Scientologist David Scattergood (center) coordinates activities of several Seattle area Scientology Volunteer Ministers
Profile: David Scattergood, All the Good We Can Do
Submitted by csinet on Tue, 2011-06-21 15:31
June 21, 2011
Scientologist David Scattergood is a fixture in the volunteer community in Seattle, Washington. Here is his story.
David Scattergood is a Seattle, Washington, businessman and community leader. A Volunteer Minister of the Church of Scientology of Seattle, he helps organize disaster response whenever the need arises. He also takes an active role in coordinating volunteer actions for his state as a board member of WVOAD, Washington Volunteers Active in Disaster, where he is serving his second term as president.
Training as a Scientology Volunteer Minister in 2004, Scattergood’s concern for those devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita prompted him to join the Churches of Scientology Disaster Response Team in Louisiana. He was among the 900 Volunteer Ministers who provided assistance to police and other rescue workers and brought in and distributed supplies to those in need.
The experience changed Scattergood’s life. Unlike anything he had ever experienced, he found the level of cooperation, the outpouring of help and the ésprit de corps inspirational.
“In the midst of chaos, we created this orderly unit at our shelter where everyone knew exactly where they stood, what they were to do and how to do it,” Scattergood says. “You knew you could turn a task or job over to people—even to complete strangers—and you could trust them to get it done. It was extraordinary.”
Scattergood relates how three days after he arrived, a military unit came to his shelter to “establish order.” They looked at the shelter, saw it was calm, clean and well cared for and moved on almost immediately.
”In our shelter, everyone was getting fed, there was no hostility, antagonism, or apathy. The children were laughing and playing. Everything was peaceful and calm,” he says.
Representing the Churches of Scientology Disaster Response on WVOAD and at national VOAD conventions, Scattergood, 44, is proud of the initiative and sincerity of Volunteer Ministers in tackling the job at hand—whatever it may be.
“The Scientology Volunteer Ministers approach each new disaster by finding out what is needed and wanted there, and producing that,” he says.
Scattergood recalls one such instance that occurred at a Texas disaster site.
“They badly needed a communications center,” he says. “Equipment had been shipped in, but it was all still in boxes. One of the Volunteer Ministers, overhearing this was a problem, took it upon himself to stay up all night to set things up. When those in charge came back in the morning the entire communications center was up and running. They were completely amazed.”
In 2000, Scattergood first looked into Scientology to help him become a better executive at a landscaping management company. He was not at ease as a “boss.”
“I wanted to improve my level of communication at work—to be more comfortable with my employees and help them,” he says.
Accomplishing these goals with his first course, Scattergood realized there was a great deal more to gain from Scientology. He says that continuing with his training and spiritual counseling has made a tremendous difference in his life.
“One of the things I like best about Scientology is you don’t have to ‘believe’ anything,” he says. “It is a path you have to walk yourself—a path of discovery where you learn what is true for you.”
Visit the Scientology website for more information on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program.
###
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.
Resources:
