[Today’s guest post is by Bruce Hines]
I just learned about Mick Wenlock’s passing. It’s sad. I’ve read a few tributes to him and decided to add my own.
I have been fortunate that he lived near me for the past 20 years. We spent many fun and enlightening times together during this time. He lived out on the plains east of Denver. I could drive to his place from my house in less than an hour. He and his wife, Nancy, had a smallish ranch, complete with dogs, cats, and horses. Their son, Sean, was often a pleasant presence. I remember sitting outside on a deck watching a spectacular nighttime sky, away from Denver’s light pollution. I was amazed to see how quickly a satellite traversed the firmament.
Our paths while in the Sea Org did not cross much. Once Nancy and I were together in Basel, Switzerland, in an attempt to get a wealthy lady there to make good on a check she had cancelled, a large sum of money that the “church” wanted back. After I left the cult, my first contact with them was via the XSO Yahoo group that Mick had set up and moderated. My participation in those chats played a significant role in getting my head straight after years of indoctrination.
Some of the people from that group got together a few times to enjoy some drinks and good food, and share war stories. Mick and Nancy were part of that. For me, those experiences were extremely therapeutic. One of the things I learned was that we all underwent similar hardships and abuse. An aspect of our mindset while still in was that anything bad that we went through was an isolated circumstance, not general in the world of Scientology, and brought on by our own shortcomings and sins. Oddly, knowing that it wasn’t just my own ordeals, but common to many, brought considerable relief. We could describe something in a few sentences using the cult lingo that the others then fully grasped. One could try to explain that same thing to an outsider for an hour and it still would not be understood. This is why, as explained by one of the participants, a therapist who had not been in Scientology might have a difficult time providing effective counselling to a former cult member.
Mick worked in Denver, so I would go and have lunch with him on occasion. He made that commute from his ranch five days a week. He was the IT guy for one of the major hospitals in Denver.
Out of many fun times, one for me was particularly amusing. It was in 2006 during the World Cup. Mick was a big soccer fan, though of course he called it football like the rest of the world outside the U.S. He had even for a while been the color commentator for some radio broadcasts of soccer games. One day we met at an English-style pub in Denver. England was playing and the place was packed to watch the match on tv. Mick and I stood at the bar, drinking a few too many beers and cheering the English side on. The atmosphere was great.
During all this something very strange happened. Mick was to my left and we were focused on the game. Suddenly, I felt someone to my right touching my lower leg with their foot. It was actually more of a light kick. I think the person had been trying to get my attention with lighter touches, but my involvement in the game made me oblivious. I turned to see a short, young woman looking at me. She was maybe five feet tall and in her early 20s. She was determined to get into a conversation.
While I can’t say for sure, I think there is a good chance that she was an operative for Scientology. She could have been a private investigator or worked for one. There are too many odd things about that encounter. It appeared that she was trying to get picked up. If so, there were many, many young guys in that bar. Why would she single out some older man over twice her age? Everyone was there to watch the World Cup, not meet new people of the opposite sex. Even so, she started to talking to me and acting kind of coy, yet interested.
I was too polite and let her go on for a while. For some reason she pulled out a photo of her “boyfriend” to show me. I know from another source that people in the Office of Special Affairs (OSA) at that time were making plans against me. By then I had appeared on national tv and been quoted in widely read newspapers, speaking against Scientology. In the XSO Yahoo group Mick and I had mentioned that we would be going to watch that match. We now know definitely that OSA had shills on that forum, so they would have been aware of where Mick and I would be.
I can only imagine that she was trying to strike up a friendship with me. Then she would want to remain in touch, hopefully gain my confidence, and maybe learn about anti-Scientology activities. Better yet, she might find out discreditable things about me. And, if I were to make some inappropriate advances towards her, that could be documented and used to ‘dead agent’ me. I do know that OSA would get plants to become a ‘friend’ of some critic in order to gain information.
I don’t think I am being too paranoid. Mick thought she was probably just some flirtatious girl in a bar. But to me, it was way too coincidental that this young lady would approach me out of all those younger, more attractive guys in that pub. I was suspicious at the time and became even more suspicious as I thought about it afterwards. Later, Mick humorously referred to her as “your diminutive friend.” After several minutes of listening to her, I told her I had to leave, said goodbye to Mick, and walked out. After all, she was distracting me from the match.
Then in the 2010 World Cup, Mick and I watched at his home as the U.S. and England played to a draw in their first match. It was a disappointing performance by England. Then a couple of years later we all went to a Colorado Rockies baseball game. And there were other get-togethers with former Scientologists and more pleasant times out at their ranch. I have fond memories of all those experiences.
Mick’s sense of humor was dry and hilarious. He told funny stories about his rough and tumble life in England before getting involved in Scientology, mimicking some English dialects. One time he was getting security checked while in the Sea Org and the subject of his earlier barroom fights came up. He was telling about his various escapades getting into scuffles in one situation or another. At one point the sec checker said, “Mick, you are supposed to be confessing, not bragging!” They had a cat who had lost an eye, named ‘Rooster’ by Mick for Rooster Cogburn.
Mick had definite opinions, which he was not shy about stating. But if another person had differing opinions, it did not affect his relationship with them. He and I often did not agree about political matters. He enjoyed getting into debates about such things, laying out his points of view articulately. One time after I responded to him, he said only, “Good answer!” Another time I was at their place for some occasion when several of his neighbors were there. One lady in particular was very religious, which Mick was not. During conversation the subject of religion came up. After a while the lady said, “Mick, have you ever read the bible?” He replied, “Yes, I have. Twice in fact.” And he had; he avidly read all kinds of things. Even though they had divergent views on some things, Mick’s friendship towards the woman was not diminished.
He had a warmth that was appealing and engaging.
He was a caring husband, father, and friend.
I’ll miss him.
— Bruce Hines
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That is an excellent tribute Bruce. In the universe of $cientologists, Mick Wenlock and so many others show that escape and ridding your mind of Lroon's drivel is possible. That Mick and Bruce worked to help others escape the mindrape is a tribute to both of them and all the others like them.
Every $cientologist can walk that same escape path and free themselves. It just takes the right approach and the right face ripping or a visit to the RPF to set the stage for the big WTF moment that sets the clam on the road to freedom.
Props to Tony, for maintaining decades of mutually supportive relationships and connections that produce, among many other things, a rich variety of articulate, engaging guest posts like these.
Thanks to Bruce for another lovely, heart-felt piece of writing. I'm glad that you escaped and
continue to live a rewarding post-cult life!
My hope is that the OSA-bot monitoring this blog gets a chance to experience the, uh..."wins" that you and the rest of us "degraded" ex-members of "the church" have!