| A team of Scientology Volunteer Ministers is helping | | | | The Scientology Volunteer Ministers have set up their |
| Samoa recover from the tsunami that hit the island | | | | bright yellow tent as a headquarters for their relief |
| early Tuesday, September 29. The tidal waves | | | | activities. There, at shelters and in villages |
| carried entire villages out to sea and killed at least | | | | throughout the island, they provide Scientology |
| 140. | | | | Assists—simple procedures developed by |
| An 8.0 earthquake 120 miles off the coast jolted | | | | Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard that help people |
| people awake in Samoa at 6:48 that morning. Ten | | | | recover from the emotional and spiritual effects of |
| minutes later the first of four 15- to 20-foot-high | | | | trauma, illness and injury. |
| waves pounded the shore and surged inland, | | | | |
| destroying everything in their path. | | | | “Our Scientology Assists are the ’spiritual |
| | | | first-aid’ people need in a disaster,” said |
| Alerted to the disaster, Scientologists from Sydney, | | | | Mathew Andrews, leader of the Scientology |
| Australia, flew to the devastated island. There, they | | | | Volunteer Ministers South Pacific Goodwill Tour who is |
| joined a team of Samoans who trained to be | | | | coordinating the Volunteer Ministers disaster relief in |
| Volunteer Ministers in 2008 when the Scientology | | | | Samoa. “People who are grieving, in pain or |
| Volunteer Ministers South Pacific Goodwill Tour was in | | | | fixated on the tragedy become extroverted and |
| that country. They are working together to help local | | | | bright and start planning again for the future. We |
| officials provide basic services for several thousand | | | | helped a man who was in pain, struggling to walk. |
| survivors living in emergency shelters since the | | | | Today we saw him in town. He was smiling and |
| disaster occurred. | | | | walking easily and came up to me to shake my hand. |