Talia Levanon, director of the Israel Trauma Coalition, which deals mostly with the effects of rocket attacks on civilian areas, will brief community and faith leaders, first responders and social workers here on how to alleviate the suffering caused by Hurricane Sandy.
The session will take place Thursday, Nov. 15, from 12 p.m.-2 p.m. at UJA-Federation headquarters in Midtown. It's sponsored by the Jewish Community Relations Council, UJA-Federation of New York and New York's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Representing New York City will be Ali Geith of the Health Department's Disaster Preparedness and Response unit.
"We are doing this as part of a very comprehensive and complex response to the horrific impact of Sandy," said Rabbi Bob Kaplan, director of intergroup relations at JCRC. "We expect this program to begin the process of healing with the later stages of needing to address as a community and as institutions our resiliency and the many mental health issues that wil be a result of the trauma imparted on our communities by the storm."
He noted that Levanon has been involved in treating trauma not only in Israel but in Haiti after a deadly earthquake in 2010 and Sri Lanka after the 2005 tsunami disaster. "She has developed a deep level of expertize and understanding of the issue of resilience and trauma following natural and manmade disasters," Rabbi Kaplan said.
For more information about the program call Ariel Ennis at ennisa@jcrcny.org or 212-983-4800 ext. 157.
The Israel Trauma Coalition was founded in 2006 under the auspices of UJA-Federation.
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