Disaster Relief and the Scientology Volunteer Ministers

2011-11-15T16:16:00.000-08:00

Those who survived the earthquake and tsunami in Northeast Japan last March face many challenges. One family of farmers needed help with their rice harvest.

A team of Volunteer Ministers pitched in to cut the rice and hang it on “rice walls” to dry.

Once dry, the plants will be threshed, which separates the grains of rice from their stalks.

After a day of hard work, the job was done, and the year’s rice harvest, which might otherwise have gone to waste, was salvaged.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-11-11T11:32:00.000-08:00

Scientology Volunteer Ministers Japan Disaster Relief Continues

Nearly eight months since the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake the Scientology Volunteer Ministers Japan Disaster Response Team continues its work in the region.

Japan’s announcement today of plans to spend 19 trillion yen ($250 billion) over the next five years to rebuild after the March 2011 earthquake draws world attention back to the region. Northeast Japan where the magnitude 9.0 earthquake triggered a tsunami that killed more than 15,000, injured thousands more and destroyed more than 125,000 buildings across eighteen prefectures.

For the past eight months, teams of Scientology Volunteer Ministers have continued their work in the region, providing any assistance needed and bringing their own unique brand of help, based on the Scientology Handbook.

Case in point is Tagajo City in Miyago Prefecture, a town of 60,000 where 177 died and 1,811 were left homeless by the disaster. Scientology Volunteer Ministers have continued their work in the city. They visit those now living in temporary housing helping them with whatever they need, and providing Scientology Assists— simple techniques developed by L. Ron Hubbard that help the individual recover from stress, illness and injury. Wherever the go, they train staff and residents in the technology, so they can deliver Assists to one another.

One volunteer spoke of the experience.

“I spoke with a woman who told me about her childhood. She survived a tsunami when she was 4 years old. You could see how much better she felt because she was able to talk about it. The people I meet are very positive. They are strong and have the will to live. It is an honor to be able to help them.”

____

The Scientology Volunteer Minister program was initiated by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard in 1976. There are now hundreds of thousands of people trained in the skills of a Volunteer Minister across 185 nations.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-09-28T22:15:00.000-07:00

Peter Dunn: All in the Name of Help

Australian Scientologist Peter Dunn has served as a Scientology Volunteer Minister in Haiti, Queensland, and Japan.

At 4 a.m. on March 11, 2011, the shock wave from the magnitude 9 earthquake that triggered a 30-foot tsunami off the northeast coast of Japan reached Australia—not as a physical blast but rather as a summons for Scientologist Peter Dunn to return to Japan and help in her time of need.

Dunn, a native of Adelaide who lives in Sydney, had spent the last few months volunteering in the December 2010 Queensland floods, helping residents of Grantham, the town hardest hit, clean up their homes and neighborhoods.

Having lived in Japan for several years when he served as a staff member at the Church of Scientology of Tokyo, Dunn’s strong affinity for the Japanese people and his sense of duty prompted his departure for Japan.

Described by Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan as “the biggest crisis Japan has encountered in the 65 years since the end of World War II," the earthquake and tsunami left more than 20,000 dead or missing, causing an estimated 16.9 trillion yen ($220 billion) in damage and triggering the world’s worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

Dunn, who also served for several months in Haiti following the January 2010 earthquake, described the scene he encountered in Japan as very different from what he experienced in Port-au-Prince. Although the destruction was worse and more widespread than in Haiti, Japan rebounded, able to quickly leverage far more resources in the relief effort.

As is the custom of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers, on arriving in Japan they asked what was needed and wanted and set about providing what was asked. They distributed food and water, worked on the search and rescue operation, and manned shelters. They even arranged bicycle donations so junior high school students could travel over roads still closed to cars and trucks to deliver food and supplies to ill, injured, and elderly residents in and around the city of Kesennuma.

While he was prepared to take on any task needed, Dunn is a Scientology spiritual counselor or auditor—“one who listens,” from the Latin audire, “to hear or listen.” So his main function in Japan was to provide Scientology assists. These are techniques developed by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard that relieve stress and emotional trauma and can speed physical recovery by addressing the spiritual factors in illness and injuries.

“At one shelter, a lady who couldn’t walk when we started rose after a five-minute assist feeling like she wanted to run,” says Dunn. “Another elderly woman was deeply disturbed and told me she expected to die soon. A week later, after daily assists, she had regained her will to live and her enthusiasm and she was bringing life and optimism back to the entire room of 30 survivors in the shelter where she was staying.”

Dunn is proud that in each disaster where he has served, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers have addressed the task at hand with industry, willingness and persistence.

“It has been my honor to help hospital-bound amputees in Haiti, polite and gentle Japanese pensioners in homeless shelters, and rough, tough Aussie farmers,” says Dunn. “And each of them know by our actions that we have simply come to help.”

Introduced to Scientology in 1974 when a friend gave him a copy of Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought by L. Ron Hubbard, Dunn, now 61, found answers he’d long sought about the meaning and purpose of life. What he appreciates most from what he has gained in four decades as a Scientologist is the ability and opportunity to help.

The Scientology Volunteer Minister program was initiated by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard in 1976. There are now hundreds of thousands of people trained in the skills of a Volunteer Minister across 185 nations.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-09-27T21:13:00.000-07:00

The Work of the Volunteer Ministers Disaster Response in Ishinomaki, Japan, Continued

One volunteer speaks of her experience on the Ishinomaki Volunteer Ministers Team and the effect it has had on her life.

It has been six months since I came to the disaster area. I have been working in the Ishinomaki team ever since.

There are always some foreign volunteers working with us, which can cause some troubles due to the differences in language and culture, particularly because I couldn’t speak English. Thanks to this team, however, I have learned to understand enough English to get by. I call it my “Disaster Overseas Education,” or “studying abroad in disaster areas.”

Many VMs of various backgrounds came to the disaster area—it was a team of unique and dynamic people.

___

Ironically, one thing I gained through this disaster was a better relationship with my father.

I always wanted to improve my relationship with my family, and I wanted to balance family with doing much more for society and humanity.

When the disaster struck I accomplished the second goal—I completely immersed myself in the Volunteer Minister activities. But at a certain point I realized I hadn’t spoken with my parents in quite some time.

I live in Nagano Prefecture, 240 km from my parents in Kyoto, and it sometimes happens that I don’t contact them for quite a while. So when I returned temporarily to Nagano from the disaster zone, I called my parents, only to learn that my 70-year-old father had retired in April.

I have never been able to talk casually with my father, and we rarely speak much when I call. So after talking over the phone, I wrote my parents a letter.

It had always been difficult for me to express my love to them—I even had the idea that I had hated my father but I expressed my gratitude to them—especially to my father—for working to provide for us for such a long time.

I was so surprised when I received a post card from my father in reply. I have written many letters to him—this is the first time he ever replied.

The post card was tightly filled with characters apologizing to me for having acted out of selfishness.

I was so happy to read it, I cried.

___

The need for help in the disaster zone continues.

Please join us in our Volunteer Ministers activities. There is a free shuttle bus from Tokyo. You will see what a positive influence you can have on people and society.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers in action at the Scientology VM Blog

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-09-13T13:27:00.000-07:00

VOLUNTEER MINISTERS
PROVIDING EFFECTIVE HELP

In answer to escalating crime and violence through the latter 1960s and early 1970s, L. Ron Hubbard founded the Volunteer Minister program. It was designed to provide practical tools for engendering understanding and compassion. Moreover, those tools were expressly conceived for use by Scientologists and non-Scientologists alike. Thus was born a broad-based movement of individuals from all walks of life dedicated to providing on-site assistance to communities around the world.
Through the last 30 years, Scientology Volunteer Ministers have provided aid and emergency services at more than 128 worst-case disaster sites. Today, they are among the world’s most recognized independent relief organizations, and have trained tens of thousands of new volunteers on their methods of bringing help in the worst of times and conditions.
As L. Ron Hubbard wrote, "A Scientology Volunteer Minister is a person who helps his fellow man on a volunteer basis by helping restore purpose, truth and spiritual values to the lives of others. A Scientology Volunteer Minister does not shut his eyes to the pain, evil and injustice of existence."
Volunteer Ministers live by the motto that “Something can be done about it.”

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-09-12T11:37:00.000-07:00

Joplin Tornado Volunteers Share a Perspective —Help is the Bottom Line

Sometimes, it’s the simple things that make the biggest difference.

A Volunteer Minister who helped in the wake of the Joplin, Missouri tornado in May 2011 described how much people appreciated his willingness to do some hard work.

For several hours, he and some other volunteers helped a woman dig through the wreckage of her home. She was so grateful about the dishes and glasses they salvage—these were cherished possessions that had belonged to her mother.>>

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-09-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Scientology Volunteer Ministers

I bet you take it for granted your house will be there when you get home from work tomorrow. What if it were gone? Just gone?

What if a 3/4-mile-wide twister picked it up like in The Wizard of Oz but unlike Judy Garland you didn't end up in a magical kingdom--you ended up on your own street minus house, car port and garden.

I'll bet you'd really appreciate some yellow-shirted Scientology Volunteer Ministers showing up to help.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2011-08-22T12:55:00.000-07:00

Spring Valley Mayor Declares July 12 Ralph Mary Gedeon Day

An amazing young man, whose life was saved by a Scientology Volunteer Minister after the Haiti earthquake, is determined to make a difference for his country.

Spring Valley, New York, Mayor Noramie Jasmin has designated July 12, 2011, as Ralph Mary Gedeon Day in recognition of the courage and resolve of a young survivor of the January 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Gedeon, 23, has set his sights on a career as a civil engineer, to help rebuild the infrastructure of the Port-au-Prince region and implement standards that will prevent future natural catastrophes from decimating his country.

Gedeon was buried alive by the Haiti earthquake when his engineering school collapsed on top of him. By the time his father found and dug him out of the rubble, a day and a half had gone by, along with any chance that Gedeon could keep the leg that was crushed by tons of concrete and cinder block.

Despite his miraculous rescue, Gedeon was dying because he was refusing the amputation that might save his life but would leave him a burden to his family. Had he not relented, he would not be alive today.

Gedeon was presented a plaque by Mayor Jasmin at a ceremony in her office. Accompanying him was Rockland County LPN, EMT and Scientology Volunteer Minister Ayal Lindeman. It was Lindeman, volunteering at Port-au-Prince General Hospital as part of the Scientology Haiti Disaster Response, who convinced Gedeon to undergo the amputation on the promise that the young man would be able to live a self-sufficient and valuable life.

Lindeman arranged U.S. hospitalization and surgeries (Dr. David Gibson, St. Raphael’s Hospital, New Haven, CT), rehab and extensive follow-up medical care.

Gedeon walked to his ceremony today “on his own two legs”—one of which is made of steel.

Mayor Jasmin, the first Haitian-American female mayor in the United States, is not the only official impressed by Gedeon’s story. U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Congressman Eliot Engel of the Bronx and Ellen Jaffee, who represents Rockland County in the New York Assembly, have all gone out of their way to arrange “humanitarian parole”—the opportunity, extended under rare circumstances for victims of natural disasters and other emergencies, to come to America for life-saving medical care.

Scheduled to finish prerequisite courses at Rockland Community College in Fall 2010, Gedeon will be attending University of Central Florida next year to complete his engineering degree, made possible by a scholarship from ISTAT (International Society of Transport Aircraft Trading) that provided the hospital flight that brought Gedeon to the United States in February 2011. The University is crediting training he completed at the Port-au-Prince engineering school that could have been his grave.

“I want to complete my schooling and return to Haiti to make a positive difference for my people, my country and who knows, maybe even the world.” says Gedeon.

2011-08-12T11:51:00.000-07:00

Joplin Tornado Volunteers Share a Perspective —Help is the Bottom Line.Sometimes, it’s the simple things that make the biggest difference.

A Volunteer Minister who helped in the wake of the Joplin, Missouri tornado in May 2011 described how much people appreciated his willingness to do some hard work.

For several hours, he and some other volunteers helped a woman dig through the wreckage of her home. She was so grateful about the dishes and glasses they salvage—these were cherished possessions that had belonged to her mother.

One family was thrilled when they recovered the children’s toys. And one of her neighbors was relieved to have them help clear her driveway so she could drive to work.

After helping a woman and her grandson load a trailer with their possessions, they asked if she needed anything else. She said her wedding ring was missing—her late husband had it made for her and she really treasured it. Locating what used to be the master bedroom they began to search. Digging through the debris, first they found her diamond earrings, then more jewelry. When they finally found the wedding ring in a clump of insulation, the 80-year-old grandmother literally jumped for joy.

Two women were laboring unsuccessfully to load their great-grandfather’s table saws and 100-pound drills into a truck. When the Volunteer Ministers got the tools onto the bed of the truck, their helped was rewarded with hugs.

It was physically taxing, but it made a difference to people who really needed a hand after a disaster. The Joplin experience once again confirmed for them that the Volunteer Ministers motto—“Something can be done about it” —is not simply words, it is a way of life.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-08-17T10:20:00.000-07:00

Who are the Scientology Volunteer Ministers?

The Volunteer Minister (VM) program was launched more than thirty years ago, in response to an appeal by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard.

Noting a tremendous downturn in the level of ethics and morality in society, and a consequent increase in drugs and crime, Mr. Hubbard wrote, “If one does not like the crime, cruelty, injustice and violence of this society, he can do something about it. He can become a VOLUNTEER MINISTER and help civilize it, bring it conscience and kindness and love and freedom from travail by instilling into it trust, decency, honesty and tolerance.”"

Official Scientology News: ScientologyNews.org

2010-08-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

Scientology Volunteer Ministers in Haiti

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-07-31T10:15:00.000-07:00

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers and their work in Haiti was featured at a briefing David Miscavige gave to leading Scientologists aboard the Freewinds this summer. In July, these events were held in every Scientology Church and Mission around the world.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-07-01T16:59:00.000-07:00

What a Holy Mess!

High seas churned up by Hurricane Alex will delay deployment of a third containment vessel over the ruptured Gulf of Mexico oil well until next week, an official warned Thursday.

The White House meanwhile said it would roll out a decision on a revised six-month moratorium on offshore drilling within days, as President Barack Obama called his disaster management team to the White House to discuss next steps.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-06-29T22:12:00.000-07:00

When 9/11 hit, a lot of my friends and I were really brought up short. It was such a shock that something like this could happen in America. I thought, at first, this was going to change America forever. It really didn't impact things as much as I thought it would. People went back to being complacent, and life went on (even though we've actually been at war ever since!).

But for Scientologists it actually made a huge impact and change.

For one thing, and probably the main thing, the leader of our religion, David Miscavige, issued a letter to all Scientologists that he called "the Wake-Up Call." In it he pointed out that 9/11 brought home that we have to do something urgently and at once to reverse the downward spiral in our country and the world. He urged every Scientologist to do more.

Since then, there has been a huge increase in the amount Scientologists have been volunteering. And one key way has been in field of disaster relief, with Scientology Volunteer Ministers helping at virtually every major disaster since.

And it is the kind of help no one else can give, really. Because of the technology L. Ron Hubbard developed to help a person overcome trauma, there are thousands, tens or thousands, maybe even millions of people today who have come through disasters without the long term debilitating effects this kind of incident usually causes in one's life.

The a couple of years ago David Miscavige announced a real coup. Training in this kind of disaster relief work is now available online on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers web site. This means, if you can access the Internet, you can learn to help people overcome trauma. That sure makes it possible to outreach far, far more. Pretty incredible.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-06-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

Four months doesn't seem that long ago. It was just February that this team of Scientology Volunteer Ministers left for Haiti from Miami. It was covered by local TV stations.

So much has changed in Haiti, but one thing remains true--they still need help. More than 1.5 million people are still stranded, homeless, living in IDP camps. The enormity is daunting.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-06-16T10:44:00.000-07:00

Scientology Volunteers Establish Headquarters for Haiti

Pétionville, Haiti—The Church of Scientology International Volunteer Ministers opened a new headquarters Saturday, signaling a new level of commitment to the people of Haiti in rebuilding their country. Located just east of Port-au-Prince, the new headquarters will facilitate the staging and coordination of operations, and provide temporary housing for volunteers from outside Haiti.

The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit just west of the capital city of Port-au-Prince January 12 killed an estimated 200,000, injured 300,000 and left one million homeless. By January 17 Scientologists had orchestrated the arrival of 130 doctors, nurses, EMTs and Volunteer Ministers in Haiti. Working with United Nations and U.S. Army personnel at the country’s main airfield, initial actions included organizing and dispatching personnel and supplies. But within hours, the volunteers were manning hospital tents, supply lines, and search and rescue teams.

Operating on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers motto “Something CAN be done about it” the Scientology volunteers concentrate on bringing order into the immediate chaos of a disaster site and alleviating trauma through the use of Scientology Assists, “spiritual first aid” that speeds physical and emotional recovery. In alignment with their motto, Volunteer Ministers also bring a myriad of personal skills to a disaster zone, such as the trained midwife who helped deliver a baby less than a day after she arrived in Port-au-Prince, and six more over the next week, in dilapidated buildings amid aftershocks, electrical outages.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers have provided disaster relief around the globe for more than 20 years. In Haiti, over 300 from 22 countries answered the call for disaster relief and 3,000 Haitians have joined them in their efforts. Together they have brought physical and spiritual relief and order back into the lives of an estimated 360,000 Haitians.

Maria Reyher, International Director of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers, says the new Haiti headquarters gives a new level of stability and service potential to their relief and recovery activities in Haiti. “Thousands of Haitian people want to be involved in bettering the plight of their country and we have workable tools to help them,” says Reyher. “They face many rudimentary and complex problems and our new headquarters provides a stable place to make it possible to help them on an even wider scale.”

For more information on Scientology Volunteer Ministers activities in Haiti visit the Scientology Volunteer Ministers blog.

News about the Scientology Volunteer Minister at Blog.VolunteerMinisters.Org!

2010-04-13T17:42:00.000-07:00

Scientology-sponsored Ship Brings More Than 100 Tons of Supplies to Haiti for the Relief Effort

HAITI—A Scientology-sponsored “Lifeboat to Haiti” arrived in Port-au-Prince April 8, carrying more than 100 tons of urgently needed supplies including medicine, medical equipment, an ambulance, food, cooking stoves and tents.

In the first weeks following the earthquake, the Church of Scientology sponsored five chartered flights, bringing more than 440 doctors, nurses and emergency medical technicians and 280 Scientology Volunteer Ministers to the island, helping more than 200,000 people through their combined efforts in the first two and a half months.

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers are in Haiti for the long haul, not only providing disaster relief but also working with local government and civic groups and community leaders who are determined to improve the quality of life for all Haitians.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers work in the IDP (Internally Displaced Person) camps providing food, water, and other supplies and training people in Scientology Assists—techniques developed by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard that help the individual overcome the emotional and spiritual aspects of trauma and stress.

The Volunteers Ministers are also establishing a base in Petionville to provide free training to individuals and groups including teachers, students, disaster relief groups and government agencies. This training addresses the underlying social issues and skills needed to bring about lasting improvement. Seminars and courses include subjects such as communication skills, the basics of organizing and study technology. So far, they have provided seminars and classes to over 8,000 local residents.

For more information on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers Haiti Response Team, visit their web site at blog.volunteerministers.org.

2010-04-09T12:50:00.001-07:00

Scientology-sponsored Ship Brings More Than 100 Tons of Supplies to Haiti for the Relief Effort

A Scientology-sponsored “Lifeboat to Haiti” arrived in Port-au-Prince April 8, carrying more than 100 tons of urgently needed supplies including medicine, medical equipment, an ambulance, food, cooking stoves and tents.

Scientology-sponsored Lifeboat for Haiti at the dock in Port-au-Prince

For more information on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers Haiti Response Team, visit their web site at blog.volunteerministers.org.

2010-03-23T15:07:00.001-07:00

Milan, Italy - A team of eight Italian disaster specialists sponsored by the International Association of Scientologists arrived in La Romana, Dominican Republic, today, and is moving on to Haiti.

Coming from Malpensa Airport in Milan, they took with them 2.7 tons of supplies, including more than 1,300 pounds of medical equipment and tents, 815 pounds of food, and 250 pounds of medicine.

The Italian team includes doctors, relief workers and two Scientology Volunteer Ministers trained in disaster response. It is led by veteran disaster specialist Mr. Dino De Pasquale, President of La Pubblica Assistenza Croce Giallo-Azzurra di Torino, a volunteer civil protection group founded in 1992.

The team is now clearing customs to enter Haiti with their truckloads of supplies. Once in Haiti they will join the Scientology Disaster Response Team that has served in Port-au-Prince for the past two months.

The Consulate General of Haiti in Milan, Mr. Marco Umberto Pasini, marked their departure with the following message of thanks:

My dear friends,

In this time of great misfortune in my country, I am moved more than I can say by the volunteers who have come forward to help. Doctors, nurses, emergency medical technicians, volunteers of all kinds have not hesitated to give of their time and skill, setting aside their own personal needs and those of their families.

The immediate emergency in Haiti is now over. However, what remains are the daily emergencies the people of Haiti have to contend with, emergencies newspapers may not consider to be "newsworthy" but which are possibly even more serious than those reported on in the days following the earthquake.

This is where you come in, working in alignment with the traditions and mores of our people-working with the Haitian people. Fortunately, Haitians are accustomed to rolling up our sleeves and helping ourselves-we don't give up or surrender to tears in the face of disaster. And we know you are going there to work, not to be seen on the front pages of newspapers.

You work in the background, planting seeds that will grow and benefit the people in Haiti-seeds of volunteerism. We value your help, your communication, your example to others, and your self-determined contribution no matter the difficulties you encounter.

With sincere wishes for your success,

Umberto Pasini
Consulate General of the Republic of Haiti in Milan, Italy

2010-03-16T15:07:00.000-07:00

Australian Scientologist in Haiti for the Long Haul

Scientologist Peter Dunn, from Adelaide, Australia, flew to Haiti in the first days after the earthquake. He is there for the long run.

A highly trained Scientologist who has worked as a staff member of the Church of Scientology for 30 years, Dunn’s first task once there was to help in the hospitals providing any needed support for the doctors.

With the most immediate medical situations now under control, he is providing one-on-one help using Volunteer Ministers techniques that address trauma, stress and loss. He is also training others.

Peter Dunn plans to stay until Haiti is back on its feet, and to do everything he can to make sure it gets there.

2010-03-03T15:26:00.000-08:00

Scientology Volunteer Minister, David Dempster, Makes Helping People his Priority

Clearwater, Florida—David Dempster is a Scientology Volunteer Minister, recently returned from the Church of Scientology Haiti Disaster Response. David operates a community hotline in the Tampa Bay area. Based on his extensive experience as a Volunteer Minister he was asked to carry out a series of seminars in Kenya, Africa last year. Here is his story.

I come from Perth, a beautiful ancient seaport on the east coast of Scotland. I’ve been in the US for 20 years. Most of that time I have been in Los Angeles and for the past four years in Clearwater, Florida.

I have the view that we should all help each other. On a small scale that means helping your friends and family—and on a larger scale it includes reaching out to people in the community and those in need anywhere else on Earth.

When I got to Clearwater I became aware of people who had fallen on hard times and needed a helping hand, and I started running a group called the Tampa Bay Volunteer Minister Hotline. People call in looking for help with their marriage, career, study problems and so on. We help them, using technology developed by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard.

A few months ago, at the end of August, I got a phone call asking me if I would go to Kenya to deliver Volunteer Minister seminars to various groups. I accepted eagerly. As a self-employed computer consultant I was able to take off time from work. I delivered seminars in communication skills, the basics of organization, drug prevention and conflict resolution. I covered Scientology Assists—procedures that help orient the individual to the environment, improve emotional tone and enable a person to recover more quickly from accidents, loss, trauma and illness.

I returned to Kenya shortly afterwards and delivered more extensive Volunteer Ministers training to a group of scout leaders from the Kenya Scout Association.

Then this year I traveled to Haiti as part of the earthquake disaster relief mission.

There were patients in the hospitals in Haiti who weren’t responding to medical treatment until they received Scientology Assists. By handling the spiritual and emotional aspects of the trauma, they began to recover.

My Volunteer Minister training made a big difference in my ability to help people there. It is because of that training and the Volunteer Ministers’ skill, that the motto of the program is “Something can be done about it.”

For more information on the work of Scientology Volunteer Ministers visit the Volunteer Ministers blog.

2010-02-15T10:25:00.000-08:00

"It was disaster beyond belief. " - a doctor reports from Haiti

Upon arriving in Haiti two weeks ago I had no idea what to expect. It was disaster beyond belief. Being a medical professional I was assigned to General Hospital on the night shift and assumed there would be support. However the hospital personnel had been traumatized and would not show up inside the building, so my partner, an extremely competent EMT and Nurse, and I tackled the Critical Care Unit with no supplies, very unsanitary conditions, too many patients and very little time. I hate night shift since I left the military, however, the need took precedence. I can't believe that I did not get tired or hungry.

The first week we got about two to four hours sleep a night (day). Gradually the conditions improved with the untiring effort of my friend and Scientology Volunteer Minister Ayal, and when we showed up on the floor the patients would smile, because they knew they were genuinely being cared for by concerned people. When we finished there were supplies, the floors cleaned, the dead body smell was gone and I felt we had done a very worthwhile deed. Our hours were extremely long and several nights we were without lights. Even though the schedule caught up with my body, I would do it again in a minute.

After leaving General Hospital I had the opportunity to go a children camp that is supported with supplies and logistics by Volunteer Ministers, to examine their mouths and evaluate their health along with another medical doctor. The kids are just precious with the biggest smiles, brightest eyes and wonderful hearts and optimism.

Today I flew out to an island with several Volunteer Ministers and an Emergency Room doctor from the University of Miami tent hospital (in Port-au-Prince) to set up a clinic and to survey their needs. With very limited supplies we did wound care and the other doctor did physical exams. Our make-shift clinic was inside a partial building, but it was at least cool in there. The patients were grateful for what we were able to do for them despite of our limited means and after we completed for the day we were treated with a fresh goat meal! They really went out of their way to prepare for the guests they knew were coming even though they can hardly feed themselves.

I've cried many times while here, but I feel I was able to contribute to their welfare, even though far below what I would like to do and what they need. I would do it all again in a minute.

The Haitians are fabulous and resilient people and they will overcome this and I will be ever grateful to have been a part of this particular phase of their rehabilitation.

With great admiration and love to the people of Haiti,
D.C.,DMD

2010-01-15T15:59:00.000-08:00

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers Disaster Response Coordinator has put out a call for Volunteer Ministers to travel to Haiti, in response to the January 12, 2010, magnitude 7.0 earthquake. Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive estimates the death toll from the earthquake, which destroyed most of the Capital City of Port-au-Prince, could reach hundreds of thousands. Lack of resources and decimated infrastructure in Haiti, the least-developed country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest in the world according to the US State Department, is severely hampering the search and rescue operation and care for the survivors.

For information on how to join the Volunteer Ministers team in Haiti or to sponsor a volunteer to go contact the Volunteer Ministers Disaster Response Coordinator at vm@volunteerministers.org

2009-11-18T10:21:00.000-08:00

Scientology Volunteer Ministers of Australia Restore Hope in the Land of Dreams

In a very quiet way, day by day, Scientology Volunteer Ministers of Australia on the Outback Goodwill Tour help people overcome the barriers to their happiness and renew the dreams of the people of dreams—the indigenous people of the Australian Outback.

The plagues that dominate indigenous Australian culture are drug and alcohol abuse and illiteracy. In 2005, the reading levels of less than half of third year Aboriginal students and only 31 percent of fifth year students met national standards. While only 5 percent of Australia’s 10-17-year-olds are Indigenous, they make up 40 percent of all young people in the nation’s juvenile justice system. A report released in June 2009 found that Indigenous Australians are 13 times more likely to end up in jail than the rest of the population. The report found a clear link between drug and alcohol abuse and the high number of incarcerated Indigenous people.

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers Goodwill Tour tackles these problems in villages and camps on a one-on-one basis, using Study Technology, the Answers to Drugs Booklet, and Scientology Assists—”spiritual first aid” that helps establish the person’s communication with his or her body to overcome the pain and discomfort often associated with withdrawal. This spiritual technology, developed by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard, is making a difference in the lives of these people, one person at a time.

Alice Springs is a cultural meeting place for the 60,000 Indigenous Australians of the Northern Territory. An additional 2,000-3,000 Indigenous people pass through 18 outlying town camps and thousands visit the Todd dry riverbed, a sacred site that runs through the town. Volunteer Ministers have introduced hundreds living in the city and camps and those making the spiritual trek to the city to technology to help with drug addiction, literacy, ethics and morality.

An elder from Alice Springs heard about the Volunteer Ministers on the “bush telegraph” (in other words, by word of mouth) and how much their Scientology Assists had helped people. When she encountered the volunteers she had them train her to give Assists and she now uses them regularly with her own friends and family. A Lutheran pastor from Hermannsburg heard about Assists and he too is now delivering them—and has taught 30 others this technology.

With their motto “Something can be done about it,” the Goodwill Tour reaches hundreds of people each month, and through training them in these tools for better living, reach out to an entire culture.

For more information on the Volunteer Ministers Goodwill Tours visit the Scientology Volunteer Ministers website at www.volunteerministers.org.

2009-11-04T12:56:00.000-08:00

Scientology Seminar Helps Restore Trust in Kenya Village

Volunteer Ministers of the Church of Scientology Mission of Nairobi help Ongata Rongai congregation face marriage and family issues.

Volunteer Ministers from the Church of Scientology Mission of Nairobi helped the congregation of the Christian Empowerment Ministries of Ongata Rongai, Kenya, concerning a subject of great interest in any culture. Those attending the Volunteer Ministers seminar on September 15 learned how to revive a marriage that has gone stale or bad.

Ongata Rongai is in southern Kenya, 12 miles southwest of Nairobi, near the border of Tanzania. Pastor George Lukoye heard about the Scientology Volunteer Ministers and their offer to provide free seminars to anyone in need of help and asked for their assistance with problems that members of his congregation were experiencing.

Many in Pastor George’s congregation were troubled by marriage and family problems. Knowing how an unhappy marriage can affect all aspects of life, the pastor invited the Volunteer Ministers to help his parishioners with a seminar to address these issues.

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers asked those attending to write down the problems they have in their marriages. High on the list were communication difficulties, misunderstandings, unfaithfulness and dishonesty. The seminar then used techniques developed by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard from the Scientology Handbook and gave them practical tools to overcome these problems.

“I have learned how to communicate with my wife, children, friends and relatives,” said one of the pastors attending the seminar. “I have also learned that I have to keep on creating and building my relationship on a daily basis and to appreciate others.”

“I now have greater insight on how to handle marriage,” said one of the parishioners. “Now I can easily use good communication.”

“I have learned how to keep children happy by appreciating and acknowledging their views,” was the benefit another gained from the seminar. “I have learned how important communication is in our daily life,” said a woman who attended. “Communication plays a vital role in marriage.”

Scientology Volunteer Ministers deliver on-site workshops, seminars and courses that provide simple solutions to such life situations as study problems, relationship or communication difficulties, conflicts and stress. For more information on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program or to arrange a free seminar, contact the Volunteer Ministers Consultant at vm@volunteerministers.org or visit their web site at www.volunteerministers.org

2009-10-24T12:39:00.000-07:00

Scientology Volunteers Help Victims of Sumatra Earthquake

Australian Scientology Volunteer Ministers bring spiritual first-aide to survivors of devastation in southern Sumatra.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers arrived in Indonesia the day after the September 30 earthquake left more than 1,000 dead and half a million homeless.

The Australian Scientology Volunteer Ministers who traveled to Padang, 28 miles from the epicenter of the magnitude 7.9 earthquake, are no strangers to disaster. They are veterans of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2007 Yogyakarta tornado and the 2007 Java quake. But even they were challenged by the enormity of the devastation they encountered.

Here is an account of their first day:

In Padang, 28 miles from the epicenter of the magnitude 7.9 earthquake, they started in Chinatown, left in shambles by the disaster. There, in a medical tent, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers showed the doctors and nurses how to provide Scientology Assists and gave them copies of an instruction booklet. Assists are procedures developed by L. Ron Hubbard that provide relief by addressing the emotional and spiritual factors in stress, trauma, illness and injuries.

A nurse said “So, you can give relief using no drugs and no medicine? This is really needed. We all need to know this!”

On to a Chinese temple serving as a shelter for those whose homes were destroyed. The volunteers met the head of the medical clinic who had relocated his operation to the temple’s basketball court when the earthquake destroyed his offices. He could not keep up with the flood of people who had come to the temple for help so the Volunteer Ministers went to work. They set up tables to provide Scientology Assists and chairs where others could sit while they waited their turns.

As lines of people received Assists and word of the physical and emotional relief spread, and the lines grew longer, the volunteers decided to train those waiting how to give Assists to each other. Their mission accomplished at that location, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers took their leave and moved on to a hospital where they could give assistance.

As they drove on through the city, they saw the eerie capriciousness of the earthquake. A three-story building leaned precariously over its neighbor’s home. Another building looked untouched until they saw that one wall was missing entirely. One house stood with every room exposed to view, a snapshot of a family no longer there.

The first hospital they found was completely destroyed. The next, a private hospital, was still operating despite damage. There, on the steps, a woman holding a baby was crying uncontrollably—her brother was inside dying because she didn’t have the 125,000 rupiah to buy what he needed from the blood bank. The Volunteer Ministers paid for the blood—$15 to save a life.

The volunteers moved into the wards and started giving Scientology Assists to injured patients while others explained the procedure to the nurses and taught them how to give Assists.

One man whose leg was completely numb received an Assist. When it was over, not only was the feeling in his leg restored, but his huge smile attested to the fact that the pain that had wracked the rest of his body was gone as well.

Concrete had crushed another man’s leg, breaking it in dozens of places from knee down to foot. The doctors had inserted metal rods into his leg. Blood was seeping out into the freshly bandaged wounds and he was writhing in pain. By the time his Assist was done he was calm and relaxed, and he smiled when he said, “I feel good… I feel good!”

Another man, whose entire body had been injured, was traumatized to the point of complete unresponsiveness—it appeared he could not hear or speak at all. The Scientology Volunteer Minister explained what she was doing with impromptu sign language and began the Assist. At first he didn’t appear to notice anything, but gradually he began to respond and in the end he was smiling.

As Day One in Padang drew to a close, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers met a team from the Indonesian Red Cross who had booked an extra hotel room where a bucket served as shower at the end of a long, hot and dirty day they will never forget.

2009-06-23T20:54:00.000-07:00

Young Scientology Volunteer Ministers in India use Volunteer Minister website to download emergency information

Young Scientology Volunteer Ministers, Nick and Erin, spent several weeks in India this year to help teach kids in the slums of Kolkata. Living right in the heart of the city, Erin came down with a bad stomach bug. Even though it is very common for those traveling in India to get sick, illnesses like this can be severe and Erin was suffering from acute dehydration.

“She couldn’t keep down any food,” said Nick. “We called a doctor first and he gave her the medicine she needed but it wasn’t kicking in. So I knew I had to give her a Scientology Assist.”

Scientology Assists are techniques, developed by L. Ron Hubbard, that give people relief when they are suffering from an illness or injury. Done in conjunction with medical treatment, assists can greatly speed healing and recovery time.

“I couldn’t remember how to do one particular Assist, but fortunately we had Internet access,” said Nick. “India’s bizarre like that, we had no hot water but we had Internet access!” said Erin.

“So I went onto the Scientology Volunteer Ministers web site,” continued Nick, “found the booklet called ‘Assists for Illnesses and Injuries’, and I downloaded it—straight to the desktop on my laptop! I opened it and started the Assist. Erin’s fever dropped, and she stopped throwing up. I did the Assist two more times in the early morning and the next day she was recovering. I had actually forgotten that these booklets were available online, and was cursing myself for not having my own copy with me. Then I remembered the new website!” he said.

The Scientology Volunteer Minister site provides tools for improving conditions. Free courses are also available through the site so you can learn to apply the information to your own life and those around you.

These free Scientology courses provide help with such things as marriage problems, trouble with relationships, raising children, difficulties on the job and overcoming stress, anxiety and depression. These are self-guided courses, meaning people move through them at their own pace. Each course includes practical exercises where students get hands-on experience in applying the data. The courses are supervised by trained extension course supervisors who ensure the students can use the material and provide feedback, guidance and help where needed.

The hallmark of the Scientology Volunteer Minister, as described by Scientology leader, David Miscavige, is his or her “indiscriminate acts of kindness and compassion.” To contact a Scientology Volunteer Minister visit the web site at http://www.volunteerministers.org/#/contact.

2007-01-12T00:06:00.000-08:00

Just about anyone who is involved in disaster relief can benefit from learning about the techniques in the Scientology Handbook.

I've found some people have the misconception that you have to be a Scientologist to by a Scientology Volunteer Ministers or use the techniques. That's absolutely not true.

And I think you will find if you speak to some Scientologists that no one cares what you are as long as you use this technology by L. Ron Hubbard and pass it on to others so they find out about it and use it too.

The only other thing a Scientologist would ask is that you use it as it is written and don't alter it, because Scientology is a precise technology and it works when it is applied exactly.

2006-10-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-10-12T13:46:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-10-11T22:27:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-09-25T22:57:00.000-07:00

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:>>

2006-09-11T19:35:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-09-10T15:52:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-09-02T13:21:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-09-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-30T19:04:00.001-07:00

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.

2006-08-30T19:04:00.000-07:00

2006-08-28T14:54:00.000-07:00

“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.

2006-08-27T19:34:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-26T14:31:00.000-07:00

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."

2006-08-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-23T13:30:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-20T19:12:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-17T23:02:00.000-07:00

Why do you help

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

2006-08-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-08T23:54:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-08-01T10:11:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-07-31T20:55:00.000-07:00

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!

2006-07-27T11:53:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-06-12T20:07:00.000-07:00

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

2006-04-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

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:

2005-09-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

Scientology Volunteer Ministers Go to the Gulf Coast

Over 600 Scientology Volunteer Ministers are in the states of Louisiana and Mississippi, with others manning shelters where evacuees have been relocated.

It is a really terrible disaster. When you compare it with the damage done by the 9/11 terrorist attacks four years ago there was probably more loss of life and more destruction of property and certainly more people affected by the disaster from Hurricane Katrina.

It was right after 9/11 that Mr. David Miscavige appealed to all Scientologists to dedicate themselves to improving conditions in society. He called 9/11 a "wakeup call" that all is not well and that Scientologist who know they have solutions to the problems in society need to take far more responsibility.

A lot has changed over the past four years.

But here again, we have another example of lack of coordination and failure to predict consequences (or act upon the predictions that naturalists for example have been making for years) resulted in far more harm than there should have been.

Mr. Miscavige has been a real inspiration to me and my friends.

Here is a sites where you can find resources about Scientology.

2005-01-07T15:14:00.000-08:00

Rotary International President Welcomes Scientology Tsunami

Kensington, South Africa - Jan 7, 2005 (PRN):

The President of Rotary International, Rotarian Mr Rajendra Sabhu, visited the Cuddalore District on Tuesday, meeting with district rotary members, and assessing the needs of the areas affected.

The rotary club has been working in the Tamil Nad region in co-ordination with the members of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers Relief effort. This team of volunteers are specialists in Disaster relief, emotional impact assessment and trauma relief counseling and training.

The Volunteer Ministers have Tsunami Relief teams deployed in all of the countries affected by the Tsunami, including Indonesia, Thailand, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and India. The total number of volunteers mobilized by the Scientology Volunteer minister corps is in excess of 200 people from many countries all across the globe.

On meeting the Volunteer Ministers, and coming to know of their mission, Mr Rajendra Sabhu welcomed them saying "We as Rotary members, and as India wish to thank you for coming here from all over the world, from countries where most would consider this natural calamity as being sad, but not their own problem. This is a humanitarian problem, affecting the brotherhood of mankind, and it is my honor and privilege to have met the Scientology volunteers. Your being here has refreshed my hope as you are true humanitarians, bringing hope for humanity."

The Scientology Relief Teams have been in India since 1 January, and are comprised of a Co-ordination Office in Chennai, and two specialist teams, one in Cuddalore, and one in Nagapathnum. These teams are delivering training to Tamil speaking volunteers on Scientology processes used to assist victims who are experiencing emotional trauma related problems. These processes allow a victim to completely resolve the psychological and emotional barriers which are preventing them from coming to terms with the disaster, and re-establishing their lives.

Any volunteers who speak English, and Tamil, and who wish to be trained in these techniques are urged to contact the National Coordinator, Dr. Geoffrey Barton on 98804 50341 or 98804 50342. All training is provided at no cost, and would take 1 - 2 days to complete. These volunteers would then be able to deliver these assist processes, and train others on their delivery in Tamil.

For more information, contact:

Peter Cooke
Volunteer Ministers SA
Phone: +2783 9961259
Email: thecookes@cinet.co.za

2005-01-07T14:37:00.000-08:00

Tibetans trained by Scientologists treat tsunami-hit villagers

Here's a story that was picked up by AFP today, about our Volunteer Minister team:

(AFP, January 7, 2005)

Tibetan refugees arrived in this town which bore the brunt of last week's killer tsunamis to counsel and treat displaced villagers, saying they "owed" it to India.

However in a bizarre twist, the Buddhist monks have been trained by controversial US-based Scientologists in a technique called "Assist" which talks people out of focusing on a particular event.

Villagers housed at relief camps here seem unaware of the unusual combination that brought the monks in to talk to them through a translator and to apply massage to ease their pains.

The Buddhists massaged the hands, neck, heads and legs patients suffering from injuries.

Dawa Dhondup, the head of a 15-member team doing the rounds in the worst-hit Nagapattinam district where 6,035 people died when a gigantic wall of water came crashing down on December 26, said the technique was meant to help fight trauma.

"At the moment people are thinking too much about the disaster and their dead relatives," Dhondup, told AFP. "When you touch these people at various points of their body you can take their thoughts away from the disaster.

"It will also help us to know whether their body is in good shape," said the Tibetan monk, dressed in maroon robes and wearing a green mouth and nose mask.

Dhondup said he and other Tibetans staying in India were thanking God for giving them an opportunity to help the tsunami-hit villagers.

"I've been staying in India since 1959," Dhondup said. "We owe it to India. The Indians have given us a temporary home. I know we are a little late as it is more than 10 days after the disaster but another 200 Tibetans will soon join us.

"When the disaster struck we conducted prayers in all our monasteries," he added.

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and his followers fled Tibet to India in 1959 amid a failed uprising against Chinese rule.

Dhondup and his colleagues live in the neighbouring state of Karnataka at the largest Tibetan settlement in India.

J. Jayarami, a 15-year-old girl who was treated by the Tibetan monks, said she felt immediate relief.

"They told me to close my eyes and concentrate. Then they kept on asking me if I feel any pain when they touch me. It was a different experience from other doctors," she said.

>>click here for the rest of the article

2005-01-06T22:35:00.000-08:00

Scientology Volunteer Minister Team in Madras (including Tibetan Buddhist Monks who have been trained on giving assists).

2005-01-06T22:25:00.000-08:00

The Scientology Volunteer Minister team in Chennai (Madras) had another meeting with the local Rotary Club to get more data on what is happening in the badly affected areas down the coast, and went down the coast. Along the eastern coast of India, 560 villages were damaged or destroyed by Tsunami waves that carried big trucks as far as 2 km from the shore and dumped them as tangled masses of junk in the fields. 500,000 people are homeless, well over 10,000 are dead.

In conjunction with the Rotary clubs, trained teams of Scienotlogy Volunteer Mnisters (including 28 Tibetan Buddhist Monks who have been trained in giving Assists) have been sent into four different areas.

The Rotarians have requested help in training volunteers, rehabilitating the lives of those affected, conseling and medical supplies. The fishermen are without boats, nets, or a way to survive. Women lost families, men lost wives and children, thousands of orphans are in need of help. Much is needed and much is being done. Trained teams of VMs from the UK, US and South Africa are now here, helping the survivors.

2005-01-05T17:28:00.000-08:00

I am not able to go to India myself to help in the tsunami relief effort, and I am so greatful to other Scientology Volunteer Ministers who have gone and the others who are going.

I'm making my blog available to those on the ground who are doing their part there.

2004-04-17T02:39:00.000-07:00

I just receive "The French Laundry Cookbook" and highly recommend it. It's the recipes of the restaurant and a dissertation on the ideology of his way of cooking. Perfection in taste and presentation is it's mission and is cooking in the way I've always dreamed it should be.

Concentrating on maximum favors in small portions (so as not to dull the senses with a continous onslaught of the same flavor with large portions), each bite is a feast. An explosion to the senses, to be relished and cherished. Then onto the next, completely different, creation.

2004-04-06T04:19:00.000-07:00

Prick an egg with a pin before boiling and you won't get the green line around the yolk and your egg won't crack. Prick at the fat end of the egg.

OR - salt the water first, put the egg in when the water is cold. Bring to a boil and take off the heat for 15 minutes for hard boiled eggs. The salt will prevent the cracking of the egg.

2004-04-01T01:59:00.000-08:00

Silicone bakeware. This stuff is fabulous - no more flouring, buttering or otherwise preping your pans. Baked goods fall right out. To clean up just rinse. I ordered a whole bunch of the stuff.

2004-03-24T03:47:00.000-08:00

When salting food, always do it up high, away from the food so that the salt spreads evenly. Salting too close will get some spots of the food more salty than others.

2004-03-21T10:43:00.000-08:00

I like to cook and enjoy learning about cooking. This blog is to log things I've learned.

Today I learned that gratin means crust.

That Sabayon, which is a french word for custardy sauce with wine, comes from an italian word which means beer.