Carefree Truth

Issue #268, July 20, 2013

 

 

 

 

Hi Lyn,

I sure enjoyed our conversation today. Thank you so much for your kind offer to help me get the word out to vets in the area who might profit from this experience and also to get the word out to potential scholarship donors.

Mike Wold

 

(Lyn's note: We think this is a fabulous effort that Mike is making for our veterans, and we have donated towards his effort.  All donations are welcome, no matter how large or small.  If a lot of us do even small donations, this worthy program will get funded rapidly.  Please consider giving.)

 

 

 

Healing of Memories Workshop for Arizona Veterans

 

Overview

 

Contact: Mike Wold (michael_w_wold@msn.com or 651-687-9767)

 

 

Background

 

 

In 2007 a group of like minded Minnesotans got together to form the Warrior To Citizen Working Group. The group consisted of representatives of the Minnesota National Guard, Beyond the Yellow Ribbon community representatives, Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs, Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans, Minnesota State College and University System, representatives of state and federal elected officials, representatives of local churches, veteran services organization representatives, local businesses, recently returned Iraq and Afghanistan military personnel and others who had a strong interest in assisting veterans in their reintegration into our communities. The group became a communications and learning exchange where successful practices were shared and coordination was achieved among the members.

 

 

Although the main objective for this group was to share good practices, there were a number of valuable initiatives that were incubated within this group. One of the initiatives that grew out of the group in 2008 was the idea of bringing the Healing of Memories Workshop to Minnesota veterans. The Healing of Memories Workshop was created by Father Michael Lapsley, an Anglican missionary priest who in 1990 suffered the loss of his hands and the sight in one eye from a letter bomb that was sent to him in Zimbabwe by a supporter of the pro-apartheid government in South Africa. After a long recovery from the bombing, Father Lapsley decided to dedicate his life to helping victims of emotional, psychological and spiritual wounds inflicted by war, human rights abuses and other traumatic circumstances. He founded the Institute for Healing Memories (www.healing-memories.org) in 1998 whose mission is to facilitate the healing process of individuals, communities and nations.

 

 

 

The Minnesota Experience

 

Members of the Warrior to Citizen Working Group felt that the Healing of Memories Workshop would benefit veterans who had experienced trauma in combat. Several members of the group formed a team that created a plan for bringing the workshop to Minnesota. Since that time five Healing Memories Workshops have been conducted for Minnesota veterans and the results have been very gratifying. So far over 80 veterans have attended the workshop in Minnesota. Veterans attending the workshop, including not only those from Iraq and Afghanistan but also from the Vietnam and Korean wars, have reported that because of the workshop they are now on the road to internal healing. Here are some quotes from veterans who have attended the workshop:  

 

 

“I have a better grasp of my experiences from my last deployment and the negative hold they have had on me. I feel as if I have made progress in working through these experiences, owning what I am, letting go of the rest and moving towards freedom and healing.”

 

 

One participant, a Vietnam veteran, who was sharing a ride back home from one of his newly found friends at the workshop said he “kicked back and watched the miles roll by, only this time the snow banks didn’t look quite so dirty nor the late March countryside look so bleak”.

 

 

During the workshop participants are asked to make a drawing of their lives and the areas of pain with which they struggle. A veteran who had attended more than one workshop described the process as “peeling the onion of my pain”. He said: “Each time I sat down to draw it was different. Dark colors weren’t there in the second workshop and my pictures had changed.”

 

Another participant said: “It was the first time I was able to see my life as a whole.  I felt like I was being held and believed”.

 

 

 

The Workshop

 

The Healing of Memories Workshop is a major step that helps veterans begin the healing journey. It provides a safe place for participants to explore personal histories and gain insight and empathy for themselves and others. Participation provides a safe experiential and interactive way to overcome of anger, loss, grief and guilt and can be one step on the journey to healing and wholeness. It contributes not only to personal healing, but also to the healing of interpersonal relationships. The key to the workshop is that it provides a safe environment for participants to tell their stories. Many veterans have kept these buried deep inside themselves and this has been a barrier to their healing. As they tell their stories and listen to others, they realize that they share a common human bond and that we are all wounded in some way by past experiences.

 

 

The workshop is conducted at a location where participants can stay overnight. It normally begins on a Friday evening with a welcome dinner. The opening session introduces the workshop concepts and provides an opportunity for participants to meet with each other. Day two is dedicated to storytelling. Participants are given time to reflect on their life journey and the events that have caused them pain and create a drawing of this map. They then have time to share their personal experiences in small, facilitated groups with an emphasis on safety, respect, and confidentiality. There is also time for quiet personal reflection and integration. The evening of the second day is set aside to allow participants time to relax together. On the third and final day the group now shares experiences, common themes and lessons learned. The workshop closes after lunch with activities designed to help the veteran release the painful experiences and to celebrate the future. The first step has been taken on the rest of the journey and it is now time to look to the future.

 

 

The workshop is provided free to veterans. It can be conducted for groups as small as 8 and as large as 25 participants.

 

 

 

Healing of Memory Workshop for Arizona Veterans

 

Mike Wold, a veteran from Minnesota, is active in supporting military personnel, their families and veterans in Minnesota as a member of the Beyond the Yellow Ribbon committee in his city and as the leader of the Military Service Support Ministry in his church. He also is a strong supporter of the Healing of Memories Workshop for veterans in Minnesota and has participated in the workshop himself. Mike divides his time about evenly between Minnesota and Arizona and has been getting involved in support for Arizona veterans and military personnel. He is a member of the Outreach for Veterans and Military Families group at the Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale and has volunteered for veteran events in Arizona. He decided that would like to use his experience in Minnesota to help Arizona veterans who are struggling with internal stress due to their combat experiences by bringing the Healing of Memories Workshop to them in Arizona.

 

 

With the outstanding support of the Spirit in the Desert Retreat Center in Carefree, Mike has arranged for Father Lapsley to conduct the two day residential Healing of Memories Workshop for Veterans from 6pm Friday, October 18 to 2pm Sunday, October 20, 2013 at the Retreat center. He has enjoyed an outpouring of support from the good people and organizations in the Carefree/Cave Creek community including the Mayor of Carefree, the Cave Creek American Legion, the Carefree Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce, the local church pastors, the Foothills Caring Corps, the Carefree Kiwanis, the Desert Foothills Library and the Cave Creek YMCA in addition to the Arizona veteran community organizations such as the Arizona Coalition for Military Families, the Madison Street Veterans Association, and the National Guard Chaplains. Although there has been some generous financial underwriting by the Scottsdale based Homeowners Financial Group, a mortgage company that is committed to veterans and the larger community, in order for this workshop to take place free of charge to veterans Mike is seeking tax deductible donations to provide $500 tax deductible scholarships for veterans to attend the workshop for free. He is also working with veterans’ organizations and others with connections to veterans to recruit 24 veterans to attend the October workshop. For more information on registration and donations see the Spirit in the Desert website at http://www.spiritinthedesert.org/healing-of-memories

 

 

Submitted by Mike Wold

 

 

 

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."

Leo Buscaglia

 

 

 

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