Trauma-Informed Video Wins National Outreach Award

Video stars and presenters celebrate their “bridge building” on a Canal Street bridge in Lewiston (front left): Norm LeBlanc, Jennifer Collins, Jennifer Herrick, Joy Hodgson, Carol Tiernan, Rebecca Williamson and Lisa Preney; back row: Allen Hodgson and Jonathan Williamson.       (Photo by Carol Karczewski)

 “Together we can build a bridge” Earns Silver for
Excellence in Community Communications and Outreach

CHICAGO – THRIVE, Maine’s trauma-informed System of Care Initiative, and G.E.A.R. Parent Network accepted the silver award in the Professional Outreach category for Together we can build a bridge (“Bridge”) July 21 at the 2011 Excellence in Community Communications and Outreach recognition ceremony sponsored by the Substance and Mental Health Services Administration’s Caring for Every Child’s Mental Health Campaign.

The public service announcement by mothers and their children from Dixfield, Lewiston and East Livermore, Maine, urges child-serving providers to be “trauma informed” and “strength based.” From personal experience, the women also let families of children with significant behavioral health issues know they are not alone, that help is available, and “When you use your voice, you have a choice.”

“Our hometown bridges depict how isolated we felt when we first started out with a provider,” says Rebecca Williamson. “Families want help, but may not know how to get it or how to ask for what they need,” she says.

At the end of the video, the families stand together symbolizing the strength they’ve found in peer support and their readiness to use their own voice with child welfare, mental health and other providers.

“We want to bridge the abyss between us and them,” explains Joy Hodgson, “and meet providers halfway. We want them to listen to us and not judge us, to learn from us instead of trying to fix us. That way, our meetings can support an interchange of experiences and be cultural learning opportunities with the shared goal of getting our child’s needs met.”

Bridge has been viewed 1000 times to date on You Tube, and been broadcast by 40 Community Access TV stations to over 3.5 million homes  in 70 Maine communities; 13 other states, South Africa and New Zealand. It has been presented by members of Family Advisory Councils for Empowerment Statewide to hundreds of providers and service agencies at the state and local level throughout Maine. 

THRIVE trauma-informed trainings and technical assistance help child-serving providers and community organizations transform the way services are delivered to children and youth with serious behavioral health challenges and to their families.

G.E.A.R. Parent Network empowers parents of children with emotional and behavioral health needs to effect life decisions based on their family’s individual strengths and needs by providing safe and supportive avenues for: emotional support, problem solving, sharing common experiences, seeking knowledge about community resources and advocacy, identifying the strengths and needs of their child(ren) and families and accessing information and education related to children’s issues.