NAJ WIKOFF
POSTED: July 30, 2010
“This has been one of the most refreshing experiences of my military career,” said a member of the National Guard’s 24th Civil Support Team for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) who attended a Soldier’s Resiliency Retreat held at Paul Smith’s College under the auspices of Patriot Hills at Saranac Lake, July 6 to 8.
The retreat, organized by Creative Healing Connections, known for its annual Adirondack Healing Retreats for women living with cancer and other chronic diseases, represented the first step in establishing Saranac Lake as a center for helping soldiers reintegrate into community life and support their resiliency training prior to being deployed, programs that will be offered to active duty and veterans and their families.
Saranac Lake has had a long history a center for healing, most especially established through the efforts of the late Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau to develop a cure for TB and treatment those stricken with the disease. Back in the late 19th and early 20th century, to be diagnosed with TB often meant death. That the people of Saranac Lake and its neighboring villages opened their doors, added sleeping porches and engaged those taking the cure in recreational and artistic activities represented a remarkable spirit of openness and generosity that is not less needed over a century later to support the men and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, indeed in any branch of service where dealing with trauma is part of their sometimes daily reality.
Last summer Creative Healing Connections took on applying the skills and experiences gained working with women living with cancer to develop a retreat for women veterans. The success of that program lead them to be one of the community partners in the creation of Patriot Hills at Saranac Lake along with St. Josephs Rehabilitation Center, the Adirondack Medical Center, Paul Smith’s College, Adirondack Economic Development Corporation and the Trudeau Institute, amongst several others organizations and community activists.
At the recommendation of the Reverend Col Eric Olsen, the Head Chaplain of the New York National Guard, who served a tour of duty in the Sunni Triangle north of Baghdad in 2004, the initial Soldier’s Retreat was planned for the 24th, which was established to respond to potential attacks or incidents involving the possible use of chemical, biological or radiological agents or the use of high-yield explosives in the New York metropolitan area. Based at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, the 24th is the second such unit assigned to the New York Guard. The unit is the latest addition to the Guard’s homeland defense and emergency response capabilities in support of civil authorities.
Activities included large and small group, and one-on-one sessions to help the men address challenges they identified as priorities during the opening session, improve communication and resiliency skills, and strengthen the overall sense of teamwork. The workshop leaders used a variety of traditional and non-traditional approaches as a way of helping the soldiers examine emotions, share experiences and relax; activities that included the use of the arts, writing, labyrinth, four-man canoe races, ritual and a sweat lodge that they constructed under the guidance of the Mohawk healer Allan Brandt; an activity that proved to be by far the most popular experience even in the midst of the heat wave that blanketed the region.
“I was impressed by the sense of concern these soldiers had for their unit and their job,” said the poet Roger Mitchell of Jay. “These 19 soldiers came from many different corners of American society and worked, as they said themselves, like a family.”
“It was an incredible experience to work with this unit, a mix of combat vets and untried “youth,” said rustic furniture maker and Reiki healer Tom Phillips of Bartlett’s Carry. “They are a unique, strong and vibrant tribe that exists for one purpose - the larger tribe which surrounds them. I was impressed by the intense pride and a sense of a larger destiny. We tried to give them simple grounding tools, breathing and mental focusing exercises to help them deal with day-to-day issues.”
How did the soldiers take to all these new experiences?
“This was the first time in my 19 years of military service anyone asked how I felt,” said one.” And, “They taught me how to deal with stress, how to deal with anger,” said another.
Several spoke of the importance of getting away and connecting with each other. “The retreat provided critical opportunity to have team experiences with the 24th outside of our work,” said one. “It was great experiencing all these things with you guys outside of work,” said another. “I loved the small group activities, the art and writing,” said a third.
Would they want to do it again? “This retreat was just “what the doctor ordered.” It really hit home for me. I’d like to bring my wife and family next time,” said one. “I wish we had a chance to do this once a year,” added another. As to the timing, “I think that the most important time frame for a program like this is pre-deployment, to give (the soldiers) the tools of resilience and coming back to center before they deploy.”
As for the location, “I enjoyed the area, it was worth the long trip to get there.” And their favorite activity, “Of all the experiences, the sweat lodge ceremony was really memorable and valuable.”
While the retreat represented successes on many levels, much of the success was due to the tremendous flexibility and good will of the college staff, their excellent facilities and generosity of Brian MacDonald of Mac Boatworks in Lake Clear who brought over a half dozen four man canoes which lead to some spirited races and many opportunities to learn how to re-launch and re-enter a canoe mid lake. The next retreat is for women vets of any service and any time served and there are still a few places open, and full and partial scholarships available. The dates: Aug. 6 to 11. Look up Creative Healing Connections at www,creativehealingconnections,org for details.
From Lake Placid News published on July 30, 2010
