Twenty years ago the International Association of Scientologists (IAS) launched the Freewinds, a motor vessel based in the Caribbean.  The purpose of the Freewinds is to provide a retreat for religious study and counselling.

Last night the Pasadena parishioners of the Church of Scientology got together to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Freewinds Maiden voyage. the event was held in the Braley Building, the future home of our church in Pasadena.  Although the renovations are not yet complete, we were welcomed into the chapel

We saw a video of the social programs the IAS has funded this year. We’re proud to know that our church is active on the front lines of society and it was heartwarming to listen to the people we’ve worked with around the world say that we can be relied on to get the job done.

Our Volunteer MInisters have been very busy this year with all the natural disasters that have occurred - we heard from firefighters in Southern California, the Red Cross in the Phillipines, teachers and religious leaders in India and monks in Myanmar. The VMs are getting known all over for their work in disaster relief.

When you see a natural disaster on the news - a fire, flood or earthquake that devastates the lives of people in a community - keep your eyes peeled for the yellow shirts of the VMs. We’ll be there to help

One of the community programs we’re most proud of is our Volunteer Ministers (VMs). They help out locally and internationally. Our Pasadena VMs worked at the California fires in the San Gabriel Valley recently.

In December 2007 a team of seven Scientology Volunteer Ministers traveled to Uganda to help flood victims. More than 300,000 people were displaced, their food crops and livestock destroyed by the effects of months of heavy rain.

One team just flew in to Myanmar to work with other relief organizations after the cyclone. The official death toll nearly doubled to 78,000 as heavy rains lashed much of the area stricken two weeks ago, further hampering relief efforts.

We will follow their story as we get news from them