Scientology Volunteer Ministers of Italy Help Croatian Villages Rebuild and Renew

Church of Scientology Padova’s Volunteer Ministers continue their monthly missions to the earthquake-ravaged region of Croatia.

For families living in Gvozd, Croatia, when the bright yellow van of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers pulled into town last month, it not only signaled the arrival of much-needed supplies, it also meant something even more important: Five months after the devastating December 29, 2020, earthquake, their plight has not been forgotten and there are people who care.

Volunteer Ministers of the Church of Scientology Padova and members of Pro.Civi.Co.S, the Civil Protection Volunteers of the Scientology Community, have continued disaster response missions to Croatia to help families recover from the 6.4 magnitude earthquake and numerous aftershocks that ravaged the region in December. They head east again May 21.

Their last trip to Croatia’s earthquake-damaged region was April 29. When they arrived in the town of Gvozd, in addition to long-life foods such as rice, tuna, beans and peas, they brought 1,000 seedlings and garden tools so families could replace vegetable gardens that were buried in rubble. They also brought work gloves and construction tools and equipment to help residents shore up their homes.

 

This weekend, they plan to visit other rural areas with donations including equipment to help rebuild destroyed stables and sheds so families can care for farm animals.

“Although the situation is improving, basic necessities are still lacking,” says Ettore Botter who oversees the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program for the Church of Scientology Padova. “We want to thank fellow Paduans who support our initiative by donating materials or funds that make our continued humanitarian response possible.”

The Church of Scientology Volunteer Ministers program is a religious social service created in the mid-1970s by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard. It constitutes one of the world’s largest independent relief forces.

With the events of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City, Scientology ecclesiastical leader Mr. David Miscavige called on Scientologists to redouble their efforts to aid their fellow man. He issued a directive entitled “The Wake-Up Call,” which inspired astonishing growth within the Volunteer Minister program. Volunteer Ministers of Italy formed Pro.Civi.Co.S, which was entered into the registry of the National Department of Civil Defense the following year. Over the past two decades, Pro.Civi.Co.S and the Volunteer Ministers of Italy have responded to disasters at home and abroad, including the L’Aquila and Amatrice earthquakes in Italy, the South Asian tsunami of 2004, the Haiti earthquake of 2010, and the 2019 Albania earthquake.

A Volunteer Minister’s mandate is to be “a person who helps his fellow man on a volunteer basis by restoring purpose, truth and spiritual values to the lives of others.” Their creed: “A Volunteer Minister does not shut his eyes to the pain, evil and injustice of existence. Rather, he is trained to handle these things and help others achieve relief from them and new personal strength as well.”