Colombia

The Scientology Volunteers Ministers Amazon Goodwill Tour riverboat carried tour members down the river from Leticia, Colombia, this month across the border of Brazil to the town of Iranduba, the new base of operations of the tour.

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers Goodwill Tour bid farewell to their friends in Leticia, Colombia, and crossed over into Brazil in May to continue bringing help to the indigenous people who live along the Amazon. While in Leticia – which has been a stop on the tour since 2007 – the members lent valued assistance to more than a thousand people, trained in excess of 700, and formed four Volunteer Ministers groups to continue helping others in the region when the tour moved on.

The coordinator of Latin America Volunteer Ministers activities is in Colombia to train and organize disaster response in the wake of recent flooding.

The coordinator of Latin America Volunteer Ministers activities, himself a veteran of the Scientology Haiti relief effort, is in Colombia from his headquarters office in Mexico City to train and man a Scientology Disaster Response Team to provide relief in the wake of flooding in and around the northern coastal city of Cartagena, which has disrupted the lives of more than 94,000 Colombians, according to the Colombian Red Cross.  Additionally, in Manizales, 100 miles west of Bogotá, 150 families were evacuated this week because of landslides.

Two boys look out at the floodwaters from their home in Cartagena, Colombia [Photo: Joaquin Sarmiento/Reuters]

Massive floods and landslides in Colombia caused by torrential rain have affected 28 provinces, killing 29.   With upwards of 3,000 houses destroyed and 300,000 damages, more than 2 million people have been rendered homeless. A Scientology Volunteer Minister assessment team is in the area.

To apply to join, fill out the Volunteer Ministers Disaster Relief Form.