Community Healing Resource Network offers support, resources to Boston residents after traumatic incidents
When Boston Mayor Michelle Wu addressed reporters about the death of a five-year old boy who was hit by a bus and killed in Hyde Park, her voice shook with emotion. Expressing sympathy for the boy's family and his community, she assured residents that the city's Community Healing Resource Network would be available to anyone who needed help to process the trauma.
CHRC, which operates under the Boston Public Health Commission, involves hospitals, health care providers, faith leaders, community groups, and the responders themselves; roughly 30 people who live in the city and undergo training to provide emotional support and (with CPR and Stop The Bleed training) assistance during medical emergencies. Most often, they respond to incidents of gun violence but also report to crime scenes and deadly accidents when the victims are 18 and younger. "Sometimes people just need you to be there," explains CHRC Director Donald Osgood. "This work for me is very important."
"Psychological first aid"
Osgood grew up in Boston. A father and grandfather, his first "psychological first aid" training came when he decided to volunteer. He mentions, good-naturedly, "I was a knucklehead when I was a young fellow."
Osgood knows how it feels to survive violent crime. He was stabbed twice in the late 1980's (in one attack, he was stabbed multiple times) and was shot in 1990. Eventually, he transformed his life into one of advocacy and purpose. "I wanted to give back," he explains.
He has been working in violence prevention in Boston for the past 20 years. "My God-given gift is to be present for people during these times," he says when asked about his work at CHRC. "It's rewarding and sad at the same time because we're meeting people when something crazy has taken place in their lives."
Osgood says that he leans on his faith and his therapist. He is glad that the stigma around mental health is changing. "None of the things I do were around when I was young... Back then there was no thought to it. We didn't talk about trauma." He and the team of responders offer what wasn't available when he was a young man. "There was nothing in place, so I went through all those different emotions myself," he explained.
Building relationships in the neighborhoods
Osgood says that because responders live in the neighborhoods they serve, people are often more willing to trust them and open up. Relationships matter. It's not unusual for him--or another network responder--to receive a call from a community member about an incident even before Boston Police reach out to the network.
When responders arrive, they make themselves available to people who may need basic items like water or tissues. They watch and listen. They help people in heightened states of anxiety begin to calm down. They offer support at the scene and, sometimes, weeks or months after the incident. Osgood says it is not unusual for a family member to brush off help in the hours immediately after a traumatic event, only to decide it's necessary later. Days, weeks, or even months later, he says, the network responders are there to help. The goal, whenever someone calls, is to connect them with resources that foster healing.
Marilyn Forman, a leader in two community associations who also serves as the Director of Community Organizing and Resident Engagement at Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation partners with CHRC. She says it is a critical, much-appreciated resource when people are hurting. "They're compassionate because they're from the neighborhood," Forman said. "They understand the grief and what you're going through. And part of your healing is about connecting and talking."
"They never leave you"
When an entire neighborhood is processing the same grief, talking with someone who is trained to assist can be especially valuable. "You have your family. You have your friends. But they're going through it too. So when the response team shows up, they're trained to be that ear and to listen to how people are feeling..to offer the different supports and resources to help people. And they never leave you. That's what makes the biggest difference."
Osgood says, in Hyde Park, CHRC will work with the neighborhood association when the time is right to put together "healing circles" for the community. Asked what feels most gratifying in his work, he looks out at families playing in the South End's Titus Sparrow Park. "Seeing kids smile. Seeing a mom who may have gone through something heavy walk away--at least with a smile on her face knowing that it doesn't feel good today, but we're going to get through it," Osgood said. "And we have people working with us to help us get through it."
Support is available to ALL residents who feel affected by community violence. You can access services by calling the support line at 617-431-0125. You can also reach out to the Community Healing and Response Network neighborhood teams directly. All services are free and confidential.
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