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ctress Kirstie Alley officially opened “Lillie’s Learning Place,” a unique literacy and tutoring program, in September as a community service of the Church of Scientology, Mission of Beverly Hills.
More than 500 well-wishers attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the center, in which Alley was assisted by actor Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings), Nancy Cartwright (voice of Bart Simpson), L.A. Raider Willie Gault, Earthlink founder Sky Dayton, Hollywood film composer and recording artist Mark Isham, actress Kathy Najimy (Rat Race), actress Jennifer Aspen (Party of Five), Carmen Abdula of the Tyrese Watts Foundation, and Anita and Bonnie Pointer of the Pointer Sisters. Letters of support and encouragement were received from actor Sinbad, Beverly Hills Playhouse owner Milton Katselas, and California State Athletic Commissioner Sanford Michelman.
Lillie’s received 2,500 books donated from Wal-Mart, and a gift of autographed children’s books came from Alley’s actress friend, Rhea Pearlman.
Alley and Vanessa Stoller, director of the new center, presented a pledge to the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce to enlist and train 2,000 volunteer tutors by drawing on community and faith groups, neighborhoods and schools. Lisa Detanna, President of the Chamber, accepted the pledge and welcomed Lillie’s Learning Place to the city.
Named after her daughter, Alley opened her first “Lillie’s” in her hometown of Wichita, Kansas, six years ago. The center has experienced great success in tutoring more than 2,000 children and training over 400 tutors. After receiving volumes of letters of success and encouragement from students on the program and their parents, Alley decided to help open centers in other cities across America. The day after opening the center in Beverly Hills, she opened another center in Sacramento. Two more are in the works for Seattle and Bellingham, Washington, to open in January.
The real story of Lillie’s, however, is the one that is continuously unfolding, as students and tutors utilize breakthrough study methods developed by author and humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard.
The approach empowers any student to study and to effectively apply what they learn, enabling them to acquire knowledge and skills on their own and regardless of environment. By learning how to study, students also learn how to assist their fellow students.
“As long as children and young men and women find pleasure in study, they will continue studying throughout life — and upon that depends their happiness,” wrote Hubbard, whose solutions for the problems of education faced by both teachers and students resulted from more than 30 years of research in the field.
Lives are already blossoming at Lillie’s, including for the tutors themselves. “I’m amazed at how easy it is to tutor,” said one. “With patience, I found what my student didn’t understand after his attention drifted, and immediately he came back and was enthusiastic to carry on with his studies.”
An elderly and well-educated French woman said that just one study skill she learned at the center with the help of a tutor made her realize how it could have eased her studies throughout her professional career.
In addition to tutoring, Lillie’s provides a phonics-based reading program and a thorough course on grammar in a friendly and aesthetic environment designed personally by Alley.
Lillie’s Learning Place, located in the Church of Scientology at 9885 Charleville Boulevard in Beverly Hills, is open and free to anyone, irrespective of age or faith.
For more information, call (310) 226-2464 or email cofsbeverlyhills@earthlink.net
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