December 7, 2007 NCBTMB complaint

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(altered only formatting for readability)

Friday, December 7, 2007

To: Mark Lausch
NCBTMB
1901 S. Meyers Road, Suite 240
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181-5243
630 627 8000

From: Catherine S. Colvin
7928 Woodlyn Apt 107
Woodridge, IL 60517
cell.630 808 9317

Re: Claim to resolve a chronic injury and details pertinent to the mishandling of a $2000 down payment by: Richard Vrenios and Constance Vrenios and Reiki Council and The Sanctuary School at 799 Roosevelt Road, Building 6, Suite 016, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137; 630 790 3542.

The most recent details are noted in Chicago Better Business Bureau Complaint # 94145268. Chronological communications and scanned documents may be viewed and printed from http://www.cscolvin.blogspot.com. The BBB complaint and responses should provide a grasp of what appears to have transpired. Note: “no response” in prior documentation is now more accurately described as “untimely response”. Steps taken include:

1) Loan info was requested a few times verbally and twice in writing. Efforts to determine and resolve whatever was holding up submission of the loan were eventually responded to by Rick Vrenios in an email dated August 3, 2007 which seemed intimidating though mostly fabricated.

2) Because this situation was not rectified, a dispute was filed with my credit card company. The $2000 charge is temporarily credited while the dispute continues.

3) To support the dispute I filed a complaint with the Chicago Better Business Bureau which closed with no response. After forwarding an email from the BBB to Connie Vrenios and Rick Vrenios stating the complaint closed with an unsatisfactory report, they responded with more distortions and false statements. Those most clearly evidenced are noted below.

a. There was no tutoring. Other than a math class many years ago, I’ve had no tutoring and did not accept or claimed to be tutored in any documentation. There were a few private discussions and classes with Connie and me; said to be necessary to catch up in the 660-hour program.

b. Rick Vrenios’ and Connie Vrenios’ written responses state I received continuing education while claiming the same 163 hours used for tutoring as a member of the Reiki Council were also used for the 660-hour massage program in The Sanctuary School. So, a few odd facts have accumulated: 1) without an enrollment agreement I wasn’t a student; 2) the ability to practice without a license due to a prior certificate date in 2003 had expired; 3) I did not become a Reiki Council member until after classes began; 3) the loan or contract signed by Rick Vrenios and myself is for a 660-hour program with The Sanctuary School; 4) classes with the Reiki Council were not part of that written agreement.

c. Their 11/20/07 BBB response claims a chronic injury was resolved for me in a private tutoring session. No service or treatment of any kind was provided for or applied to that injury. That injury remains functionally unchanged for approximately the last two years.

d. This complaint includes the Reiki Council because of claims above and its owners’ actions toward me. If I pursue Reiki instruction, there’s no choice but to start anew because receiving an attunement from someone who lacks ability to apply their words to their practice represents a farce.

(from the third paragraph after number 8. of Rick Vrenios’ August 3, 2007 email)
“Since joining the class, you have completed 163 hours of the 660 hour program.”

(from page 1 of the BBB complaint regarding continuing education)
“The Reiki Council is also a membership organization. Under state law, “in house education” (education presented for members, or educators hired by a company to teach staff) is not required to be under the jurisdiction of the ISBE. Ms. Colvin was a member and therefore fell under this category as well.”

(from page 13, third paragraph of the BBB complaint)
“But she states that because she didn’t get her imaginary “loan”, the 163 hours of tutoring has no value.”

(from page 15 of the BBB complaint regarding the chronic injury claim)
“She had a chronic injury that limited her ability to work as a massage therapist for four years. In a private tutoring session, the issue was resolved in less than ten minutes providing her with valuable relief, and valuable training in self-care and therapeutic work.”

4) False claims like those above appear to violate VII and XV of the NCBTMB’s Code of Ethics. The BBB complaint contains additional dishonest statements by Rick Vrenios and Connie Vrenios. Dozens of pages of documentation have accumulated because I didn’t know how to proceed and I apologize for redundancies. As much as possible has been documented while hoping an appropriate authority can decide what is best done with any of this information so others might have an opportunity to avoid a similar experience. The four-page BBB rebuttal dated 11/29/2007 attempts to provide a complete picture as best I comprehend so far. The BBB complaint is public and credit card dispute documentation is available upon request if needed.

5) The NCBTMB Ethics and Standards Committee may disclose all information in this and related complaints to Connie Vrenios and Rick Vrenios of The Sanctuary School and Reiki Council, the members of NCBTMB’s Ethics and Standards Committee and Investigative Panel, NCBTMB staff, NCBTMB legal counsel and experts involved in handling the complaint. I don’t know what I’m allowed to know, but having spent considerable time following up with this, I would like to be made aware of what is ethically possible without breaching existing protocols.

I sincerely regret the need to file this complaint and the time and attention of all presiding in this matter is much appreciated.

Respectfully,
Catherine S. Colvin