| AWB NEWS UPDATES Recent Volunteer-Run Disaster Relief Efforts June 23,2011
Joplin, Missouri Minneapolis, Minnesota Springfield, Massachusetts
Recent Tornado Damage in Joplin, Missouri Photo Credit: Melanie Rubin
Click HERE to go to the story about disaster relief in Joplin, MO.
Click HERE to go to the story about disaster relief in Minneapolis, MN. Click HERE to go to the story about disaster relief in Springfield, MA.
Click HERE to donate to AWB's Disaster Ready Fund so AWB can support and assist volunteer-run efforts like these immediately when they arise.
COMING SOON: Update on AWB's Return Trip to Haiti to Train Health Care Workers in Trauma Recovery Methods.
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| Disaster Relief in Joplin, Missouri Joplin Tornado Survivor after Ear Acupuncture Treatment Photo Credit: Ron Vickery On May 22, 2011 a tornado with winds of more than 200 miles per hour hit the town of Joplin, Missouri destroying everything in its path. More than 8,000 homes and apartments were destroyed, as well as 500 commercial properties. As of early June, 143 people had been reported killed by the tornado.
At the writing of this eblast, more than 7,000 Joplin-area residents had registered for assistance.
Immediately after the tornado, Springfield, Missouri-based acupuncturist Abba Anderson contacted Acupuncturists Without Borders (AWB) to ask whether an acupuncture relief effort was underway for Joplin. AWB responded by saying the organization would he happy to support her if she wanted to spearhead a relief effort. Since Abba had never received the AWB training in disaster relief, AWB agreed to do an abbreviated training in Missouri for Abba and other Missouri volunteers. AWB Managing Director Melanie Rubin traveled to Missouri and conducted a training for 13 Missouri acupuncturists and Acupuncture Detoxification Specialists, and then worked with Abba and her team to launch the relief effort.
 Joplin Tornado Survivors Receiving TreatmentPhoto Credit: Ron Vickery
Since that time Abba and the Missouri volunteers have treated close to 900 people in Joplin, mostly at the Salvation Army tent at 26th and Main, and at several other venues. They anticipate treating in Joplin until July 17, and expect to complete 1500 or more treatments.
Abba and AWB would like to thank and celebrate the volunteers as of this writing who hd so far taken time from their practices and their lives to be in Joplin: Renea Barrett LAc, Marianne Chalmers LAc, Rebecca Chrestman LAc, Thomas Duckworth LAc, Candace Faith Fruge, Jana Farrell ADS, Michael Finnell LAc, Stacy Flathers LAc, Maureen Fox LAc, Francesca Garcia Giri LAc, Jason Hackler LAc, Vinnie McKinney LAc, Daphne Moor LAc, Sage Norbury LAc, Peggy Older LAc, Beth Spangler LAc, Mary Wallis LAc, Nate Wax ADS, Ron Vickery ADS
We look forward to others joining them in the coming weeks.
AWB would particularly like to thank Abba Anderson who has dedicated a tremendous amount of time and energy to this effort.
Abba said: "This has been a crash course for me in many aspects of disaster relief work, but above all, in the beauty of our medicine. Imagine: We can feed a soul in a few minutes with five little needles in two ears. Wow. The most profound part of the experience for volunteers is simply being present to hear the stories, while also offering a treatment that can alleviate some of the suffering. Volunteer Sage Norbury LAc from Lees Summit, Missouri described treating a volunteer who she had seen eating lunch with a flat, shen-less look to his eyes. He was helping clear rubble, he told her. The first day he had found a foot; the second day, he found a body. After the needles, he said he felt better. The next say Sage saw him in the tent again- he was smiling and laughing with a friend, and told her that he'd really slept the night before for the first time since the tornado. Another woman who had been to six family funerals in one week said that when she was sitting in the tent with needles in her ears, she could forget that she was in the middle of a disaster area."
Click HERE for a TV News Story on the
Joplin Disaster Relief Efforts.
Click HERE to Donate to AWB's Disaster Ready Fund.
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 Disaster Relief in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis Tornado Survivor Receiving Ear Acupuncture Photo Credit: Croix Clayton
On Sunday, May 22, 2011 a tornado with winds of more than 135 miles per hour devastated a metropolitan neighborhood in North Minneapolis, Minnesota, killing one person, injuring dozens, and leaving more then 200 homes damaged or destroyed, and as many as 500 people without shelter.
Candyce Clayton D.O.T contacted Acupuncturists Without Borders (AWB) to ask for help organizing an acupuncture relief effort. Candyce had just received training from AWB in Chicago on May 14-15. AWB has supported Candyce's efforts by providing immediate guidance, important documentation, and information for potential volunteers.
Approximately 50 acupuncturists responded to the call for clinic staffing within 24 hours. However, the biggest challenge was finding a place to set up the mobile clinic. After ten days of intensive searching, Candyce was gifted a clinic space from the Center for Families (under the auspices of the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches). Her team then walked around the neighborhood handing out flyers, posted information on a post-tornado recovery website, arranged for a PSA on a local jazz station, and arranged to be interviewed by a local tv station for two evening broadcasts. In 9 days, Candyce's team treated a total of 70 patients, including neighborhood residents, community workers, and site staff. Each day their numbers grew, as clients returned, often with friends, family members, and co-workers in tow. They expect to provide services for several dozen more over the next few weeks, treating up to 20% of the community members who were displaced by the tornado.
Despite the difficulty in finding a location, the clinic became a powerful force in the lives of those in the community who came to be treated. They shared with the clinic staff the relief they felt after their treatments, and spread the news by word-of-mouth each day. Some had lost their homes - others were living in badly damaged structures but were unable to move out or were afraid to leave because their homes could not be locked up. Many suffered acute traumatic symptoms or reported symptoms of trauma in their children. Minneapolis Disaster Relief Team- Candyce Clayton (left), Shelley Sloan (center), Sara Erdman (right) Photo Credit: Croix Clayton
Candyce and AWB would especially like to acknowledge the tireless work of a few individuals who were the solid foundation of this effort: Shelley Sloan, Sara Erdman, Noah Frohlich, Lisa Simensen, and Sarah Sanford. Candyce would also like to thank the Center for Families in North Minneapolis, the American Academy of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and the College of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine at Northwestern Health Sciences University for donating supplies and space.
AWB would like to acknowledge Candyce Clayton for her leadership and dedication in getting the Minneapolis relief effort off the ground. Candyce said: "The wounds caused by this disaster are deep, and life is hard, especially in the inner city. Our generous clinic volunteers helped bring a little sunlight into the lives of people in this community by giving them relief and hope. The dedication of these Minnesota volunteers to continuing this work is inspiring, and motivates us all to keep moving forward with the next stage of clinic work in North Minneapolis. In closing, I would like to cite statements made by two of our clinic tornado victims: one said that after her treatment, she has finally been able to sleep for the first time since the tornado hit; another wrote that after the treatment, she felt as if a veil had been lifted and that she was free."
Click HERE for a link to a TV News Story about the Minneapolis Disaster Relief Clinic.
Click HERE to donate to AWB's Disaster Ready Fund. |
Disaster Relief in Springfield, Massachusetts Tornado Damage in Springfield, MA Photo Source: Reuters On June 1, 2011 a large tornado struck western Massachusetts causing major destruction in several communities, including the cities of Springfield and West Springfield. Four people lost their lives, 200 were reported injured, and over 250 people were in need of shelter.
Karen Adams an LAc, who previously volunteered with AWB in New Orleans, organized practitioners to provide acupuncture, as well as find sites for trauma treatment in the wake of the destruction. Many of the practitioners Karen has been working with have previously received training from AWB.
Nancy Petersen, a volunteer from Springfield who is not an acupuncturist, has been working very hard to get Karen's team into various sites. At the writing of this eblast the group has two sites up and running, and another soon to be launched. One current treatment location is a Salvation Army shelter in West Springfield, which is still housing about 80 people, many of them immigrants from Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, and Somalia. The Salvation Army has welcomed Karen's team, and encouraged them to provide treatments there. The other current treatment location is a parking lot located at the Disaster Assistance Center, which is hosted by the state employment assistance office, and is also being staffed by FEMA, MA-EMA and possibly the Red Cross.
Karen is also working with a local community center in the hardest hit area of Springfield - which happens to be one of the poorest areas to set up a regular, long-term, assistance site. The local Red Cross has asked Karen's team if they can treat Red Cross volunteers - a nice way to develop the relationship with that relief agency. AWB would like to recognize Karen for all her previous volunteer experience and current work in organizing a relief effort in the Springfield area.
Karen said: "I have a glimmer of an idea of what it was like to be Diana after Katrina, trying to create an organization while providing services (this time on a much smaller scale). AWB has helped me get the word out to those folks, and the New England School of Acupuncture is also spreading the word. It was hugely helpful to have served with AWB in New Orleans twice, not the least because that experience helps me believe that I can handle whatever comes up - and pass that belief (however illusory it may sometimes be) on to volunteers." |
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AWB would particularly like to thank Mayway, Blue Poppy, and all other corporate and individual donors who supported these relief efforts. Without them all of this work would not be possible.
We are very grateful to those that give resources upfront, allowing us to spend critical moments after a disaster supporting our members' emerging disaster relief efforts, instead of looking for resources to do the work.
Click HERE to Donate to AWB's Disaster Ready Fund so we can be ready to meet needs like those of Joplin, MO, Minneapolis, MN, and Springfield, MA when and where they occur.
Thank you for your interest, and your caring.
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SAVE THE DATE:
Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AOM) Day October 24th
Fundraising Event Information for AOM Day is Coming Soon!
Please contact Giselle Perez at programs@acuwithoutborders.org if you are interested in holding a fundraising event to benefit AWB on AOM day. |
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| In the Spirit of Service, AWB Staff
Diana Fried, Executive Director and Founder
Melanie Rubin, Managing Director
Jessica Truelove, Administrator
Giselle Pérez, Program Coordinator
Acupuncturists Without Borders |
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NADA is known both for its simplicity and its effectiveness. 5 small needles are placed in both ears on the acu-points of sympathetic, shen men(what's known as a spirit point or calming point), kidney, liver, and lung. These points help to return the body to a more peaceful state taking away the fight or flight response that often goes into over drive when a trauma has occurred. The point of this protocol is to treat as many people as possible, help restore hope, and most importantly prevent post traumatic stress disorder. I can't tell you how inspired I was to watch the videos of people affected by hurricane Katrina, as well as the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. A common theme from many testimonials was feeling calmer, sleeping better and a lot of smiles. 