Local organizations host Trauma-Informed Church Training

A new training event coming to Erwin this month aims to better equip churches and community members to support those struggling with addiction, mental health issues and trauma.The Trauma-Informed Church Training will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 19, at Centenary United Methodist Church, 203 N. Elm Ave., Erwin. The event is open to the public and hosted by Uplift Appalachia in partnership with Unicoi County Care & Share.Ben Booher, director of Care & Share and a local community leader involved with the Unicoi County Ministerial Association, said the training is designed for people who are looking to serve populations that have experienced trauma."We understand that trauma is something that everybody has dealt with in some capacity, some more so than others," Booher said. "Whether your parents have been divorced or whether you lost your home in the flood or you've been homeless or substance abuse has been in your life, these kinds of things, these are all different levels of trauma. This training is for anyone who is regularly interacting with those populations who've been traumatized."While initially tailored to churches, organizers emphasize the training's relevance for anyone who regularly interacts with vulnerable populations.Tanner Clements, executive director of Uplift Appalachia and a former pastor, will lead the session along with his mother, Angie Clements, a psychology professor at East Tennessee State University."We're trying to motivate and equip churches to help people that are in addiction or recovery because we really think that having human connection is going to be the big thing that's going to help people really have their lives changed in a really meaningful way," Clements said. "We think a lot of that starts with just understanding the place where people come from."The training is based on trauma-informed principles aligned with both scientific research and scripture. It will cover adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), behavioral impacts of trauma and practical strategies for churches and organizations to help individuals, according to Clements."We use a lot of the same language that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration uses, because we think that that's the language that a lot of people in the clinical world and in the recovery space are using already,"Clements noted. "Many of the same words describe what we think an ideal church is going to look like. It's going to look like a church that realizes that there's trauma in people's lives, whether or not they've said it out loud or whether or not they even realize it's there. They realize that it's there and they learn to kind of recognize those symptoms so that they can respond appropriately."Clements shared a personal example that underscores the training's impact. When planting a church in Johnson City, unresolved issues from members' past church experiences created tensions, according to Clements. Learning trauma-informed principles years later helped him realize those tensions were often rooted in unspoken wounds."That was able to kind of mend some broken fences in a way that really helped us reconnect on a little bit more individual level," he said.Booher echoed the importance of recognizing trauma signs."There was this little girl in my daughter's class that was friendly and wanted to hold my hand and wanted me to carry her," he said of a school field trip. "My reaction was just 'what a sweet little girl,' but my wife is a social worker. She said that's actually a cause for concern, and that overly friendly behavior (lack of boundaries) was a sign of sexual abuse."These stories illustrate the need for education among those working directly with vulnerable populations, according to Clements and Booher."We're kind of on the ground with these people trying to serve them," Booher said. "This is not my field of expertise, and yet we want to understand how to better maintain and service a relationship with these people."One barrier the training aims to dismantle is the misconception that trauma, addiction and mental health issues don't exist within church communities."There's a lot of churches that think 'we're kind of isolated from that,'" said Clements. "Even if you don't think you struggle with that, you are connected directly with at least one person who does."Booher tied this into theology."In church circles, we're used to using the term sin," he said. "And as I've been going through this education myself, I'm seeing a lot of overlap between what a church would say is sin and what the clinical world would say is trauma. Whether you have sinned yourself or have been sinned against, there are levels of relationship breakdown associated with that."Organizers say the training is just the beginning, and resources after the training will be available."We have five or six different trainings that we like to offer," said Clements. "We also like to continue to coach afterwards and to consult and answer questions. We even meet specifically with people who want to get started and say, 'what can this look like specifically for you.'"For those wondering how to get involved, Clements said the training meets people where they are."You'll be prepared to be a better co-worker or just be a better church member, and we can connect people with other organizations who need that human connection."Booher said the idea for the Erwin training arose in part from recent community trauma."The first thing that had us thinking about this was the community-wide trauma we suffered from the flood," Booher said. Combined with rising awareness of homelessness and substance abuse in Unicoi County, Booher said the need became clear. "Everybody's been traumatized to some extent. How do we respond to this meaningfully?"At the core, organizers hope the event will spark lasting change in how churches relate to those most in need of compassion."I'm hopeful that it creates a more open and welcoming Christian community within Unicoi County," Booher said. "It is just a monumental task to get traumatized individuals to walk through the doors of a church."He added, "We want to be able to provide specific services to people, to help them get jobs, find housing, and help them receive services. It's helping people get through some of the struggles that they have as a result of their trauma."To register or learn more, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/trauma-informed-church-training-tickets-1392583026319?aff=oddtdtcreator