England

The Volunteer Minister knows something can be done about it because he is trained to provide effective help. Today all Volunteer Ministers have a reputation for helping that precedes them wherever they go, and whenever something effective needs to be done, they can be counted on to do it, and quickly.

Witness the respect for the Scientology Volunteer Ministers’ rapid response to urgencies in Italy, where in 2002 volunteers rushed to the earthquake-stricken Molise region. Immediately they sprang into action, distributing food, providing shelter, administering “assists” and helping to raise morale and create a secure environment. Developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, these assists are simple procedures to help another individual overcome an emotional upset, stress, trauma, and even alleviate pain and discomfort from illness, injuries or operations. Assists are not a substitute for medical treatment. They address the spiritual aspects of these conditions, enabling a person to recover more easily.

Greece

New York

In November 2002, the Volunteer Ministers repeated their good deeds, coming to the aid of flood relief teams in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region.

As their pattern of local Volunteer Minister projects took shape, so did their organisation. Officially, they established themselves as a local association entitled “Volontari di Protezione Civile della Comunità di Scientology” (Scientology Community Civil Protection Volunteers) or “Pro.civi.co.s.,” as they are known.

Soon this team became an integral part of the coordinated provincial civil defence associations. As part of a Piedmont Region coordinated civil defence drill called “River Friend,” the Volunteer Ministers played an important part in flood prevention by cleaning riverbanks of rubbish and fallen branches.

Turin, Italy

Plymouth, England

All the while, Pro.civi.co.s. members completed their Red Cross first aid training and, with the group’s contributions proving so beneficial, Pro.civi.co.s., in May 2003, was included in the National Register of the Civil Defence Department, which is directly under the chairperson of the Council of Ministers. This authorised Pro.civi.co.s. to operate nationwide in the interest of civil defence.

And not a moment too soon. In August 2003, undetonated bombs — remnants of World War II — were found in three different locations in Turin. The city called upon numerous organisations, including the Church’s Volunteer Ministers, to help care for the predominantly elderly residents who were forced to evacuate, while the army dismantled the bombs. Afterwards, Turin’s mayor expressed his gratitude to the full team of civil defence associations. In no uncertain terms, he said of Pro.civi.co.s.: "The Volunteer Ministers of Pro.civi.co.s. are unique volunteers that are really expert in handling and controlling people and they avert danger in doing so."

Ingushetia refugee camp

This story repeated once again in February 2004. Another undetonated World War II bomb was found in a residential area. Again the Volunteer Ministers were among those volunteer groups requested by Turin’s mayor to assist. Fifteen Volunteer Ministers helped evacuate the residents, provided them with shelter and handled their immediate needs while authorities removed the bomb. Then, they orchestrated the safe return of residents to their homes.

Russian Volunteer Ministers

The plight of several thousand women, children and old men waiting out the Chechnyan war in the tent cities of Ingushetia has been eased by the arrival of teams of Russian Volunteer Ministers — bringing relief, courage and new hope to the inhabitants.

Moscow hostage crisis

The fast-action response of Volunteer Ministers proved useful, as well, in Russia. In 1999, two explosions ripped through different apartment buildings in the centre of Moscow within a space of just five days. The second explosion claimed 120 lives. Moscow’s Volunteer Ministers provided logistical support to rescuers, and administered spiritual assistance to victims and emergency relief teams at both sites.

When a nine-story St. Petersburg apartment building collapsed, the resultant physical and emotional trauma was intense. The diligence of Volunteer Ministers at the Moscow explosions was not forgotten. St. Petersburg Emergency Response officials turned to their local Volunteer Ministers for backup and within an hour, the Volunteer Ministers were giving assists to several dozen disaster victims. Additionally, they worked through the night to aid emergency teams in containing the confusion and to help those who had lost their homes find shelter.