Scientology Volunteer Ministers in Washington, DC acknowledged by Greater D.C. Haiti Relief Committee and Embassy of Haiti

The Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee and Embassy of Haiti, with whom volunteers from the Churches of Scientology Disaster Response team have been working hand-in-hand, sent out the following press release commending the contributions of our volunteers and the many generous donations and helping hands lent by companies and organizations in the area:

With a generous donation from Eyre Bus, Tour & Travel, a group of 160 medical professionals and volunteers from the D.C. and New York areas is headed to Haiti this evening, the Embassy of Haiti and Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee (GWHRC) announced today.  The transport of the group is dubbed Operation Night Train, and is scheduled to depart the Embassy around 11:30 p.m. tonight.

"On behalf of my father, Ron Eyre, president and owner, our entire family and staff of Eyre, I am extremely pleased and honored to be a part of this relief effort," said Matthew Eyre, vice president and owner.  "We hope that this small role we are playing tonight will help further this extraordinary mission.  Our thoughts and prayers are with all the people of Haiti and the thousands of volunteers that we have joined to provide relief."

The group, which volunteered to go to Haiti earlier this week to assist with the relief effort, is made up of approximately 80 doctors, 60 nurses, and 20 volunteers.  Approximately 10 volunteers will depart from the Embassy of Haiti and connect with the other volunteers in New York for their flight from JFK.  All the volunteers were coordinated by the GWHRC and the Church of Scientology.  The group will also transport medical supplies that have been donated to the Embassy over the past week. 

The Church of Scientology organized the charter flight out of New York to Haiti as a continuing effort to provide volunteer assistance to those affected by the earthquake on January 12, 2010.  They have also been offering daily assistance at the Embassy since the day after the earthquake.

  "The Volunteer Ministers from the Church of Scientology, as well as other volunteers and medical professionals, are gravely concerned about the conditions in Haiti and willing to do anything needed to assist in this time of terrible tragedy," said Sylvia Stanard, Director of Government Affairs for the Church of Scientology. "Volunteers are already there from two earlier flights out of Los Angeles and New York, but more are desperately needed, particularly medical professionals. We are working with the Embassy of Haiti and GWHRC to meet those needs."

Some of the volunteers will be deployed to a medical area near the airport and others will be at a hospital located near the Presidential Palace.  Volunteers will stay for up to a one-month rotation before returning to the United States.

The Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee is continuing to organize events and volunteers to assist the massive relief effort currently underway in Haiti, including coordinating with the Embassy of Haiti to ship already donated supplies to the island.  GWHRC, with the assistance of the Embassy of Haiti, is expecting to send more medical professionals to Haitias soon as planes are available.

The Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee is a coalition of local and international organizations developed with the support of the Haitian Embassy in Washington D.C. to streamline efforts during disaster relief. GWHRC was first convened in 2008 to respond to the series of Hurricanes that hit Haiti that year.

To find out how you can help this effort, contact us here.