UVALDE, Texas – The Uvalde Resiliency Center was established almost immediately following the horrific events that happened at Robb Elementary, being temporarily set up at the Uvalde County Fairplex.
Since then it has grown and evolved, and it now has nearly 30 counselors available at a time, serving 1,500 people so far this summer. The center is made up of several organizations, but is being led by the Ecumenical Center from San Antonio.
“Grief is a journey that takes us through time,” Mary Beth Fisk, executive director of the Ecumenical Center said.
Time. It’s what Fisk says it is going to take for the victim’s families of the Robb Elementary school massacre and, for the community to heal.
Grief is a unique journey for each individual, which is why since May 24 the Resiliency Center set up to begin counseling and assisting families impacted by the tragedy.
“We have licensed professionals who are trauma trained with many different approaches for music therapy, art therapy through EMDR, which is a specialized tool of technology we can use in working with those through trauma as well as alpha stems,” Fisk said. “So each of those methodologies has been deployed to validate is readily available for the families here.”
On top of counseling she said it’s important for those impacted to have a healthy routine like sleeping enough, eating well and exercising.
She urges parents to watch for signs of isolation in their children, and make sure they are talking to someone they can trust. Triggers can also spark fear and anxiety.
“A heightened sensitivity to two senses, to seeing or smelling even or all of our senses that may lend themselves to a past experience where it was a traumatic event,” Fisk said.
Children, however Fisk said, are more resilient than adults when it comes to healing from grief.
“They can revisit the sadness and the anxiety and then they can go play,” Fisk said. “And it’s important that they can find that different environment and they can smile. They can be excited. And that’s certainly healthy for children. And we as adults probably could learn from that.”
Most importantly, she says, it’s important for those impacted to find hope and joy again.
“It’s critically important that we can look into the future at some point and find our joy,” Fisk said. “Not losing hope in the process of healing. We know that with time, we know that with counseling services, there is a way to get to a healthier place.”
Fisk said some families still have not reached out for help and that is okay. She wants them to know that counseling services aren’t just available at the County Fairplex. She says there are some undisclosed locations for families who want more privacy, and counselors will also make house calls for some special cases.
Fisk has been driving to Uvalde every day from San Antonio since May 24. She said they are in the process of hiring a director for the Resiliency center in Uvalde full time.
Plans have already been made to build a new location that will be permanent in Uvalde to eventually move out of the County Fairplex.