Ordained chaplains ready to offer counselling, comfort to victims of trauma
The programme is designed to equip volunteers in the workplace, hospitals and other places to assist victims in emergency situations
New community chaplains of the Chaplain on Board Initiative (COBI) were ordained at a Birchleigh North church on Wednesday night last week.
The ordination service took place at Pharos Community Church, where chaplains from various sectors in Ekurhuleni, including Kempton, Benoni, Rabie Ridge, Tembisa and Boksburg, were ordained.
COBI was founded by Willie du Toit and is an NPO dedicated to offering counselling and comfort to victims of trauma, whether physically or spiritually, during emergency situations such as accidents and crime scenes.
“The main focus of the organisation is to be available to our communities outside of the safety and protection of churches, places of worship and religious organisations, as this is where people spend most of their time,” said Du Toit, CEO and national commander of Chaplains On Board.
“Our aim is to be a bridge through which individuals, groups, companies and organisations can find spiritual healing and restoration in times of distress.”
The programme is designed to equip volunteers in the workplace, hospitals, prisons, police stations and many other places to assist others in any emergency situation and moments of crisis.
“In order to achieve this, we established a national, provincial and regional emergency response centre which will soon be manned on a 24-hour basis, with trained chaplains on standby to assist telephonically or to be dispatched to any incident where spiritual and/or physical support is required.”
During traumatic times for individuals, chaplains offer help that can range between a few minutes, hours or up to days. During this time, they make assessments, summaries and observations to move the victim/s to the next level of recovery.
