L. RON HUBBARD BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION SHINES INDELIBLE SPOTLIGHT ON SCIENTOLOGY FOUNDER'S ENDURING LEGACY

To those who practice Scientology, the religion’s Source and Founder L. Ron Hubbard (LRH to Scientologists) is far more than merely symbolic. His teachings and technology are a pervasive, indelible, ubiquitous and enduring legacy whose significance continues to grow and evolve with each passing tick of the calendar. Mr. Hubbard’s towering spirit lives on in those around the globe who follow the profound, prescient example for living and personal enlightenment that he set into motion—and extends forevermore to the countless others his life has touched.

The sheer greatness embodied in Mr. Hubbard’s words and deeds were honored Saturday night to mark the annual LRH Birthday Celebration at the Church’s Flag spiritual headquarters in Clearwater, Florida, on the occasion of the Founder’s 104^th birthday.

In testament to Mr. Hubbard’s triumphant and eternal technological splendor, the anniversary of his birth (March 13) was marked with a raucous observance attended by a capacity crowd and presided over by Mr. David Miscavige, Chairman of the Board, Religious Technology Center and the religion’s ecclesiastical leader. He opened the proceedings by placing the eternal power of LRH’s creation into a palpable context.

“Never has he been more prominent,” Mr. Miscavige told the gathering of Scientologists. “Never more manifestly evident. Never closer to the consciousness of seven billion people on Earth. So not to overstate it, not to stretch the point, but, the fact is, LRH is everywhere this evening.”

Mr. Miscavige raised numerous milestones and honors that Mr. Hubbard and his indelible works have generated over the past 12 months, headed by an enormous tribute from the Smithsonian Institution last November in naming the Scientology Founder one of the 100 Most Significant Americans of All Time. In all, he has now received more than 5,000 individual recognitions worldwide.

The event climaxed with a presentation of Scientology’s epic expansion during the past year as well as the future, including the planned opening of new Ideal Orgs in North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Europe as well as the Scientology Media Productions global communications center in Hollywood, California.

There was also the momentous announcement of the future L. Ron Hubbard Hall in Clearwater, a magnificent auditorium designed to seat thousands with convention and banquet conversion capability, complemented by a beautifully-appointed L. Ron Hubbard Park. The sleek digital design concept for the project presented to the gathered birthday crowd a facility set to span a full city block in Downtown Clearwater.

One of the night’s most hotly-anticipated elements honored the champions who play what has come to be known as The Birthday Game, citing the Churches and Missions of Scientology that generated the greatest expansion over the past 12 months. As the story goes, the game was born long ago when Mr. Hubbard was asked what he wanted for his birthday and he quipped in reply to five times expansion. It was that expansion that became the game’s catchphrase and has continued annually since.

This year’s Birthday Game world champions hailed from three continents and boasted newly inaugurated Ideal quarters in every category: the Ideal Mission of Belleair, Florida; the Ideal Organization of Sydney, Australia; the Ideal Advanced Organization of Los Angeles; and the Ideal Continental Liaison Office of Europe in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Mr. Miscavige also presented a special award to honor a Scientology Organization (Org) in a league of its own. The Model Ideal Organization of Los Angeles’ speed of expansion was so profound they reached the size of Old Saint Hill—the Organization that Mr. Hubbard himself headed in East Grinstead, Sussex. In fact they obtained these heights two times over. In so doing Los Angeles, not only became a model for every other org to emulate but a standard-bearer for a Golden Age of Administration and thus was awarded the singular status of Model Ideal Saint Hill Size Org.

And no LRH Birthday event would be complete without a spirited and inspiring biographical presentation honoring the man of the hour in his own words, featuring captivating tales from a dashing life spent crisscrossing the globe and accruing wisdom. This year’s adventures included stories from the Alaskan Panhandle to the shores of Japan to the wilderness of a place called New York City.

Capping the celebratory evening was a sparkling performance of “Happy Birthday Ron.”