Mer Stafford - Land of Medicine Buddha - FPMT - CULT ABUSE

Www.merstafford.com
Www.simplyconfess.com/a-truth/252098

Mer Stafford - Land of Medicine Buddha / FPMT ( foundation for the preservation of the Mahayana tradition )

Narcissist
Cult leader
Abuse of power
Suicides / manslaughter
Fraud
Emotional & Psychological Terrorism
Defender of Serial Rapist Dagri Rinpoche

Linda Bannon - California / Santa Cruz County cult related suicide cover-up

Search here
http://sccounty01.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/SHF/New%20SearchWarrants/Default.aspx

And here....
https://portal.santacruzcourt.org/Portal/Home/Dashboard/29

Please investigate!!!

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Land of Medicine Buddha Cult
FPMT Cult

Laura Orantes
Thu, Dec 21, 2017, 11:01 AM

to me

If you intend to stay there, it’s important for you to be truthful. The lies we tell ourselves are the most damaging. I knew when I wrote this that you might not be able to separate your professional and personal life, but I couldn’t live with my conscience if that were the case.

Hopefully you can take some time to process the situation and see that I truly loved my time at LMB and wish you would not view the center merely for your purposes. Every moment there will be something I cherish.

Regards,
Laura

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Laura Orantes
Date: Thursday, December 7, 2017
Subject: Abuse of power and misconduct at LMB
To: golfunn@aol****, fpmtnorthamerica@gmail****

To whom it may concern,

I am writing because I feel it is both a moral and legal responsibility to bring your attention to the present situation concerning the Executive Director at Land of Medicine Buddha. The decision to write what follows comes after much contemplation and consideration for the people this may impact as well as my hopes for the organization going forward. During my brief tenure as “Kitchen Manager” I observed behaviors and practices that I do not feel are consistent with FPMT’s policies and consider it my spiritual obligation to bring the truth to light.

When I accepted the position I was told by Executive Director, Mer Stafford, that I would be empowered to transform the kitchen, to collaborate together regarding menus, scheduling, and bring about harmony in the kitchen. What I discovered was a woefully unqualified supervisor that uses Buddhism haphazardly and abuses the staff through intimidation and self serving means. It is important to acknowledge that I bear no ill will towards this person, merely that I am concerned for how her behavior impacts those suffering from fear of retaliation. Ultimately, I am most concerned for those who fear that by disagreeing with her, they are in someway disagreeing with the greater practices of the organization at large.

My initial motivation for accepting the position was to combine my love of cooking, my desire to serve, and a wish to grow spiritually at the place where I worked, and in this case lived. Considering the cost of living in Santa Cruz I also thought that living on the property would allow me to accept a position that would have otherwise been financially unsound. In many ways I am grateful for having done so because it allowed me to experience the peril of those on the property who may not possess the financial means to ‘move forward’ when the circumstances would call for them to do so. Above all, the fear this experience has generated, has been the recognition that those in need of genuine healing are being abused to the extent that they are been led to serve Mer, rather than FPMT.

To bring these matters to light I have chosen to focus on three separate incidents that collectively convinced me I could not fulfill the responsibilities of my position under such a supervisor. For my part, I feel as though I made adequate attempts to communicate with the Executive Director, both written and verbally, to be more supportive, but could under no circumstances convince her to be either accountable and or compassionate. My wish is that by addressing these matters, FPMT and those that serve it, will be free to grow under new leadership.

I have chosen to relay these incidents as professionally as possible and hope that in doing so I am fulfilling my spiritual accountability. It has been an honor and privilege to work for FPMT and I hope that my honesty will be received with compassion since it is motivated by love and a desire to help those afraid to speak out.

The first time I recognized a gross lack of accountability and awareness came after asking the Executive Director to meet with me concerning abusive remarks made to me by a member of the kitchen staff. I asked the Operations Manager, with whom I shared an office, to sit in on the meeting because I did not have the confidence that that Director would take responsibility or action in the matter. Despite my efforts, and tears, I was made to apologize repeatedly for the feelings the meeting itself had generated for the director. Feeling the exercise had been futile I resolved to document some of her remarks and convey them in writing during a follow up meeting. Perhaps the most telling of her statements was the following…

When I prefaced my frustrations with, “I value and respect your opinion.” Mer responded, “You need to do more that respect my opinions.” What, I wondered, could she mean? I followed up with, “Perhaps we disagree on what value means” but left the meeting feeling dejected and unheard.

In preparation for a follow-up meeting I composed my thoughts and frustrations in a memo that I provided from the onset. As Mer began to read the memo I was confounded by her decision to record our meeting and sat there in confusion wondering what tactic this could serve apart from an attempt to intimidate me for having put her statements on paper. Compelled by concscience I agreed to have the meeting recorded and ultimately felt it was an attempt to initimidate me though I agreed because at the very least I hoped it would foster accountability and prevent her from speaking as abusively as she had done previously.

The inicident concerning Linda Bannon would do more to cement my concern for LMB under such a director. I can recall at least four separate managers expressing concern as well as two service studies who approached me with fear for the person they heard screaming in the woods their first night on the property. I brought my concerns to the director, as I felt it was my responsibility to do, and asked if we could get a restraining order since I had felt uncomfortable when seeing Linda parked in her car near the property or lurking near staff accomodations. Not only were my concerns dismissed but I was chastized for bringing it to her attention since she said she, “was well aware and it was under control.”

The day of the fire, it was clear the matter was most assuredly not under control. There were no systems in place, I had been on the property for over a month and was still unaware of the procedure should a fire occur. Records for guest’s locations were inaccurate and the very form we were relying upon was disintegrating in the rain. Mer arrived with her daughter in tow and left soon after for a personal appointment. From that moment until my final day of employment there was not a single meeting or measure taken by the director to discuss security and safety on the property.

Days later when it was reported that Linda Bannon had attempted to start a second fire, I was baffled by the director’s inability to accept responsibility for the sitation and dismayed that she made no effort to address the concerns of several managers concerning their safety. When the facility rentals manager made an attempt to voice her concerns at the managers meeting following the second fire, Mer was both dismissive and obtuse. As Lee, the facility rentals manager, asked what would be happening with the restraining order considering she had received a personal threat on her car, Mer responded, “Well she’s in the hospital, so she’s not going to be our problem for a while.”

This remark remains baffling, not only for its insensitivity but for the lack of accountability concerning the welfare of those on the property whose lives were undoubtedly in jeopardy had the fire been more damaging. Following the meeting I no longer felt that my safety and well being were a priority for the director. Myself, a receptionist and the operations manager convened to discuss how we disagreed with the handling of the situation and our lack of confidence in her leadership.

Following the situation I felt a growing concern for the safety of those on the property. Not just their physical well being, but their emotional and spiritual well being. One such person is Max. Max came to LMB as a service-study and immediately demonstrated his knowledge in the kitchen by working fervently to show his support for FPMT. His enthusiasm struck me as misplaced and I immediately brought it to Mer’s attention that I felt he was using the kitchen to prevent him from confronting other issues.

Each day I encouraged service studies to leave the kitchen for breaks, staff practice, or gave them tasks I felt most suited for their disposition rather than the needs of the kitchen. When a evening cook resigned from her position I was shocked and displeased to learn that Mer had promoted Max out of service-study, in less than one month, to a position that would distract him from his practice and potentially hurt his ability to learn at LMB.

Managing the kitchen comes at a sacrifice. I often was unable to attend staff practice in order to ensure that items were put away or additional responsibilities met. Each time I expressed my wish to attend I felt it was not a priority given shortages in staffing. On several occasions I was told by the Director that she would be hiring a dish washer, or getting additional service studies, but at every juncture, she failed to fulfill those promises and I continued to work short staffed despite increasing demands, at personal sacrifice to my physical, emotional and spiritual health.

On November 11t, 2017 Max arrived to his shift under the influence. I did not immediately realize the extent of his inebriation but admit to smelling alcohol on his breath. I told him to drink water and informed the Operations manager of my assumptions, saying I would be back shortly should I need to intervene. Hours later I received a text from the operations manager that Max was more or less “off” and she had asked him to leave. Concerned (more so, given the Linda Bannon situation) I called the operations manager to ask if I should call the police and was told that he was in room drinking and she had informed the director that she felt he should be asked to leave.

The following day I worked morning, noon and night because I was concerned for his well being and not convinced the pressure of the kitchen would be helpful give the situation. When Mer and I spoke the I told her how I had asked the operations manager if the police needed to be called to which she interjected, “That’s not your place.” Given that Max had been promoted without my approval or input, that I had been silenced when expressing concern for the safety of the property, and that I had previously mentioned he was over-compensating in the kitchen, it was beyond dismaying to hear such a remark. Additionally both myself and the operations reported in seperate meetings that he was in fact intoxicated and it would be unwise to keep him on the property.

Mer was dismissive and rather than having asked what had occured, merely relayed to me how she was handling the situation. She said that “he was off his meds” and also acknowledged that at a previous kitchen meeting earlier in the week she considered his behavior beligerent. Perhaps because she does not live on the property she does not realize how hostile and uncomfortable such a situation feels. When two separate managers report innappropriate behavior and are made to feel ignored, it breeds a sense of futility. Worst of all, Mer instructed myself and the operations manager to keep the matter ‘between us’ and I was uncomfortable at having been told to keep a secret that I felt could jeopardize the health and safety of both Max and the center. Additionally, Max admitted to me that he had spent the entirety of his check on alcohol.

Immediately I became resolved to move off the property as a result of the incident. I did not feel as though the boundaries between personal, professional, and spiritual were being respected. I felt pressured to appease Mer in matters beyond my position, including setting aside food for her and her family, most of which I did happily, but rarely met with even an iota of gratitude. I felt I was competing for approval with other managers who reported running personal errands for her on their days off.

In the days leading up to Thanksgiving I mentioned staffing shortages and the fact that back pain was resulting given additional hours worked. There Mer evoked the Buddhist practice of “going it alone”, diminishing my concerns in front of others and arbitrarily using Buddhism to serve her own means. At the same meeting Mer attempted to set “core values” for LMB. The initial reaction from several managers was, “those of FPMT” but she persisted and cited the mission statement of the company Zappos as her example. Never was a meeting more confusing when compared to the previous month when Mer attempted to start a meeting by citing that we were “not a business”. Regardless of whether or not LMB chooses to be for profit or not, there are legal standards of conduct that I feel are being breached.

During my final weekend working at the center I cooked almost entirely alone. Short staffed and over worked I managed to successfully serve more than seventy people per day food that was filled with the mantra I created for the kitchen: Love, Health, Flavor and Gratitude. So it came with great disappointment to have received a text 30 minutes following the end of my shift asking if I was available to meet before what would have been a week’s vacation.

That same evening I received an email that immediately began with a complaint concerning left overs in the walk-in. There was no praise for my cooking, no acknowledgement for a full center booking the following year, or any indication that I had acheived either with less than adequate staffing. Instead I felt as though she was displeased that I was unavailable to clean up after the desserts she had brought in that afternoon. The fact that there were plenty of desserts in the walk-in available to be eaten was lost on her and I left the center that day anxious to relax and nurture an injury I had suffered as a result of working an entire day during Max’s suspension.

The tone and tenor of of her emails, seven in two days, convinced me I would be better serving FPMT through alternative means. I genuinely appreciated participating in Namgyalma and would have liked to have completed the retreat were it not for the pressure of cooking for so many under such circumstances. Following one of her emails I wrote that I was planning to leave LMB and would be looking for an apartment, I informed her of the injury I had suffered as a result of the conditions and her inability to adequately address my concerns. Her response and lack of acknowledgement made it impossible to envision myself serving the organization in the same capacity.

I offered my resignation and did not give a date for my departure, expecting to complete several more weeks of work to ensure the center could function smoothly in my absence. Instead I was immediately told that I had 72 hours to remove my things, one day before Thanksgiving. Although dismayed I am grateful that I am financially secure enough to weather such storms. Of course, my concern is for those who may not possess the financial wherewithall to speak out in such matters and who might experience similar retaliation.

I told Mer I felt her behavior was retaliatory and asked that someone neutral respond to me concerning my worker’s comp claim. Until now, I have yet to receive any additional outreach concerning the matter. Furthermore, when I acknowledged I felt she was motivated by hostility I immediately became concerned for those employees whose counsel I had sought. Following the incident with Max and her insistence that it was “not my place” to call law enforcement when I felt the safety of the center and others was in jeopardy, I asked the facility rentals manager to supply me with the names and information of those she felt could help. Within 24 hours of having resigned my email and passwords were changed and I knew she would be able to learn whom had given me such information.

Removing my items from the property added additional stress given my injury and I began to question the values of LMB and its commitment to “living with compassion.” While helping me carry things to my car, a member of the staff expressed that they were “afraid” that Mer would see them, to which I replied, “that’s the problem.” The same person had previously mentioned wanting to leave her position but was afraid to lose the friends she had made among staff and said, “Once you leave, Mer doesn’t welcome you back.”

Never have I felt more compelled to do what is right, inspite of what is convenient. Given the spiritual nature of the property I am most concerned for how service studies and those living and working on the property might feel conflicted and silenced to confront those responsible for exploiting their dedication to FPMT.

Finally, I would like to return something given to me by the director that I feel exemplifies her lack of conciousness and self awareness. During a staff appreciation dinner Mer gave everyone in attendance a plastic, comic book figurine meant to characterize her impression of each individual. Gary received the “loyalty hero”, Briege was the “kindness hero” and so on…..when it came to me I was given the “determination hero” – a pale, bald, angry character with a menacing grimace and defiant stance. Each person was identified by a single word and corresponding character that was less an indication of their self worth and identity but rather a reflection of how our supervisor saw us. Am I not equally helpful? Loyal? Kind? Persistant? To come to a Dharma center and be characterized by a term and a symbol felt humiliating and inappropriate.

I hope that through this letter I am able to bring about meaningful change to LMB and those that wish to serve FPMT. I can be reached via email or phone for additional comment but hope that the matter will be treated with sensitivity and confidence given my concern for those who may suffer from retaliation as a result of my efforts to bring the the truth to light. Finally I would kindly request that the Director refrain from further disparaging my personal character to fellow staff members and refer only to my professional experience and conduct.

Yours in service,

Laura Orantes
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