org 

FIFTY YEARS AT THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST

Fifty years ago this month, on March 24, 1959, Mary Boyd Higgins became the Trustee of The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust Fund, and from that point on began the arduous task of recovering and preserving Reich's Archives, establishing The Wilhelm Reich Museum at Orgonon, and bringing Reich's books back into publication.

For more information, see our October 2005 Update.  

THE IMPACT OF THE FINANCIAL CRISIS ON THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST

Like many non-profits--and like many of you--the Trust's financial status has been dramatically affected by the frightening downturn in the economy, despite what were conservative, credible and responsible investments by those managing our Endowment Fund.

Back in April 2004, in the second of our newly created e-mail Updates to our friends and supporters, we wrote:

Our funding needs cover a broad range from individual project support to general support to capital support. With the Museum's annual operating budget now exceeding $130,000 (to maintain seven buildings on our 175 acre property, plus salaries and office expenses), capital support is more crucial than ever. Like most non-profits, we need to secure a solid financial base as we plan for the future. Which means we cannot survive without a healthy Endowment Fund.

In 1991 The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust began its Endowment Fund which is managed by a senior officer at UBS Financial Services. The Fund now consists of $218,000. This sum represents individual contributions, proceeds from our annual programs at the Williams Club in New York City, and bequests from two individuals who were profoundly committed to Reich's work and the mission of the Trust. Considering the Fund's thirteen-year existence, it's a small sum, insufficient to the task. But in view of the donations that our friends and supporters continually make for many of our immediate needs and projects, it is understandable why the Fund isn't larger.

Nevertheless our goal is to build the Fund to $1,000,000 by the year 2008. Please help us provide a solid financial base for the Trust through contributions of assets during your lifetime or bequests in your will. Helping us reach our goal is a unique and practical way to express your commitment to Reich's legacy.

By January 2008, less than four years later, we were nearing our goal of $1,000,000.

From 2004 to the end of 2007, the Trust was quietly but consistently reaching out to friends and supporters for small, medium, and larger, substantial contributions. By January 2008, we had grown the Fund to well over $800,000, the result of significant cash donations supplemented by steady, conservative interest on the Fund's principal through responsible, low-risk investments by UBS Financial Services. At that point our plan was:

1. to develop a major fund-raising effort to reach $1,000,000 as soon as possible
2. to draw interest annually from this $1,000,000 to pay some operating expenses (which now exceed $170,000 a year), while leaving the principal untouched
3. to develop fundraising strategies to pay the remaining annual operating expenses

That was the plan, anyway, which we originally intended to include in our presentation "The Next 25 Years of The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust and The Wilhelm Reich Museum" at our annual benefit for the Endowment Fund held last November in New York City.

Everything changed when the 2008 markets began their steady decline, culminating with the alarming financial crisis in September and October. While our financial manager at UBS never invested the Trust's assets in the high-risk subprime market, UBS itself was deeply involved in these and other high-risk transactions. When the subprime market unraveled, the ripple effect throughout UBS was devastating.

The result: The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust Endowment Fund lost 20–25% of its value. As if this were not bad enough, dwindling revenues in some areas (publishing royalties, book sales, Museum attendance, etc.) and rising expenses in other areas (winter heating bills, archival work, maintenance) have forced us to start tapping into the remaining Endowment Fund principal, something we were desperately trying to avoid.

We realize, of course, that we are not the only ones suffering financially…that many of you have been equally impacted by the current crisis. We only ask that whenever possible and whenever comfortable, you will continue to support our efforts.  

NEW ON OUR WEBSITE: USE PAYPAL TO BECOME A FRIEND OF THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST

Now it's easier than ever to become a Friend of The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust by making whatever donation you're comfortable with through PayPal.

In addition to our regular Membership Categories--

• Individual - $25
• Family - $35
• Business - $40
• Contributing - $50
• Sustaining - $125
• Donor - $250
• Patron - $500
• Life - $1000

--you can set up a recurring monthly donation of $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, or $250 by clicking the appropriate PayPal button. And if you don't already have a PayPal account, we can handle that for you. For further information, e-mail us at wreich@rangeley.org or call us at (207) 864-3443.

Please become a Friend of the Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust and help sustain the legacy of Wilhelm Reich by making a tax- deductible donation to the Trust. Join Friends from all over the world who contribute significantly and benefit from the privileges of membership:

• Free admission to the Wilhelm Reich Museum during visiting hours.
• Patron and Life members receive guest passes for persons accompanying them.
• Ten percent discount on purchases from the museum bookstore.
• The annual newsletter with original material by Reich and reports on Trust activities.
• Advance notice of new publications by Reich.
  
  

UNTIL NEXT MONTH

Please share this Update with colleagues, friends, and family who may be interested in the life and legacy of Wilhelm Reich and the good works of The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust and The Wilhelm Reich Museum. Thank you again for your friendship and support.