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The Last Will and Testament of Wilhelm Reich

THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST

The Wilhelm Reich Museum is owned and operated by The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust which was established in Reich’s Last Will and Testament, signed on March 8, 1957, just days before his imprisonment. In his Will, Reich states that:

“I made the consideration of secure transmission to future generations of a vast empire of scientific accomplishment the guide in my last dispositions. To my mind the foremost task to be fulfilled was to safeguard the truth about my life and work against distortion and slander after my death.”

To achieve this, Reich established The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust Fund (now known as the Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust) as the legal entity charged with administering his Estate.

The Wilhelm Reich Museum

Reich declared that one of the Trust’s responsibilities was to:

“To operate and maintain the property at Orgonon under the name and style of the Wilhelm Reich Museum.”

Reich went on to describe the significance of such a Museum:

“During the years following 1949 my life was running its course within and around the walls of the Orgone Energy Observatory. I supervised the building myself for two summers; I paid upwards of $35,000 from my privately earned possessions for the construction. I have collected here all the pertinent materials such as instruments which served the discovery of life energy, the documents which were witnesses to the labors of some 30 years and the library of a few thousand volumes, collected painstakingly over the same stretch of time and amply used in my researches and writings, the paintings, some 25 of them, small items which I loved and cherished during my lifetime...All of these things and similar things should remain where they are now in order to preserve some of the atmosphere in which the discovery of the life energy has taken place over the decades.”

The Orgone Energy Observatory was first opened to the public as the Wilhelm Reich Museum in 1960. Today, the term “Museum” refers to the entire 175-acre property of Orgonon. Its numerous buildings, meadows, forests, and woodland trails—all well preserved and maintained—also fulfill Reich’s wish “to preserve some of the atmosphere in which the discovery of the life energy has taken place over the decades.”

The Wilhelm Reich Archives

One of the Will’s other stipulations referred to Reich’s Archives. During Reich’s incarceration, his Archives remained where he had stored them in the Orgone Energy Observatory: in a photographic darkroom located on the first floor; and in a large closet in his study and library on the second floor. Reich charged that

“...nothing whatsoever must be changed in any of these documents and that they should be put away and stored for 50 years to secure their safety from destruction and falsification by anyone interested in the falsification and destruction of historical truth.”

Today, the Trust manages the “Archives of the Orgone Institute” (the official name of “The Wilhelm Reich Archives”) which are now located in the Rare Books and Special Collections at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine at Harvard University, one of of the world’s premier medical libraries. Reich’s Archives are kept in a temperature-controlled environment and comprise well over 200 archive boxes of materials. Each box measures 15” x 12” x 4”. In late 2007 or early 2008 these Archives will become accessible to scholars and researchers.

Publishing

In addition to operating the Museum and maintaining the Archives, the Trust ensures “the transmission to future generations of a vast empire of scientific accomplishment” through its publishing activities. Since 1960, the Trust has worked with New York publisher Farrar Straus & Giroux to re-publish Reich’s books which were banned and burned by the United States government in the 1950s. The Trust has also brought forth several new titles.

The Care of Infants

The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust was so-named because of Reich’s devotion to infants and children. He wrote eloquently and passionately about the importance of safeguarding the emotional health of infants and children, often referring to their “unspoiled protoplasm” and “unarmored life.” And in his Last Will and Testament he charged the Trust with devoting part of its income to “the care of infants everywhere, toward legal security of infants, children and adolescents in emotional, social, parental, medical, legal, educational, professional or other distress.” Reich went on to stipulate that the “lower cabin” (his former living quarters at Orgonon, now called Tamarack) shall be used “as a summer home for children.”

Since 1988, from July through August, the Trust has donated this cabin free of charge to adoptive, foster, and kinship children and their families who could not otherwise afford a summer camp experience as a family. Every summer eight families get to spend a week at Tamarack which offers quiet, seclusion, access to the shores of Dodge Pond with their own private dock, and the opportunity to be together in the beauty of the Rangeley Lakes region.

THE WILHELM REICH INFANT TRUST
ENDOWMENT FUND

The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust is a non-profit Maine corporation responsible for the protection and preservation of Reich’s scientific legacy, and for transmitting this legacy to future generations. In 1958, after Reich’s Will was probated and all bills were paid and bequests were carried out, $823 was all that remained to execute the mandates of the Trust that Reich had established.

Since then, the Trust and the Museum have operated on a shoestring budget, depending on the generosity of friends and volunteers, and royalties from the sales of Reich’s books. It has been a constant struggle for decades to carry out the provisions of Reich’s Will. And like most non-profits, it is essential that we secure a substantial financial base to survive and to plan for the future.

In 1991, The Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust established its Endowment Fund, which is managed by a senior officer at UBS Financial Services. The Fund now consists of a little over $200,000. 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’s understandable why the Fund isn't larger.

Our goal is to build the Fund to $1,000,000 by the year 2008. And once we reach $500,000, we’ll be able to draw off interest to pay some of our expenses.

Today our funding needs cover a broad range from individual project support to general support to capital support. With all of the Trust’s responsibilities and the Museum’s annual operating budget approaching $150,000, capital support is more crucial than ever. Among the Trust’s current and future expenses are:

• Maintenance and improvement of Museum buildings (Orgone Energy Observatory, Conference Building, rental cottages, bookstore)
• Maintenance and improvement of the grounds
• New museum exhibits
• Summer Conference expenses
• Program expansion and outreach efforts
• Archival work
• Publishing activities, including research and translations
• Restoration of paintings and artifacts
• and much more

Please help us provide a solid financial base for the Trust through contributions of assets during your lifetime or bequests in your will. All gifts, bequests, memorials, securities, insurance, and other forms of donation are welcome and essential to the Trust’s future. And they are tax deductible to the extent of the law.

Helping us reach our goal of $1,000,000 by 2008 is a unique and practical way to express your commitment to Reich's legacy.

For more information, please contact us at wreich@rangeley.org or (207)-864-3443. 

BECOME A FRIEND OF THE WILHELM REICH MUSEUM

Your financial contribution as a Friend of the Wilhelm Reich Museum helps support the development of the museum as the scientific-educational center that Reich envisioned. Friends, from all over the world contribute significantly to the museum and benefit from the privileges of membership.

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

MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES

Individual   Family   Business   Contributing   Sustaining   Donor   Patron   Life

$25.00   $35.00   $40.00   $50.00   $125.00   $250.00   $500.00   $1000.00

 

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Membership contributions are tax deductible to the extent of the law. 

For more information, please feel free to contact the Museum:

Telephone: (207) 864-3443

E-Mail: wreich@rangeley.org

Make your payment for your Friends membership, or simply make a tax-deductable donation to the Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust by clicking the button below: