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Frontiers of Science Fellowship (FOSF)
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Frontiers of Science Fellowship (FOSF) 1967 - 1969 Description Frontiers of Science Fellowship (F.O.S.F.) was founded by Donald James Hamrick (born December 13, 1935), in 1967. The fellowship was initially located at Redwood Drive, in San Rafael. Hamrick obtained a resort property, in 1967. As the property had been vandalized, much restoration was required. The resort was converted into a commune named Harbinger (Harbinger Community), for a core group of between 120 and 140 people. Harbinger became the new home for Frontiers of Science Fellowship, from 1967 to 1969. The Harbinger facility was located on 1,085 acres, in Lake County, California, about 100 miles north of the San Francisco Bay Area. Functions and Activities of the Fellowship Don Hamrick had a near-death experience, in 1966. While in hospital with one of numerous bouts of pneumonia, his heart and lungs ceased to function. During the time he was clinically dead, he saw the name badge of the nurse wheeling the resuscitation cart to his room. He was later able to tell his own nursing staff her name, and the settings of the dials on the equipment used to revive him. Staff realized he would not have been able to make these observations from his body, due to its position and posture. While 'dead', he experienced a life review, his life in 'fast forward'. He experienced the feelings of others, and how he had affected them, throughout his life. After travelling through a tunnel, he was first greeted by his Foster Grandfather. In his book, "Anaclysm", Hamrick described what flowed between them as "liquid love". At the end of the tunnel, a loving, non-judgmental "being of light" asked him if he had done what he intended to do. What Hamrick had intended to do was to unite spiritual truth with scientific truth. He had begun to do so through his studies and work through his art, in architecture, the restoration movement and in physics, sociology and psychology. Such a unity required the shattering of superstitions, as well as the shattering of "isms" and the synthesis of "ologies". Frontiers of Science Fellowship was founded and the principles that were espoused were based upon this near-death experience. The emergence of the Hippie culture, the Nixon Administration, the Vietnam War, and various human rights movements, provided the back-drop for this unity of truth and values, and this unification of people. Harbinger University Introduction to Harbinger University (written by Donald James Hamrick, 1968) "The goals of Frontiers of Science Fellowship as achieved through synthesis of knowledge are most usefully expressed within the University division which seeks to practice non-curriculated learning on the primary, secondary, college and graduate levels. We are conscious that one of the most damaging and tenaciously self-perpetuating by-products of Western culture has been an educational philosophy based upon a highly contrived fragmentation of Nature into categories having little correspondence with the Way Things Work within the Greater Whole. Curriculated learning presumes a form towards which the learner grows, with a range far too short of a Design of Man acting symbiotically within the Universe. Non-curriculated learning, on the other hand, applies the principle of synthesis and permits the learner to be a practitioner and teacher simultaneously. It permits the ecological integration of Man with every other living system with which he exchanges energy: The Physical system, the Social system and the Intransitive Life system. Teaching in the non-curriculated educational process is in the spirit of sharing insights, more a development of ways to structure and order thoughts, feelings and behavior, rather than attempt to dictate them in any way. Classes are frequent; both scheduled and impromptu. Yet, it is understood that the classroom situation does not define the boundaries of education. Teaching and learning, exploring, practicing, re-synthesizing, integrating, symbiotically creating a more perfect understanding . . . these processes proceed continuously. Although the principles are applied to the more mature mind, non-curriculated learning may in some respects be modeled upon the abundance of experience of an adventuring child, whose stream of attentiveness has a direction unprescribed by the contrived "rules of discovery" our culture values so greatly. Harbinger University was initially established within the community at Harbinger Springs, where the individual was encouraged to explore freely the general library, and extensive physics laboratory, to experiment with printing, photography, electronics and sound recording, music, film, dance, the culinary arts, etc., with a tutor if desired, and also to be free to do what to outward appearances is nothing at all. It is our experience that the possibility of acquiring the harmonious, loving nature evidenced by members of the Fellowship is usually sufficient motive to stimulate the individual actively to engage his resources - physical, emotional, mental, intuitive and spiritual - in the pursuit of those disciplines necessary for the development of his uniqueness and his maximum potential for integration and creative productivity. The Harbinger communities are currently in the process of expansion and decentralization, giving the University a potentially vast network of campuses. Harbinger University activity is currently centered at the College of Marin, in Marin County, California, where classes and discussion groups meet primarily on a scheduled basis. Plans for Harbinger University include national accreditation, the expansion of scheduled class activity to all Harbinger communities, and the training of staff as well as members of local communities in the concepts and practice of non-curriculated education. It is our experience that the adventurer in non-curriculated learning will go on to envision his life as a continuing adventure, to perceive every event as a source of wisdom. On the frontiers of Man's evolving perceptions he has before him each day the opportunity to discover greater harmony and to innovate the means to share that understanding with all mankind." Classes Ecology Classes were taught regarding ecology, and environmental strategy and planning, by Donna St. Jean. Photos of these classes exist. The classes were not audio recorded. In a broader sense, the ecology was also taught concerning the ecology of the bodies of consciousness, in the lecture series', by Don Hamrick. Chemistry Chemistry classes were taught by Dr. Alan Schein, Ph.D. Hamrick had told particular participants that if they didn't stop using drugs he would leave the facility. Schein persevered as long as he could, but he finally left Harbinger Community. High students in his classes was a serious issue for him. The loss of Schein was a real set-back for Hamrick, personally, and for the community. Class Series I: Physiology of the Higher Bodies These classes were taught by Don Hamrick. All sessions were audio recorded. Class Series II: The Skills of the New Man These classes were taught by Don Hamrick. All sessions were audio recorded. Audio Recordings and Transcriptions Introduction to the Lecture Series (originally written by a Harbingerite, 1968; revised and updated by ECOhealth, 2010) "This Frontiers of Science Fellowship (ECOhealth) audio tape lecture series is a sequential library of talks on the workings of consciousness. The series is arranged so as to provide an orderly enfoldment of consciousness through diligent application of the principles disclosed. Through a synthesis of the physical life and social sciences, the spiritual nature of human beings is revealed. Orderly development of this inner nature is certainly the single most valuable activity of those who have the potential to do so. This tape series is a most effective means of achieving that goal. The original library was recorded by Harbinger Recordings on reel-to-reel tapes. All of the available recordings were edited and transferred to DVD's from 2004 - 2005. Recordings are generally 60 - 90 minutes, in total, or 60 minutes per part I and 60 minutes per part II. In some instances, where original recording quality was very poor or where material is of a personal nature unrelated to the content of the lecture, brief sections have been omitted. There are some transcriptions produced between 1967 and 1980 that are available. There are also many audio-cassette tape recordings and transcriptions of lectures given by the same speaker from 1986 - 1995. Please see the separate listing for this series. A complete set of transcriptions of this lecture series is in process. General Series (G.S. 1 - 82 lectures, including three conferences, each with multiple sessions) California San Rafael, Berkeley, Corte Madera, San Carlos, Terra Linda, West Covina, Los Angeles, San Rafael, Long Beach, San Diego, Lokas Valley, Modesto, Woodacre Portland, Oregon Albany, New York Glide Foundation Series ("Bridge of Fellowship") (B.o.F. A - F) Codification of Consciousness (C.C. 1 - 18) Class Series I: Physiology of the Higher Bodies (P.H.B. 1 - 18) Class Series II: The Skills of the New Man (S.N.M. 1 - 9) Far Field Contributions to Consciousness (F.F.C.C. 1 - 13) (unfinished) Details of Fraternity (D.o.F. 1 - 8) Sheffield, Mass Hartford, Conn Orillia, Ontario, Canada Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada London, England Itlaw, Scotland Incarnational Technology (I.T. 1 - 18) (unfinished) Sheffield, Mass Glen Falls, NY Orillia, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada London, England Tordarroch, Scotland. All materials on tapes listed are copyright 2005, ECOhealth (previously Domain Ecodynamics Research Foundation) and may not be copied, played on the air or published, in transcribed form, without written permission." Lecture Circuit Don Hamrick, as a pilot, flew a Cessna Twin C1J from one destination to another, 23 - 24 times per month, for a sold year and a half, from 1967 to 1969. He was usually accompanied by Owen Jones, one of the three directors, for Frontiers of Science Fellowship. Owen was also a physicist and pilot. Hamrick presented one to two hour lectures, and sometimes entire conferences, extended over a few days. Lectures were received by audiences at university and college campuses, in conference hotels and sometimes in people's homes. The lectures are described in a separate section above. There were approximately 250 lectures, in total, during the Harbinger / F.O.S.F. Era. In 1968, Hamrick was presenting at the Park Havilland Hotel, in Portland, Oregon. One of the audience participants was Dr. Lawrence A. Siebert, Ph.D. After the lecture, Siebert handed Hamrick his book, titled: Are You My Friend? Siebert said to Hamrick, "I think you are". The two became fast friends. Hazel Herem (now deceased) and Jay Herem, of Portland, Oregon, were responsible for hosting numerous lectures, in their home. Siebert attended numerous lectures at the Herem home. Research and Development One of the goals was to make the facility as ecologically and ecosystemically locally self reliant as possible, using technologies that were to be developed on site. Another goal was to export scientific methods and tools to fund and to expand upon F.O.S.F.'s numerous charitable functions. A laboratory facility, on site, was outfitted with quite valuable instrumentation, much of it brought by Hamrick from Syndyne Corporation. A number of scientists were on board. More particularly, Alan Schein, a chemist and chemistry teacher, and Don Hamrick, invested much time and effort together, developing cost-effective metallurgical means to extract platinum from tailings. With his physics background, Hamrick had previously been responsible for the research and development, and the patent filing, of a number of highly sophisticated medical, musical (sound, switching), and machining apparatus and methodologies. Owned by scientific companies and laboratories, none of the patents were filed by him personally. Life Style Research In 1968, Psychology Today Magazine sent out journalist, Tim Thompson, to spend a number of days living at Harbinger Community and participating in F.O.S.F. activities. Thompson wrote an article about the "life style research" that was being conducted at the facility. The article was published in Careers Today Magazine. Clothing was optional at the facility. There was one large clothes closet for everyone living on site. "Everything Belongs to God" Taxation requires a point of transfer of ownership from one person or entity to another. If one participates with a charitable foundation, lives on a subsistence basis, and if everything on site "belongs to God", there is no taxation. More importantly, this concept could diminish focus on the highly defined self and could allow for greater unity within and between people. A person's worth could not, in any way, be defined by what they owned. The Zen ideal imparted was that participants had everything and had nothing. On the other hand, the ideal and its implications could also deteriorate, if misused or abused, into: everyone's responsibility becoming no one's responsibility. Musical Events On February 19, 1969, The Grateful Dead provided a benefit that was hosted by F.O.S.F. 1,500 invitations were sent out and at least 3,000 people attended what was called the Celestial Synapse. The event was held at the Fillmore West auditorium, in San Francisco. The event was reviewed on April 5, 1969, by The Rolling Stone. The review was included in the book: Grateful Dead Family Album. Massage Therapy and Water Massage Therapy Massage Therapy was taught and was practiced with interested residents and with participants outside of the community. Harbingerites welcomed people from outside of the commune (community) to enjoy exercise and the therapeutic effects of the various springs and pools on site. Water therapy was taught to therapists and was provided to F.O.S.F. participants and to visitors, during the Harbinger era. The Watsu technique for water massage therapy was later developed and coined, at the Harbin Hot Springs community and therapeutic facility, in 1980. A number of people who learned different modalities of massage went on to become licensed practitioners after the Harbinger era. Meditation, ZaZen, Mindfulness, Hypnosis and The Power of Intent Don Hamrick had unique styles of meditation and hypnosis, incorporating the best approaches from various guides that he had studied and also what he gained through his near-death experience. He shared this in Group Actions (described below), as well as in individual and group sessions. Arthur Ford had taught him how to get out of the back of his eyes. He had studied meditation and ZaZen with Zen monks from Riotakeshe, Japan. He had also worked with a number of psychologists and mediums to understand states of consciousness: Dr. Enid Smith, Ph.D. (see ref), a psychic Josephine, in the early 1960's, Drs. Wayne Guthrie and Bella Karish, Ph.D., of the Fellowship for Universal Guidance (see ref). Dr. He also studied the works of North American Indians, shamans of various cultures, Hawaiian Huna and the prayer, meditation and chanting of Tibetan Buddhists. He also employed techniques of meditation, mindfulness, hypnosis and intent which he had gathered from reading the writings of Carlos Castaneda, Jane Roberts, Dr. John C. Lilly, M.D., Stanislav Grof, Dr. Walter Panke, M.D., Dr. Dennis Kelsey, Ph.D., and the efforts of Milton Erickson, Richard Bandler and John Grinder. Group Actions Run by a number of Harbingerites, skilled in the modalities, these workshops included groups up to 21 people. Group Actions were held at the Harbinger Community, or held on behalf of F.O.S.F., in many other cities across the western United States, including Modesto, Daly City, and Longbeach, California, Portland, Oregon and as far as Fort Collins, Boulder and Denver, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah. Stuart Pappel, John Wester and Shaun Weikert were some of the key personalities involved in this undertaking. John Wester was one of the three directors of Harbinger Community. Hazel and Jay Herem hosted these events, in Portland. Way Houses Numerous houses and other modest facilities were set up, in California, to deal with the influx of people interested in participating with F.O.S.F. The Harbinger Community could not house all of the people. It was also important that people be somewhat prepared before they integrated with the fellowship and the community. Staffed by knowledgeable personnel, facilities were equipped with audio playing equipment. Visitors could listen to audio recorded classes and lectures, while being housed and fed. A few key people responsible for this undertaking were Judith Tarbet and John Mcready. Magazine Publishing Changes magazine Changes magazine was conceived of and produced by Stephen Leiper (Steve). Changes was delivered monthly to paid subscribers. Alan Watts contributed fairly regularly to the magazine and visited the Harbinger Community on occasion. Newsletters Publishing Two newsletters were produced and distributed on site. The Love Letter Heaven Sent Don Hamrick presented a lecture, in the Class Series I: Physiology of The Higher Bodies series, on August 31st, 1968, titled: Love Letters, Heaven Sent. Launched as a newsletter soon thereafter, The Love Letter Heaven Sent was conceived of and produced, by David Nelson. The Love Letter Heaven Sent was published daily, and distributed freely amongst Harbingerites, visitors, local communities, and with other communes, such as Olompali. Harbinger The Harbinger, multi-colored newsletter was sold, weekly, on the streets of San Francisco. It was created by Gabriel Katz (Gabe)(see ref). Armando Busick was the Art and Illustration Coordinator for all three of the Harbinger publications (see ref). External Relationships There were numerous outside relationships developed with individuals and organizations. This is an incomplete list. Olompali (commune) and Morningstar (commune) Harbingerites exchanged goods and services with other nearby communes, communities. Olompali provided fresh-baked bread, Harbinger provided fresh vegetables from its gardens. Steven Gaskin Steven was a friend and frequent visitor to Harbinger. Steven was the founder of very successful, still existant, "The Farm" commune. National Council of Churches This organization actually financially supported Hamrick for encouraging youth to use meditation as an alternative to drug use. A delegation stayed at Harbinger Community for one week, to exchange with participants and to experience daily life. The Glide Foundation The Glide Foundation's mission statement is to alleviate suffering and to break the cycles of poverty. Hamrick provided a series of lecture series through this foundation. (See the reference to this series above) Psychology Today magazine I have not yet been able to gain access to this article, either online or through the mail. See the reference above. Louis R. Mobley, IBM Louis R. Mobley (Lou Mobley) was a friend of Hamrick's and an executive with IBM. Lou visited Harbinger on many occasions. He recruited Hamrick to speak to executives concerning executive development. Hamrick was often known to say that there were things more worth developing than executives. Gabriel Katz Gabriel (Gabe) Katz made jewellery and designed the San Francisco Oracle magazine. Numerous photographs were taken of the jewellery on display in Katz's store in San Francisco, in 1968. Pomo Indians Harbinger was situated on the extensive Pomo Indian land of northern California. Native people frequently visited the Harbinger facility. Photographer Robert (Bob) Fitch, professional photographer took thousands of photographs during the Harbinger era. None of these were made available to Hamrick, but it is our understanding these were sold to others unknown. Musicians, Bands The Grateful Dead (Referenced above) Wikibin References Harbinger Community, 1967 - 1969, http://wikibin.org/articles/harbinger-community.html The Celestial Synapse, The Grateful Dead, Feb.19/69, http://wikibin.org/articles/celestial-synapse.html External References Audio Recordings and Transcriptions: All recordings have been digitized by Joseph Mueller and are available online at the following link: ECOphysics - ANACLYSM - ECOhealth,File # 06. 1960's - 2009: https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B69QduZhn9AjZjg0N2FmOWQtMmUwZi00MTAxLWFkZmEtMzMzNjQ2MTkzYWRj&sort=name&layout=list&num=50 Changes Magazine, one issue, https://docs.google.com/?authuser=0#folders/folder.0.0B69QduZhn9AjZjE1OTk0ZjktOWFlOS00Y2E3LTg5ZGMtMjg5ZThkNTJjMjRi Love Letters, Heaven Sent (audio recording as basis for newsletter), https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B69QduZhn9AjOTI1YmFhZGYtNTM1Ni00MmM0LTlmODAtNmRjZGI1OWY3NWZi&hl=en_GB copyright 2011, ECOhealth, S. J. Gray
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