By Oregon Coast TODAY
WALDPORT — It looks more like the beginning of a movie plot than a true story — a small group of UFO believers visits the town of Waldport, then numbering fewer than 1,000 residents, and when they leave, 20 of those residents have disappeared without a trace.
Unfortunately for the loved ones of some of the group, whose members later called themselves “Heaven’s Gate,” the story is only too true, and ends with the mass suicide of 39 people on March 26, 1997, in a house in the San Diego County suburb of Rancho Santa Fe. They had participated in a coordinated series of ritual suicides, coinciding with the closest approach of Comet Hale–Bopp.
Three early followers and survivors of the cult will tell their stories at Waldport’s Alsi Resort on Sunday, Sept. 14, exactly 50 years after the group’s first visit to the small town.
Aaron Greenberg, Rudy Draco and Robert Rubin, now in their 70s, will speak about their personal experiences before, during and after being part of the group. Questions are welcome. This will be the first time the men will be speaking together publicly.
Before creating what would come to be Heaven’s Gate, the founders, Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles were known as “The Two.” The story has had in-depth coverage in movies, documentaries, podcasts, books and countless articles in print media Time Magazine and The New York Times.
The three early followers will tell their stories in the same room where they first met “The Two.” Seating is very limited and the meeting will be taped.
Sunday’s talk begins at 2 p.m. at the Alsi Resort, 902 N.W. Bayshore Drive, Waldport. Tickets are $25. For tickets, go to www.purplepass.com and search for Heaven’s Gate: 50 Years Ago.
