Tagged With "Power of Coming Together as Women"
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ANNOUNCING: $700,000 GRANT TO SONOMA LAND TRUST TO PROTECT CRITICAL OPEN SPACE LAND AT SONOMA DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER [CFSC]
By Caitlin Childs, June 26, 2019, Community Foundation Sonoma County We are so pleased to announce this wonderful news: Thanks to the vision of a family that cared deeply about the future of Sonoma County, the Sonoma Land Trust has received a $700,000 grant from Community Foundation Sonoma County and our regional affiliate the Sonoma Valley Fund to protect more than 700 acres of open space, trails and natural resources at the site of the former Sonoma Developmental Center (SDC). This grant...
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Are We Crazy About Our kids? Documentary Short Film and Panel Discussion
Are We Crazy About Our kids? Documentary Short Film and Panel Discussion by Russian River Cradle to Career Collaborative Thursday, April 27, 2017 6:30pm-8:30pm Rio Theatre 20396 Bohemian Highway Monte Rio, CA 95462 TO RSVP CLICK HERE “Every dollar we put into high-quality early childhood education we get $7 back in reduced teen pregnancy, improved graduation rates, improved performance in school, reduced incarceration rates. The society as a whole does better.” President, Barack Obama...
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Artists in the ACE and Resilience Movement: Creative Avenues to Change
This story was written by Anndee Hochman.
They began with a song and ended with a poem. In-between, there were photographs and giant graphic renderings, movement exercises and a “human pulse” formed when 90 people stood in a circle and squeezed each other’s hands.
At a June summit in Whatcom County, Washington, titled “Our Resilient Community: A Community Conversation on Resilience and Equity,” the arts played a starring role.
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Assisting Refugees: Lessons on Trauma and Resilience
Making do with what you’ve got There are a lot of stories about refugees in the news. Some years ago, I helped resettle refugees from the Vietnam War. Trauma and resilience define what it means to be a refugee. All of them had lived through years of warfare. They had seen friends and family members killed. They had to flee the familiar towns and villages they had lived in all their lives. They arrived in a new country with hardly any resources, in a land where nobody spoke their language or...
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Be the Spark: Igniting trauma-informed change within our communities
Authors note: This piece is co-authored by @Lara Kain and @Christine Cissy White. Though we had never worked together or met, we were asked to co-present on creating t rauma-informed changes in communities by the Attachment Trauma Network for the first national (now annual) Creating Trauma-Sensitive Schools Summit in Washington, DC. This article is an expanded essay version of that presentation). Be the Spark Oprah Winfrey helped mainstream discussion about...
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Bridges to Resilience: Santa Barbara and Sonoma County Share the Passion
On October 16, I joined in Santa Barbara's Second Annual Bridges to Resilience Conference . Surrounded by "our people" or 300+ folks like us who care deeply about ending childhood adversity, I basked in the waves of passion passing back and forth between presenters, participants, and organizers. With the fires raging in our community at the same time, it was hard for me to consider leaving my post at one of the shelters to participate in this event. However, I convinced myself attending this...
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Bring community voices into disaster rebuilding and infrastructure planning [thehill.com]
After wildfires and hurricanes ravaged the country last year, we saw devastating human impact, but also soon came to understand the huge financial costs to communities needing to rebuild. Reports are calling 2017 the most costly disaster year on record, with estimates of over $306 billion in damage to housing, transit, infrastructure and businesses. We know that a $1 investment of federal funds in resilient infrastructure can yield $6 in savings, and we also know that community voice is...
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Bringing ACEs Passion to the Commission on the Status of Women
Harnessing the wisdom that comes from challenging life experiences is a gift - and, it takes strength. Finding a pathway to healing , through expressive art, writing, and kayaking are just some of the ways that Michelle Denham role models the value of self-care. Michelle brings this wisdom to her role on the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women . CSW Commissioner Michelle Denham As a passionate Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) champion , Michelle brings a trauma informed lens...
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Buck Institute in Novato [CA] gets $6 million grant to study negative health effects from menopause (The Press Democrat)
By Guy Kovner, The Press Democrat, October 1, 2019 Wading into an area little known to science, the Buck Institute for Research on Aging on Monday launched a study of the harmful health effects women experience after menopause , paid for with a $6 million gift from Nicole Shanahan, a Bay Area tech entrepreneur and philanthropist. Shanahan is married to Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google and among the wealthiest people in the world. Eric Verdin, president and CEO of the Novato research group,...
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Building Community Resilience Expands
In response to the increasing demand for BCR expertise and insight we plan to provide more opportunities to share lessons learned. In addition to our regional expansion, see BCR in action later this month. Join us for the next BCR Town Hall in DC on Thursday, April 19th at 3:00pm (EST) in person or via livestream. Read more for details.
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Building trust is now a critical part of health care
In a video clip , a hospital patient turns away in protest as a physician enters the room. “Why do you all keep coming in my room!” she asks in frustration. The physician moves a chair out of the way and sits down at eye level with the patient. “You’ve had to see so many people,” he acknowledges. “And I’m tired of it!” she yells. “I already know I have to get both of my legs cut off. That’s what they keep saying. I don’t have a choice!” “You don’t feel like you have a choice,” he repeats...
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CA announces robust perinatal depression prevention for Medi-Cal recipients
Melinda Coates experienced a tumultuous pregnancy. “I was really mentally upset literally from day one (of the pregnancy),” she says. (Melinda Coates is a pseudonym. To protect her and her children’s privacy and safety, we are not using her real name.) Coates had hoped to get counseling last October, when she was seven months pregnant. That’s when she enrolled in the state’s Medi-Cal program, shortly after she and her abusive husband moved to California, “but nobody was able to get me in...
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California Child Welfare Policy and Progress, Winter Issue
The California Child Welfare Co-Investment Partnership Report This issue of in sights provides an overview of the latest legislative developments in California, including data and perspectives on the policy and practice transformation taking place with the Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). Beyond a comprehensive summary of child welfare state legislation, this issue also includes a discussion on the key provisions of the Family First Prevention Services Act. The issue concludes with...
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California issues update on state residents' ACE scores from 2011 & 2013 surveys
The latest adverse childhood experiences survey from the California Department of Public Health shows that 42% of the population has an ACE score of 3 or higher; 16% have an ACE score of 4 or higher. Those with an ACE score of 4 or higher are: 3x more likely to be current smokers 4x more likely to have a depressive disorder 2x more likely to have asthma 2x more likely to be obese 4x more likely to have COPD 3x more likely to have a stroke Here are a few other highlights from the six-page...
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Changing Minds and Creating Trauma-Informed Communities Convenings - South and North
Last week, on two separate days in Los Angeles and in San Francisco, about 150 people (total) convened to listen and brainstorm about creating trauma-informed communities. Futures Without Violence, which is rolling out its Changing Minds campaign later this year, hosted both events. Some very interesting and important themes emerged from the two days: Residents with lived experiences should participate in the decision-making bodies of service providers and vested...
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Childhood trauma a societal issue, says Hanna speaker [SonomaNews.com]
Ace is a three-letter word usually indicating greatness or excellence. But when those same letters stand as an acronym for “adverse childhood experiences,” it loses that luster – and can lead to mental, physical and...
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Close to Home: Why we need to expand access to early childhood education [PressDemocrat.com]
Many people don’t know that 90 percent of a child’s brain develops before the age of five. The early childhood years are critical for laying the foundation for the rest of a child’s life. Early interaction with parents, child-care providers and siblings all shape the nature and development of a child’s brain. But knowing something and doing something about it are two very different things. We need to ensure that every child in Sonoma County has access to quality preschool to give them a...
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Come to our final meeting of 2015!
Dear Sonoma County ACES Connection members, I am excited to remind you that our next meeting is Wed 12/16 from 12:30 to 2:00 in the Public Health building located at 625 Fifth Stree t Santa Rosa, 95404. Several members indicated that they were feeling conflicted, they wanted to be at our meeting and also attend the training at Child Parent Institute, and as such we will push back our start time to 12:30 and end at 2:00 so everyone has the...
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Community advocates and Bay Area county health agencies work together on trauma-informed systems change
The talk around the table is not what one might expect when community advocates begin a meeting with county health officials. “I went into this [work] through my own lived experience of trauma and family addiction,” said Toni DeMarco, the deputy director of children’s services for San Mateo County Health System. Rocsana Enriquez, who teaches yoga to teens in juvenile hall in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties and in high schools for the Palo Alto-based Art of Yoga Project , chimed in. “I’m...
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Community Leaders Connect in ACEs and Resilience Community of Practice
https://nacchovoice.naccho.org/2018/09/25/community-leaders-connect-in-aces-and-resilience-community-of-practice/
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Community Partners Invited to Share Ideas for Recovery
From the Sonoma County Office of Recovery: Sonoma County Recovers Together Come share your ideas about what actions will lead to a successful recovery and resilient future for Sonoma County. Topics include: preparedness, infrastructure, housing, economy, natural resources, and safety net services that are important to your organization, including health and human services. July 10 th , 6 - 8 pm: Sonoma County Office of Education July 11 th , 6 - 8 pm: Sebastopol Center for the Arts July 25...
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Community Voices: Creating a Just, Healthy and Resilient World
Mobilizing Action for Resilient Communities (MARC) is a vibrant learning collaborative of fourteen sites actively engaged in building the movement for a just, healthy and resilient world. Using the science of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and resiliency as their organizing framework, these communities have built strong cross-sector networks to help heal and prevent early childhood adversity. From October 2016 through May 2017, we were privileged to travel to all fourteen MARC...
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Stress-related hormone cortisol lowers significantly after just 45 minutes of art creation
I know that I'm preaching to the choir with this article ( Stress-related hormone cortisol lowers significantly after just 45 minutes of art creation ), but I'd like to share a personal story and along with it a some floating hopes I have in all of this trauma-informed work that we strive to do. My Brief Story I didn't always like to paint. In fact, I hated it because I was high-achieving and didn't think I was good enough to do it. One day my senior year of college, a friend of mine (let's...
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Customizing ACEs Screening for High School Students in Santa Rosa, CA
August 25, 2015 9:20 PM by Sylvia Paull When students show up for an appointment at the Elsie Allen Health Center , which is located on the Elsie Allen High School campus in Santa Rosa, CA, one of the first things they...
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Customizing ACEs Screening for High School Students in Santa Rosa, CA
Repost with permission by Sylvia Paull When students show up for an appointment at the Elsie Allen Health Center, which is located on the Elsie Allen High School campus in Santa Rosa, CA, one of the first things they do is take an ACE survey. Instead of answering the 10-question survey developed for the CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACE Study), they respond to 16 questions. That’s because the questionnaire was designed by the clinic staff to address the...
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CYW releases "Children Can Thrive: A Vision for California's Response to ACEs"
The Center for Youth Wellness released a new report “Children Can Thrive: A Vision for California’s Response to ACEs”. This report is a follow up to last November’s Children Can Thrive Summit. ...
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Do you live in Arizona, Hawaii, California, Nevada or the US Pacific Islands? Come to our no-cost mental and school mental health Winter Institute!
Do you live in Arizona, Hawaii, California, Nevada or the US Pacific Islands?If so...Check it out! 👇 NO COST. MENTAL HEALTH & SCHOOL MENTAL HEALTH WORKFORCE. AMAZING FACULTY. JANUARY 14, 15, & 16th! LONG BEACH, CA. JOIN US. 🤝 👏 Learn more here: http://bit.ly/mhttc-winterinstitute-flyer Register here: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07egq2f9gaebafa6bd&llr=8wdk4ubab
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Documentary Wrestling Ghosts tracks a journey from trauma to resilience
When prompted by a life coach to comfort the child inside of her, Kim Montleon, a young mother at the center of the documentary film, Wrestling Ghosts , says emphatically: “I can’t do that; I’m afraid I won’t come back!” That’s the beginning of Montleon’s two-year struggle to dig deep into her own harrowing childhood trauma to find a way to heal so that she can nurture her young children. The documentary by filmmaker Ana Sofia Joanes was screened to more than 140 people on Saturday,...
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Dovetail Learning's TOOLBOX a resource for schools seeking to be Trauma-Informed
Bryan Clement, Dovetail Learning, gave a compelling presentation to the ACEs Connection community coalition in late January. He began with a video showing how kids are putting social and emotional skills into action in their school settings (there's a version with Spanish subtitles here ): TOOLBOX clearly offers great tools for strengthening relationships between folks of all ages. It also provides the language and framework creating a strong relationship-based foundation for schools seeking...
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Dozens of stakeholders representing thousands of practitioners send public comments on Calif. ACEs-screening plan
Update: We posted this story on Tuesday evening and received a response from the Department of Health Care Services Wednesday that clarifies additional information. DHCS information Officer Katharine Weir said that subject to budget approval by the legislature and the governor: The reimbursement rate will be $29. Federally Qualified Health Centers will also be reimbursed for screening pediatric patients for trauma through Prop 56 funds and federal matching funds. In response to a question...
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DRAFT notes from our October 2019 meeting
Draft notes from our October 23, 2019 meeting Welcome: For all who could join our meeting on October 23rd, thank you for your participation! Together we can broaden our understanding of how ACEs impact our communities and what folks are doing to address ACEs. In October we welcomed David Beck MD a local Psychiatrist, Lynn Burke from Drug Abuse Alternatives Center (DAAC) Perinatal Program and we welcomed the return of Carla Denner LCSW who is now with DHS - BH- Alcohol and Other Drug...
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DULCE helps pediatricians in Oakland, CA, prevent toxic stress in newborns
On a recent day in early March, Laura Lopez met a former patient of hers in the waiting room of Highland Hospital’s pediatric clinic in Oakland, CA. The patient had forgotten her Medi-Cal card and called Lopez asking for help. But in the brief conversation, Lopez, a family specialist with the DULCE program, learned about some dire changes in the patient’s life. Laura Lopez “Without me even asking, she shared with me that she had separated from her partner, that she needs to apply for food...
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During COVID-19, how does a trauma-informed school pivot to distance learning?
All photos courtesy of Antioch Middle School staff Antioch Middle School seventh-grader Alyssia Garcia was accustomed to scanning the cafeteria during lunch for kids who might need her assistance. “I’d look for kids who looked sad, kids who were sitting alone, kids who looked angry,” says Garcia, a peer advocate at her school. Alyssia Garcia When she’d spot students sitting alone or looking sad, she’d approach them and ease into conversation. “If it’s a sad person, I’ll try to cheer them up...
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‘Thank you’ signs that sprang up after Sonoma County fires turned into a poster (pressdemocrat.com)
When the Jeberg family evacuated their Calistoga Road home on Oct. 8, fleeing the Tubbs fire, they assumed it would be the last time they’d ever see it. A couple days later, they learned their home had been spared. “It was just so hard (for him) to find words,” Michala Jeberg said on behalf of her husband, who was out of the country during the interview. “All he could come up with was, ‘Thank you,’ basically, and the fire crews were all just saying, ‘Well, we’re just doing our jobs.’ They...
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The Developing Brain & Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
Thanks to an explosion in scientific research now possible with imaging technologies, such as fMRI and SPECT, experts can actually see how the brain develops. This helps explain why exposure to adverse childhood experiences can so deeply influence and change a child's brain and thus their physical and emotional health and quality of life across their lifetime. The above time-lapse study was conducted over 10 years. The darker colors represent brain maturity (brain development). I have added...
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The Economics of Child Abuse: A Study of California
While the impact of maltreatment on a child and their family is devastating, child maltreatment also has serious effects far beyond those for the victim. Maltreatment results in ongoing costs to taxpayers, institutions, businesses, and society at large. Local communities bear the brunt of these costs in the form of medical, educational, and judicial costs, though more tragic signs are seen in homelessness, addiction, and teen pregnancy. To create a concrete understanding of the widespread...
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The Power of Photovoice
Today I was able to sit down with Salvador Sanchez Strawbridge, who is apart of the Santa Rosa Violence Prevention Partnership. Sal shared with me how his life experiences lead him to where he is today and how he is giving back to his community. Sal did not have an easy childhood and was affiliated with a gang at a young age. I personally do not know a lot about the dynamics of a gang and he was able to provide me with a little more insight. He shared that being apart of a gang filled a void...
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Three Sonoma County commissions seek local applicants [Sonoma Index Tribune]
First District Supervisor Susan Gorin invites community members to apply for positions on local policy making bodies. Applications and a list of all boards, commissions and committees to which the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors appoints members is available online at sonomacounty.ca.gov/Board-of-Supervisors/Boards--Commissions--Committees/Boards-Commissions-Committees-and-Task-Forces/. Click HERE to access website. The “vacancy” list on the site shows available opportunities for...
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Tracking Trafficking [pacificsun.com]
By Will Carruthers, Pacific Sun, February 5, 2020 North Bay residents don’t appreciate the scale of a crime happening all around them, despite an increased effort at public outreach over the past decade, according to a local nonprofit director. “Human trafficking happens every single day,” says Christine Castillo, the executive director of Verity, a Sonoma County nonprofit that offers services and support to trafficking victims and sometimes coordinates with law-enforcement agencies...
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Trauma education and mindfulness help youth living amid gun violence
Armon Hurst, 2nd from left, first row, Teens on Target, courtesy of YouthAlive! Eighteen-year-old Armon Hurst serves as vice president of the student body at Castlemont High School in Oakland, Calif. He has a 4.0 grade point average, is an avid baseball player, and is slated to go to college next year. But until a few years ago, Hurst would find himself waking from nightmares in the middle of the night. It was difficult to concentrate at school, and he wasn’t eating well. Armon Hurst “There...
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Trauma Informed Agency Champions
On December 11, 2017, more than fifteen agencies sent representatives to participate in our Trauma Informed Agency Champion training. Many folks expressed an interest in continuing to come together and to share resources. We invite all of the workshop participants and other interested community members to find connection right here via ACEs Connection! I encourage you all to use the ACEs Connection websites and live groups which offer many resources for you including: The new online Becoming...
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Trauma Informed Pocket Card Inspires Praise from Community Member
Do you read the Press Democrat or the North Bay Business Journal? If yes, you may have seen Prevent Child Abuse Sonoma County's special newspaper insert. This colorful and helpful resource guide offered stories, tips, resources and tools for helping to strengthen families and reduce child abuse. Page 7 featured an article about "Trauma Informed Care" and included a pocket card folks could use as a tool for letting doctors, dentists, and other care providers they might need some extra care to...
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Trial by Fire: MARC Sites Collaborate on Trauma-Informed Disaster Response
By @Anndee Hochman During a December 2017 convening in Philadelphia, several leaders from Mobilizing Action for Resilient Communities (MARC) realized they had more in common than a passion for building resilience in their communities. They all hailed from places that had recently been scorched or flooded by natural disasters: wildfires in California and the Columbia River Gorge, hurricanes in Florida, the lingering residue of 2012’s post-tropical cyclone Sandy in the Northeast.
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Two Truths and a Lie: ACES Training for Providers, Part One
Note: I was asked to repost this blog on the Sonoma County site, so if you have already read this, there is no new content. There is a game in which you tell people two truths and a lie and folks must guess which one is the lie. Want to play? One: I lived and worked on a seaplane for several months. Two: for a time, I built musical instruments for a living. Three: I helped several women escape domestic violence. To help you figure out which one is the lie, let me tell you a...
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Upcoming CEU Training Opportunity
Hello, I just wanted to remind everyone about my upcoming 4-CEU training for midwives, nurses and therapists: "Brain Development and Primary Relationships: Preventing and Healing Toxic Stress in the Perinatal Period" on Thursday November 5th 12pm-4pm...
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Upcoming Training Opportunity, "Trauma Informed Care: NEAR Informed Solutions"
The Public Health Institute and John Muir Health are excited to sponsor this one-day training. This is a training for providers, educators, and community leaders to better understand Trauma Informed Care. The training will share insights and strategies from the self-healing communities work in Washington State. This training will be held on February 27, 2018 from 9:00am-3:30pm at the First 5 Conference Center. The address is: 1115 Atlantic Ave., Alameda, CA, 94501. For more information,...
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Upcoming Training Opportunity, "Trauma Informed Care: NEAR Informed Solutions"
The Public Health Institute and John Muir Health are excited to sponsor this one-day training. This is a training for providers, educators, and community leaders to better understand Trauma Informed Care. The training will share insights and strategies from the Self-Healing Communities work in Washington State. This training will be held on February 27, 2018 from 9:00am-3:30pm at the First 5 Conference Center. The address is: 1115 Atlantic Ave., Alameda, CA, 94501. For more information,...
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Valley Forum: The necessity of change at Hanna Boys Center [The Sonoma Index Tribune]
By Brian Farragher, Aug 15, 2019, Special To The Index Tribune For almost 75 years Hanna Boys Center has been instrumental in turning around the lives of thousands of troubled, at-risk boys and helped them become productive citizens. We are proud of this heritage. But like many organizations — religious, educational, political and corporate — Hanna has had missteps and failures which have come to light. You’ve probably read about them. These incidents of sexual abuse over several years are...
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Violence Profile of Sonoma County
Several months ago, the Violence Profile of Sonoma County was published online. The profile aims to deliver three messages: (1) Violence Impacts Health (2) Violence is More than Physical (3) Violence is Preventable In addressing these aims, the profile provides a strong explanation for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) having lasting effects on health and behaviors, including violent behaviors such as emotional abuse, intimate partner violence, and suicide attempts. The profile also uses...
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We Need a Healing Movement
What if you had developed a cure for the most painful and costly public health problem in America, you had proven that it worked, and you were offering it for free, but could not reach those who need it most because no one wants to talk about the problem? Tragically, this is my reality and the truth about human nature. It is easier to suffer in silence than acknowledge the painful things that happen to us. Over 20 years ago, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Kaiser...