|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Greetings!
Independence Day signals that summer is here, full-on. Many of us celebrated the birth of our country with barbecues and fireworks, with family and with friends.
In addition to honoring the birth of our country, we would all be remiss if we did not also take some time to reflect on the military men and women and families who have made--and who continue to make--the sacrifices that created and uphold our independence.
Our flags are raised and our hearts are proud. I thank you for your service to our country and to those who defend it.
Take care,
Barbara Van Dahlen, Ph.D.
Founder and President, Give an Hour™ |
|
 Learn How to Facilitate a Support Group for Survivors of Suicide Loss
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) offers a comprehensive hands-on training program to help survivors of suicide loss learn the "how-to's" of creating and facilitating a support group.
The two-day program combines lecture, interactive discussion, and role-playing with feedback. The training program is appropriate both for survivors who would like to start a new group and for those who currently facilitate a group and would like to increase their knowledge and skills. Mental health professionals are also welcome, although professional education credits are not available. Note: To create an environment in which participants can best develop and practice the skills necessary to facilitate a group effectively, survivors should wait at least two years after the suicide of their loved one before attending. This training program is not meant to serve as a healing conference; you can find information about healing conferences at www.afsp.org/survivorday or you can call 1-888-333-2377 x33. The program is offered several times a year, in different cities across the nation. Details and registration are available at www.afsp.org/facilitatortraining two to three months before each training date. We recommend registering early to secure a spot. The next training is in Lexington, S.C., August 13-14, 2010: http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_ID=2712BFB9-0D3A-F101-04AF2335E0C0DE17 |
 Military Healthcare Leaders Educate Community-based Doctors on Care of Returning Veterans
July Conference Focuses on Screening and Treatment Strategies for PTSD and TBI, Preventing Suicide, Substance Abuse, and Violence as Vets Reintegrate
Many of the nation's top experts in psychiatric care for veterans will gather in Boston on July 16-17 for the second annual conference entitled Complexities and Challenges of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). The conference focuses on educating community-based healthcare professionals--including physicians, nurses, psychologists, and social workers--to effectively identify and treat returning veterans who suffer from psychological and physical wounds of combat. The conference is affiliated with the Home Base Program, a partnership between Massachusetts General Hospital and the Boston Red Sox Foundation, and takes place at the Joseph B. Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School. A full agenda is available at www.mghcme.org/PTSD. "Right now there is a huge need, across all practice settings, for education on treating veterans," says Robert J. Birnbaum, M.D., Ph.D., executive director of postgraduate education for Massachusetts General Hospital. "Many returning veterans are treated outside VA and military facilities in private practice and primary care settings. With this conference, we're proactively reaching out to physicians on the front lines of care to provide education on diagnostic assessment and treatment for veterans and the often complex issues they present.'" The conference was created through a unique collaboration between the Massachusetts General Hospital Psychiatry Academy and conference co-chairs Terence M. Keane, Ph.D., associate chief of staff with the VA Boston Healthcare System, and Colonel Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, M.D., M.P.H., medical director with the Office of the Army Surgeon General. Mass General brings a 30-year history of educating mental health professionals, while the VA and U.S. Army have focused tremendously in recent years on effective screening and treatment strategies to combat the high rate of PTSD, TBI, and other disorders among active-duty and discharged veterans. "The timeliness and relevance of this conference allows us to secure an unprecedented list of experts, some of whom are rarely accessible to community-based clinicians because they are either deployed across the world or have duties within the VA or Department of Defense," says Dr. Birnbaum. Speakers include top physicians from Walter Reed Army Medical Center, National Center for PTSD, U.S. Medical Command, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, University of South Carolina, and Massachusetts General Hospital. The gathering will provide "a truly unique perspective as these experts will share the latest research and pioneering treatments that are being used in combat zones and in medical facilities across all these organizations, which community-based clinicians wouldn't normally have access to," adds Dr. Birnbaum. In addition to Mr. Keane and Col. Ritchie, prominent speakers include - LTC John Bradley, M.D., chair, Department of Psychiatry, Walter Reed Army Medical Center
- Capt. Paul Hammer, M.D., director, Naval Center for Combat and Operational Stress Control
- Mark Pollack, M.D., director, Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Disorders, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Maj. Christopher Warner, M.D., chief, Department of Behavioral Health, Winn Army Community Health, Fort Stewart, Ga.
- Ross Zafonte, D.O., chair, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School
- Paula Rauch, M.D., director, Child Psychiatry Consultation Service, Massachusetts General Hospital
- LTC Graeme Bicknell, Ph.D., L.I.S.W., M.S., deputy chief, Behavioral Health Division, U.S. Medical Command
- Roger Pitman, M.D., director, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Psychophysiology Laboratory, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Patricia Resick, Ph.D., director, Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System
For information on the full agenda, a faculty list, or registration instructions for the conference, visit www.mghcme.org/PTSD or contact Glenn Laudenslager at (203) 840-5594. |
 GAH Director of Military Outreach
Participates in Ride 2 Recovery
Ride 2 Recovery improves the health and wellness
of injured veterans through cycling. The program
is produced by the Fitness Challenge Foundation (a 501c3), in partnership with the Military and VA Volunteer Service Office, to benefit mental and physical rehabilitation programs that feature cycling as the core activity.
Cycling is an important part of the recovery process because it is an activity that almost all patients with mental and physical disabilities can participate in, and it helps speed up the rehabilitation process.
Georg-Andreas (Andrew) Pogany, Give an Hour™'s director of military outreach and education (pictured second from left) rode 360 miles from Washington, D.C., to Virginia Beach in the six-day Memorial Challenge, May 31-June 5, raising awareness about the invisible wounds of war and about Give an Hour™'s services.
From July 31 to August 5, Andrew will lead Team Give an Hour™ on the Rocky Mountain Challenge, from Cheyenne, Wyo., to Fort Carson, Colo.
The ride begins at the Cheyenne Days Rodeo. Participants will head south along the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, along a route that incorporates some of the best cycling roads in the United States. Many areas on the route have been used in such famous races as the Coors Classic, Red Zinger Classic, and World Championships. The ride concludes with a visit to the Garden of the Gods before a grand finish at Fort Carson. The ride is limited to 200 participants, and each rider must raise a minimum of $3,000. A $75 registration fee is applied to the rider's fundraising goal.
All injured veterans ride for free. Active duty military or VA employees receive a discount. All riders will receive a Ride 2 Recovery jersey, socks, and T-shirt. The $3,000 donation covers hotel housing, limited rider support, luggage transportation (70 pounds maximum), daily route guides, a marked course, rest stops, snacks, and meals. There may also be nighttime entertainment on selected evenings.
Andrew and Team Give an Hour™ are seeking riders to join their team--either for the full six days or for a one-day ride. If you are interested in joining the team or making a donation, please contact Andrew at gapogany@giveanhour.org.
If you are a GAH provider or supporter in the area, please consider coming out to cheer on the riders. Schedule and details will be available at www.ride2recovery.com. |
 Give an Hour™ Profiled in The American Way to Change: How National Service and Volunteers
Are Transforming America by Shirley Sagawa Our nation faces crises in nearly every important aspect of American life from poor health to climate change to limited economic opportunity, to name a few. Many people look to government to solve these problems. But while government has an important role, none of these problems can be solved by government alone. In fact, none can be solved without the committed efforts of the American people, taking action on their own or in concert with others.
Shirley Sagawa (a leading expert on the topic of national service) profiles real people and organizations, such as Give an Hour™, and shows how anyone can change his or her community
through service. She notes that volunteering is on the rise, and there is every reason to believe that more people would serve if only they were asked. The human capital we need to deploy against our biggest challenges is poised and ready.
After decades of incremental progress, service (by volunteers and national service participants) is beginning to be recognized as a valuable tool for addressing our national priorities. Across America, national service programs are changing lives, tackling tough problems, creating innovative solutions, and engaging citizens in their communities. With the recently enacted Kennedy Serve America Act, the national service movement is suddenly positioned to achieve significantly greater impact--if we can leverage its true potential and manage this important labor force of volunteers effectively. This book spells out how. The author will be donating all royalties from the book in 2010 to Voices for National Service to support advocacy for service.
|
 Give an Hour™ Announces New Military Outreach Officer, Robert Alvarez
We are pleased to welcome Robert Alvarez, as our new military outreach officer. In this capacity the multitalented Robert will be linking service members and their families to the GAH and related services that best meet their needs.
Born in New York city to Cuban-American parents, Robert grew up in the inner city of Miami in the 1960s, a time of great racial challenges in an economically depressed community. In 1978 he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and went on to serve in Marine aviation. Upon completion of service, Robert returned to Miami and began a teaching career in the same high school from which he graduated.
Robert coached high school football, baseball, and wrestling and served as head soccer coach before returning to school to earn advanced certifications in vocational assessment and evaluation. Assigned to the special programs division of the Hillsborough County Schools in Tampa, Robert was put in charge of a new federally funded effort to assess county inmates and to assist the courts in developing rehabilitation plans for felony probationers. This program won several awards and much recognition and laid the foundation for what would later become Florida's innovative Drug Courts.
After earning a master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling, Robert was tasked with another new federal initiative with the Florida Department of Corrections, evaluating and counseling newly released inmates from state prisons.
In 1997 Robert relocated to Colorado Springs and was selected to design and develop a Colorado Department of Education pilot program for at-risk and expelled students for 21 school districts. Two years later this project was selected as the state's model and is still in existence today.
Robert returned to his love of counseling, volunteering for the next four years with the El Paso County District Attorney Juvenile Diversion program.
As the Afghanistan and Iraq wars escalated, Robert took a position at Fort Carson, working with transitioning soldiers and was later selected to become the first counselor for the new Warrior Transition Unit, which was designed to assist injured soldiers. This experience led to his next assignment as the national organizations counselor to the U.S. Army Wounded Warrior program pilot program.
Robert is the father of two young boys, a community volunteer in many Marine Corps efforts, a martial artist, an avid motorcyclist, and a therapist in private practice in a state-approved sex offender program in Colorado.
|
 David Karle Joins GAH Advisory Board
After seeing our ad in USA Today, David Karle approached Give an Hour™ with an offer to help raise awareness and funds. It was an offer we couldn't refuse!
David Karle served in the Washington Army National Guard from 1991 to 2005, which included a tour in Iraq from April 2004 to March 2005, in the 81st Infantry Brigade. Among his decorations are the Combat Infantryman's Badge, Bronze Star, and Army Commendation Medal with Valor Device.
During his time as a citizen soldier, Dave also built a career in high technology, working in software research and development for a number of Northwest companies. Since his time in Iraq, he has worked in several high-profile communications roles, most notably at Microsoft.
Dave has built a strong portfolio of effective communications supporting new and existing market development as well as new product marketing for a multibillion dollar business. He also integrated diverse communication capabilities; harnessed the power of emerging communication technologies; used cross-functional team approaches to effectively manage communication programs; incorporated formative research and evaluative assessments to make communication programs more effective; and streamlined communication planning to achieve strategic communication effects.
Dave is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and with his wife, Julie, and their two daughters, makes his home in Bellevue, Wash.
|
 Bethesda Barracudas Host Fourth Annual "Swim for the Troops"
The Bethesda Barracudas, the home team of Gracie and Mira, daughters of GAH Founder and President Barbara Van Dahlen, again supported Give an Hour™ in its effort to provide critical mental health care to our troops and their families by hosting the
fourth annual "Swim for the Troops."
In this fundraising swimathon, children obtained sponsors and pledged to swim laps for the troops. Sponsors pledged an amount to donate per lap. Some 840 laps and 150 minutes later, the Barracudas raised $1700 for a grateful Give an Hour™.
Thank you, Barracudas!
|
 Give an Hour™ Featured in Book on Philanthropy
Almost every daily action can result in a small but deeply meaningful act of giving. Here are 330 unexpected ideas for making a difference--ideas that have nothing to do with the size of your bank account and everything to do with using assets you already have. As Julie Salamon, author of the book Hospital, says, "This book is the perfect guide for those who want to do the right thing, but can't figure out how."
"This timely manifesto will serve as a wonderful reminder that everyone can and should try to make a difference. It will inspire confidence that we can help make our world a better place."
--President Jimmy Carter
To purchase the book, visit
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
