Scientology Disaster Relief

Disaster Relief wasn't actually the original intention for the Scientology Volunteer Ministers movement. But it lends itself to that kind of scene so well.

For several reasons:

1. Scientologists feel responsible to help at those times, when people need their ability to calm things down, restore order and help at a time when communication lines and organization is usually fatally interrupted.

2. Assist technology (as described in the Scientology Handbook) is so effective at these times.

3. Scientologists are, from my personal experience, very caring people who are dependable and have taken disasters on as their responsibility.

Disaster Watch

Here's a good site to blookmark for information about disasters in the US (there is also information about the rest of the world but the concentration is on America.

More on the Disaster Relief Team in Java

Boy, these VMs are doing an incredible job.

Read today's article on the Scientology News site.

Volunteer Ministers in Java

Three full months after the earthquake in Yogyakarta, Java, the team of Scientology Volunteer Ministers is still there, helping the people of the area.

The Scientology News Site has this story on it:>>

In honor of the anniversary of 911, please permit me to pay tribute to all of the Volunteer Ministers and everyone else who gave of themselves in the weeks, months and years after 911.

We will never forget.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers Take a Stand Against Crime in Fiji
L. Ron Hubbard discovered effective technology to rehabilitate criminals, which the Scientology Volunteer Ministers South Pacific Goodwill Tour is sharing with those responsible for handling crime in the nation of Fiji.

Yellow shirts mingled with blue ones on the first day of Crime Prevention Week, when the Church of Scientology Volunteer Ministers South Pacific Goodwill Tour brought their anti-crime initiative to the police.

With recidivism rates averaging between 47 - 53% and a parliamentary paper conceding last year that despite the staff/prisoner ratio being 1 to 10 the prison population exceeds capacity, government and law enforcement officials alike know they need effective solutions to combat this problem.

Having a great concern, not only for the social ramifications of a prison population that goes back into society only to wreak further harm on their fellow, but also for the lives and future of the criminals themselves, L. Ron Hubbard posed the following question:

If one sincerely hopes to rehabilitate a criminal population then this is the factor one must consider: Where did they lose their self-respect?

Noting this as the key point that needs to be addressed, he discovered technology to rehabilitate this precious commodity, and had it included in a chapter of the Scientology Handbook, the textbook used to train Scientology Volunteer Ministers: the "Honesty and Integrity" chapter of the Scientology Handbook , which has also been published as a booklet by the same name.
And when they looked at the information in the booklet, it made so much sense to them that one of the divisional commanders decided to have all his officers do the course based on this information.

As a top model in India, Sheena Chohan is a familiar face to the people of her home city of Calcutta. But now she is fast becoming known for something else.

Sheena has just completed her training as a Scientology Volunteer Minister and adopted the program to bring help to the people of Calcutta and for her country.

Sheena has started a Scientology Volunteer Minister group in Calcutta and is delivering lectures and seminars on subjects ranging from drug education and study skills to spiritual assists and she is giving one-on-one help for those who want to reach their goals in their professional and private lives. She will also be appearing on behalf of the Volunteer Minister program at the upcoming book fair in New Delhi where tens of thousands are expected to tour through the Scientology Volunteer Ministers tent.

In Boston, Volunteer Ministers established the Dorchester Scientology Ministry. This ministry has become an integral part of the neighborhood, working with law enforcement and other religious leaders to help people where ever and when ever needed. On May 23, the Boston police launched "gun buy back program" and we were asked to sponsor this program. The purpose is to get guns off the street to reduce crime. The police designated (apart from police stations) only 8 locations in the city for people to drop off their guns and one was the Dorchester VM Ministry.

This shows the degree to which the ministry has become part of the community and is working with law enforcement and religious leaders most of the non-police locations were churches to end the violence in
the area.

As we remember the victims of Hurricane Katrina, let us also remember those who gave of themselves to help the survivors. Nearly 1,000 Volunteer Ministers aided survivors of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, providing, among other things, food and water. Without them, the disaster would have been much, much worse.

As we remember the victims of Hurricane Katrina, let us also remember those who gave of themselves to help the survivors. Nearly 1,000 Volunteer Ministers aided survivors of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, providing, among other things, food and water. Without them, the disaster would have been much, much worse.

“Bringing Effective Help to the Community” is part of an informational brochure series about the Scientology religion and its activities. Published by the Church of Scientology International, here are presented the results of Scientology’s wide-reaching social betterment and reform activities; these are effective solutions at work, based on the technologies developed by L. Ron Hubbard, which, in the hands of Scientologists, are bettering conditions across the continent.
It is these solutions, and the lasting positive results they bring, that have become the hallmark of this, the fastest growing religious movement on Earth.
You can read a copy here.

SCIENTOLOGY VOLUNTEER MINISTERS GOODWILL TOUR
VOLUNTEER MINISTERS IN ACTION IN MOCHUDI, BOTSWANA

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers African Goodwill Tour is providing help to the people of Mochudi, Botswana. With a population of 40,000 people, Mochudi, is about 37 km (23 miles) northeast of Gaborone, the capital of the country.

Hearing about the successes the Volunteer Ministers have had in other towns and villages in the country, Mochudi residents were very interested in the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program.

Pastor Solomon asked the Goodwill Tour to deliver a workshop to the children of the village on the chapter of a Scientology Handbook by L. Ron Hubbard called Study Skills for Life. To deliver the workshop, a course room was set up in a matter of days, and is now open on Saturday and Sundays in the church.

Pastor Solomon and his wife, who have both enrolled on Volunteer Ministers courses, gained a greater understanding of what they are trying to accomplish with their church and how to implement an administrative system to help accomplish their goals.

Pastor Solomon summarized what he’s gained from this in these words:

“I know how to set goals and how to achieve them.... I have learned how to accomplish a goal and make it a reality. I now recommend Scientology Volunteer Ministers courses to any person of higher responsibility who wants to learn more about life so they may be more effective in their jobs. I thank God because this is in alignment with our country’s vision of an informed and educated nation.”

Assists are techniques developed by L. Ron Hubbard. They operate on the principle that one tends to withdraw mentally or spiritually from an injured area. Only by restoring communication with this area can one bring the spiritual element into healing, thereby greatly speeding the healing process. Assists are used to alleviate stress and physical aches and pains, or to orient a confused or distraught individual to his present environment.

Learn on-line how to do Scientology Assists.

In response to the December 2004 tsunami in Indonesia, teams of Volunteer Ministers helped residents recover and rebuild. In January of 2005, the Regional Police Commander of Banda Aceh wrote the following commending the International Scientology Assist Team and urging others to work with them:

"Stating that INTERNATIONAL SCIENTOLOGY ASSIST TEAM, and the holder of this document truly works in assisting the recovery of the mental and psychological (psyche in its original definition) of the people who have been devastated due to the earthquake and tsunami in Banda Aceh in the province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

"All the tasks performed of the above mentioned team have been communicated with the officials in Banda Aceh and have been given freedom in performing their tasks. With this, we expect that all terminals involved can assist and ease this team in performing their task and help this team implementing their programs in the field.

"With that in mind, this letter of information is made and to be used correctly and also for all terminals involved, please assist this team maximally."

The Volunteer Minister Trans-Siberian Goodwill Tour made its first stop in the City of Perm!
This Scientology Volunteer Minister tour will travel to 15 towns and cities on the Trans-Siberian Railroad route over the next year, enroute to Vladivostok on the Sea of Japan, some 9,000 km to the east. A team of 20 Scientology Volunteer Ministers from the Church of Scientology of Moscow are traveling on this tour.

The Dianetics Center of Perm staff and parishioners were very involved in assisting in the grand opening and working in the Goodwill Tour tent. Over 800 people attended the tour's grand opening and were extremely interested to hear of the help available to them, from combating marital problems, to overcoming drug problems, learning how to study, how to attain targets and much more. Courses and seminars are being delivered to local public and officials based on the Scientology Handbook by L. Ron Hubbard, and are spreading the word that Something CAN be done about it.

Our most pervasive community program -- addressing every problem faced in society with one-on-one help -- is our international Scientology volunteer Minister's crusade.

Trained in basic Scientology tools that resolve the problems of day-to-day life, Volunteer Ministers bring help whenever it is needed, wherever it is needed.

Their motto is "Something can be done about it."

Churches around the world send out Volunteer Ministers to help their communities with effective solutions to the problems of life.

From personal upsets and troubled relationships to injuries or the loss of a loved one -- the Volunteer Ministers reach into their communities to succor those in need.

No problem is too small, nor too large. To bring that help everywhere, we also launched an international tour to take our solutions to far-flung areas, from remote parts of Brazil to Botswana in Africa and from the Baltic States in Europe to the Indian subcontinent.

Whether from local churches or our traveling cavalcades, in 2005 over 60,000 Volunteer Ministers devoted their time across more than 1,500 towns and cities to help those in need.

But, there was something else memorable about 2005. Unfortunately it was also a record setting year for disasters.

And VM's answered the call each and every time.

In fact, our Volunteer Ministers served in fourteen "full-blown" disaster zones.

In that regard, the work of Tampa Bay VMs has been recognized by the Governor with the "Points of Light" Award and "Florida Emergency Operations Center" counts on the VMs as a vital part of the state disaster response team. In September, they were front and center in Dade County to assist in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma.

They handled logistics for FEMA, overseeing distribution of food, water and ice to about 100,000 citizens.

They have become so well known that the Miami Herald noted that volunteers from the Church of Scientology are quote "ubiquitous at every disaster" unquote.

Then again, when Hurricane Stan hit Guatemala, the Volunteer Ministers took charge of supply lines. And following the London terrorist bombings, the Volunteer Ministers provided personal assistance to those directly affected and logistical support to both the Transport Police and Scotland Yard.

While as for riot-torn streets in Paris, again our Volunteer Ministers provided a moral compass to both sides in the outraged neighborhoods, until it was safe again.

Even out across the Indian ocean, in the wake of tsunamis that devastated the coasts of 4 nations, 600 VMs moved into action organizing and running refugee centers, manning the supply lines, but most of all providing personal "assists" to those afflicted.

From the worst hit areas of Indonesia and Thailand to the coastal towns and cities of Sri Lanka and southern India, the VM's provided personal and group counseling to more than 300,000 and trained more than 50,000 to extend their help even further. In October, it was the earthquake in Pakistan.

With the entire region virtually leveled, the VMs first priority was distributing food and water. They then moved in with "assists" for the injured and shocked -- providing one-on-one help to over 7,000 while training 3,000 more. And the meaning of what those volunteer Ministers brought was made clear in the words of one of the Islamic Relief workers when he said:

"Allah has answered Pakistan's prayer and sent forth his Angels."

Yet, when it comes to the effective help of VM's at the forefront of disasters, it was Katrina that summed it all up.

Hundreds of Scientology Volunteer Ministers mobilized throughout the area working together with relief and rescue agencies, law enforcement and the military.

Arriving on the scene within hours, once again they delivered badly needed equipment and supplies, manned three key evacuee shelters and organized communication systems.

To assist emergency personnel, Volunteer Ministers who are also trained medics and nurses provided much-needed tetanus shots, while wellcknown artists lent their names and gave their time to personally assist those in need, bringing in and distributing relief supplies. But standing behind them were more than 900 volunteers working across three states to help 70,000 victims of Katrina.

In total, in 2005, Volunteer Ministers on every continent devoted more than 2.8 million hours to help over 1.6 million people.

So when it comes to assisting those in need, we are doing something about it any time and anywhere.

For several weeks, a team of Volunteer Ministers from Tel Aviv have been handing out copies of L. Ron Hubbard's The Way to Happiness in Hebrew and Arabic to help restore calm to the region. Here is the complete story.

Here is a picture of one of our Volunteer Minister tents in a remote corner of India. We were invited there in February of 2005 to a festival.

The people we met were very spiritual and were extremely interested in learing about the Volunteer Ministers.

It was an unforgettable experience.

Why do you help

Do you do volunteer work? Why do you help? Do you feel you get anything back from doing this?

Bad Year for Disasters

There is no shortage of disasters this year.

aljazeera.net reports: China has mobilised thousands of soldiers and police to help relief efforts after Typhoon Saomai killed at least 104 people.

Typhoon Saomai - the strongest storm to hit the country for 50 years – had wrecked more than 50,000 homes by Saturday morning and caused blackouts in several cities.

More than 190 people were still missing after the storm struck on Friday.

Saomai weakened to a tropical depression as it hit the southeast but torrential rains are forecast over the weekend in China's south stretching from coastal Zhejiang and Fujian inland to the poor rural provinces of Jiangxi and Anhui.

Wenzhou was hardest hit, at least 81 people were killed and 11 missing, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The storm caused 4.5 billion yuan ($560 million) in damage in the coastal city, 18,000 houses were flattened.

I really enjoy being a Scientology Volunteer Ministers. It's really terrific to be able to help people. And knowing some basic information about Scientology really makes that possible.

Scientology Disaster Relief Teams Now Part of NVOAD

I was really happy and proud to see that the National Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters has recognized the Scientology Disaster Relief Team a National member of their organization.

Freedom Magazine has a story about the work of 4 different groups of these dedicated Scientologists.

They were also featured in an international Scientology event last month -- a speech by Mr. David Miscavige that included a presentation of the highlights their work over the past few months.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers in Indonesia

I dedicated this blog to the Scientology Volunteer Ministers (VMs) who went to Southeast Asia after the tsunamis in early January 2005. My blog has continued and so have they.

I realized the other day when I was reading through articles on the Volunteer Ministers web site that the reason the Volunteer Ministers disaster relief team was able to respond so quickly after the Java earthquake was because of a VM group in Medan, Indonesia. This is a group of primarily local residents who have taken some training in Scientology techniques and are continuing the work the original disaster relief team started -- making Scientology technology available to the people of the island.

It is terrible that what caused the program to take root in Indonesia was a horrible disaster where so many were killed or badly injured, but I am so glad to see that the VMs are still there!

Volunteer Ministers in India

There's an excellent article on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers web site

Volunteers Quell Rising Violence

Twenty trainers from the agency, who will in turn train other agency personnel, are participating in disaster response training based on the Scientology Handbook.

Civil Defense Agency of Calcutta Adopts Disaster Response Training

With the urgent need for effective disaster response in light of recent increased terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and the series of bombings that rocked Mumbai on July 11th, the Civil Defense Agency of Calcutta has implemented Scientology disaster response training for 20 of their personnel this week.

The Minister of Civil Defense, realizing the potential of these techniques in calming violence, personally welcomed the participants to the class, which the Scientology Volunteer Ministers India Goodwill Tour is providing to 20 of the agency's training personnel. Once through their study program, these staff will implement disaster response training on a broad scale with agency personnel.

In times of natural disaster, terrorism and civil disturbance the immediate priority of emergency relief personnel is ensuring the population is safe from physical danger and providing first aid or medical attention to the injured. But once these factors are cared for, they are faced with having to contend with the emotional and spiritual needs of large numbers of survivors — people who are suffering from shock and trauma, who have lost family members, are homeless or have otherwise had their lives and future shattered. And this is where the Scientology disaster response training has had such tremendous success.

Using the Scientology Handbook, a textbook based on the works of L. Ron Hubbard, this training puts practical tools in the hands of emergency response personnel — tools they can use to establish communication, help people overcome trauma and bring calm to an area, quelling any potential of violence.

In addition to their work with the Calcutta Civil Defense Agency, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers India Goodwill Tour is training 200 key personnel of the Rotary Club of West Bengal at their request.

Ministry of Civil Defense officials announced their participation in disaster response training provided by the Scientology Volunteer Ministers India Goodwill Tour at a press conference.

In his speech at the Grand Opening of the Church of Scientology of New York, David Miscavige, Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology said:

"... the atrocities of September 11th...was a 'wake-up call' for all of us.

"The curtain came down, exposing the fragile state of the world we live in. While others would respond with war and military action, we recognized terrorism as but a symptom of what really ails man."

The great thing about the training these civil defense personnel are getting is that it puts in the human factor - how to deal with people who are under stress from a disaster or terrorist attack, how to restore calm to a group, how to orient people and get them through their trauma.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers in Java

Scientology Volunteer Ministers Disaster Relief Teams are in Java to help in the aftermath of the earthquake that killed over 6000 people several weeks ago.

As in other disasters, the way the Volunteer Ministers provide maximum assistance, both to other relief agencies and to those affected by the disaster, is by training local residents in the technology of the Scientology Handbook, based on the discoveries of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.

Anyone wishing to help should contact one of the following people:

Australia, New Zealand and Oceania Coordinator, Virginia Stewart at: virginias@scientology.net

US Coordinator Aenetta at, ihelpwestus@ihelp.org

UK Coordinator: Ann Rollins at, ihelpuk@ihelp.org

South East Asia Coordinator, Angel Wijayanto at: seasiaproject@scientology.net

Scientology Volunteer Ministers

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers web site updates with news of disaster relief help frequently. It's worth bookmarking it and they have a Volunteer Ministers RSS feed now too: