RESPITE Conference 2019

About the Conference

Join us at the annual RESPITE // Building a Trauma-informed Community Conference.

Learn more about the impacts of trauma through an informative and interactive day of training with education, resources, and tools that will equip you and your environment to serve the most vulnerable among us. The day will include main sessions, tailored breakouts, and community connections that will provide opportunities to discover the most effective and impactful ways to combat and overcome the harm of trauma and adverse childhood experiences. This event will supercharge you and your staff, ministry teams, and caregivers with both the knowledge, resources, and tools as you serve!

Tickets

• Individual Tickets - $40 (early bird price of $30 through July 31, 2019)
• Small-Group Ticket Packs (5, 10, or 15 in your group) - $5 off each ticket
• Large-Group Tickets (16 or more in your group) - $5 off each ticket + a free Resiliency workshop kit for your group/organization ($50 value)
• Scholarship/Volunteer Tickets are available.

Ticket prices include admission, conference materials, meals and snacks, and participation in the screening of RESILIENCE at the conclusion of the evening.

Main Session Topics Include:

• Understanding ACEs and the role of Resilience
• The Prevalence and Impact of Trauma
• An overview of Trust-Based Relational Interventions (TBRI)
• How to Build a Trauma-Informed Environment
• How to Sustain Trauma-Informed Care
• A screening of the film RESILIENCE

Breakout sessions (Select One from Each)

Session #1

• Self-Care 
• Resiliency

Session #2

• Help That Actually Helps - Caring for individuals and families who have suffered from trauma is a huge undertaking. In this session, we will talk about caring for the caregiver and the importance of developing care communities (ideal for agency workers, social workers, and human services workers, ministry workers and those interested in becoming a care community member).
• Theological Implications of Trauma and Trauma-Informed Ministry - How might the church minister more effectively to those quietly suffering in their churches and communities due to the present difficulties resulting from past traumatic experiences? How can the leaders ensure they are not re-traumatizing those who have experienced trauma? What are the theological implications of trauma? Come explore and discuss these important questions to become Trauma-Informed Ministers (ideal for ministry workers and pastoral staff).
  
• What Does a Trauma-Informed Environment Really Take? - With "on-the-ground" insight from members of OC United's THRIVE program, hear about the hits and misses of applying Trauma-Informed practices and TBRI principles in the up-close and personal environment of our foster and at-risk youth houses. Our panel will share insight and honest experiences to help equip you in yours (ideal for anyone who wants to understand the practical application of Trauma-Informed Principles).
  
• Caring for Children from Hard Places - Learn about the ins-and-outs of caring for children with unique histories and gain a greater understanding of the caregiver's role in helping children heal. Participants will also explore how their histories interact with their children's histories and the importance of staying connected on the path towards healing (ideal for parents and caregivers).
• Building Self-Healing Communities - Learn how communities are coming together to target Adverse Childhood Experiences. Attendees will learn The Community Capacity Building Model: a process that helps communities change key areas of concern and its capacity to improve itself in other ways, as well as skills that characterize resilience in communities affected by trauma (ideal for community organizers, community partners and leaders, and advocates).
• Building Connection through Culture - At its heart, being trauma-informed requires us to also be culture-informed. Our capacity to understand trauma, and its effects, is limited if our lens and the way we view others is one-dimensional. Let's go beyond being sensitive to someone's ethnic culture, and become more aware of all aspects of culture. We all value being known and seen as more than what meets the eye, but how do we get there? If we want to truly understand another's story, we must start with culture.
• Compassion Fatigue - Compassion fatigue (also known as secondary or vicarious trauma) can mimic PTSD symptoms, including emotional and physical distress related to reminders of trauma, as well as difficulty sleeping. Without attending to our own needs, we risk losing empathy and our ability to effectively continue this journey. Learn the signs of compassion fatigue and ways to combat its effects (ideal for caregivers and anyone in a helping profession).

Session #3

• Healthcare & Helping Professions
• Education & Childcare Workers
• Ministry Workers
• Agency & Social Workers
• Parents & Caregivers
• Non-Profit Team Members
• Law Enforcement & Government
• Social Justice & Community Advocates