The following article comes from the Westside Weekly, a weekly supplement of the Los Angeles Times. Not appearing here is a photo of 4 surfers (all looking away from the camera...hmmmm) with the caption:
"Church of Scientology Surf Club members will be cleaning Surfrider Beach this Saturday in honor of Earth Day. Pictured from left are Tony Pellici, Claire Kellerman Krane*, Kevin Burke and Rob Hoover."
(Claire Kellerman Krane is the daughter of Johnathan Krane, John Travolta's business manager, and the step-daughter of Krane's estranged wife, actress Sally Kellerman who is known for her breakthrough role as "Hot Lips Houlihan" in the movie version of M*A*S*H. Mr. Krane has denied being a Scientologist although his daughter and film partner are. No word on why Claire uses her stepmother's name Kellerman.)Los Angeles Times
Friday, April 21, 2000News from Malibu in the Times Community Newspapers
Making waves Scientology members hope to make friends by cleaning up Malibu's Surfrider Beach.
By MARCELA ROJASMALIBU -- There's a different kind of surfer shredding the waves at Surfrider Beach. Armed with a surfboard and L. Ron Hubbard's book "The Way to Happiness," members of the Scientology Surf Club have just as much interest in riding swells as they do fulfilling the Scientology founder's environmental dreams.
"The waters are so much worse than they once were," said surf club President Rob Hoover, 48, who remembers how environmentally sound the ocean was in the '60s and '70s.
Nowadays, he worries about coming down with a heart infection caused by the coxsackievirus, which comes from human fecal matter and can be found in Malibu Creek and the surf zone. At least three surfers in Malibu have died of the infection known as pericarditis in the past 10 years, according to the Malibu chapter of the Surfrider Foundation.
Despite his concerns, Hoover continues to surf. But he said, "We have to do something about it."
Hoover was inspired to take action after reading "The Way to Happiness," where Hubbard writes about "the idea that one has a share in the planet and that one can and should help care for it ... Cut down too many forests, foul too many rivers and seas, mess up the atmosphere and we have had it."
Over the years, the Church of Scientology has often been the subject of criticism by many who believe that it is a moneymaking venture working under the guise of spirituality.
The Scientology Surf Club, founded in 1990, decided three years ago to lend a helping hand to such organizations as Santa Monica Baykeeper, the Surfrider Foundation and Heal the Bay in cleaning up the coastline. Several times a year, the Surf Club picks up trash at Surfrider and other Malibu beaches, assisting other groups in fund-raisers and petition drives.
The club, which has about 80 members ages 9 to 61, will be out at Surfrider Beach on Saturday for Earth Day, attacking the cigarette butts, plastic and Styrofoam that plague the sands.
"We have to help in whatever way we can because Malibu is one of the best places to surf," said club member Kevin Burke, 49. "It's heart-wrenching to know that the wave is so beautiful, but you're essentially risking your life when you ride it."
The Scientology Celebrity Centre in Hollywood, the umbrella under which the Surf Club falls, has officially adopted Surfrider Beach along with San Onofre Beach near San Diego. Duties include cleaning the beaches three times a year. The group also donates money and materials to the Surfrider Foundation."My first connection [with representatives from the Celebrity Centre and the surf club] was seeing them down there at the beach in numbers cleaning up the beach. That was a pretty positive introduction," said Jeff Duclos, co-chairman of the Malibu chapter of Surfrider Foundation. "I've been extremely impressed with their commitment to the environment. They don't just talk it; they do it. They have a genuine commitment.
"I'm well aware that there is controversy with Scientologists and some people may have a problem," Duclos added. "But my experiences with them have been positive. They support us in tackling the serious issues Malibu is facing. We need all the help we can get."
"I appreciate and respect what these guys are doing," said Baykeeper Chairman Steve Fleischli. "They work hard to educate the kids about the environment."
To bring light to the teachings Hubbard instilled in the Surf Club, Hoover approached the Malibu City Council last month asking for a proclamation honoring Hubbard on March 13, his birthday. After distributing Hubbard's handbook to council members, Hoover explained to them that the book had encouraged members of the club to combat beach pollution.
Hoover's desire, however, was never realized, because council members postponed any action on the proposal until their next meeting. Hoover then withdrew his request."I asked them to take it off the agenda because the date already passed," said Hoover. "I didn't want to waste my time on it."
Prior to the April 6 council meeting, City Atty. Steven Amerikaner said he would have urged council members to exercise caution in their decision to accept the proclamation that cited Hubbard's guidelines on "safeguarding and improving the environment."
"The perception could be that council is endorsing Scientology even though this proclamation is based on a nonreligious moral code," said Amerikaner. "Courts associate Scientology with Hubbard. It can be difficult to separate the leader from the religion." Malibu council member Walt Keller added that he probably would not have voted in favor of the proclamation.
"If it comes down to religion," said Keller, "I don't think it should be on the agenda."
Ten-year Malibu resident Ruby Fader expressed her staunch opposition to the proclamation in a letter to council stating, "Mr. Hubbard built an empire based on a religion, which, as far as I'm concerned, is a cult group."
"When I saw this on the agenda, I became very irate," Fader said. "I don't think that church and state should mix. I don't really care what they've done for the beach. It's very nice of them, but we don't have a Heal the Bay Day."
But Hoover said the group's mission is simple.
"Who we are is a lot of surfers bound together by a common purpose: to protect the environment we live in," he said. "One can do as little as give one's opinion, and that could make a difference in educating future generations about cleaning up our waters."