For more information, contact Susan Griffith, 216-368-1004 or sbg4@po.cwru.edu.

Posted 11-15-01

CLEVELAND -- In the aftermath of the Adelbert Hall fire in 1991, some 60 CWRU employees responded to offers of help to overcome the trauma of the loss. Donald Freedheim from the Department of Psychology met with the staff who worked in Adelbert.

"Strong psychological consequences result from losing one's personal possessions and office and in groups and individually. I tried to help with the loss," says Freedheim.

This was one of his first acts as the volunteer founder and first chair of the Disaster Services Mental Health Committee at the Red Cross.

The local Red Cross recently honored Freedheim, professor emeritus of psychology and founding director of CWRU's Schubert Center for Child Development, with the Vega Award. Also honored was Lisa Roth, who has co-chaired the Red Cross committee with Freedheim since 1996.

The Red Cross presents the Vega Award annually to groups or individuals that have performed outstanding service for the Red Cross in the Northern Ohio Region. The award derives its name from one of the brightest stars in the galaxy, and the Red Cross says that the honorees are "the brightest stars in our own Red Cross galaxy."

Freedheim began his Red Cross volunteer activities by answering to call for mental health volunteers to help with the anticipated notification of families of losses during the Gulf War.

"The losses never became a reality, but I decided to stay and work with the organization to develop a mental health response team to meet the mental health needs in times of crises or disasters," says Freedhiem.

The committee of volunteer licensed social workers, psychologist, and psychiatrist provides emotional counseling for victims of natural or accidental disasters around the clock, 365 days a year. The U.S. Air crash in New York City, a boat explosion in the Flats, hurricanes, the Oklahoma City bombing, and other disasters would follow.

Linda DelMonico, director of the Red Cross Emergency Services, commended Freedheim and Roth during the October 9 recognition program. "They have successfully built the capacity of this committee through targeted recruitment, ongoing training, and engaging retention strategies as well as serving as exemplary professional role models."

Freedheim says the Mental Health Committee has 40 trained mental health workers available to respond to a local tragic event or major disaster. Twelve members of the team are trained for national assignments and have participated in responses to floods, hurricanes, and recently the World Trade Center attack.

One of their major responsibilities has been to organize a response plan to aviation disasters. The Federal Aviation Family Assistance Act delegates the responsibilities of mental health counseling for families of victims, survivors, and rescue workers to the Red Cross.

DelMonico says that over the past four years, the chairs of the Mental Health Committee had met with airport and airline officials and managers at Cleveland Hopkins Airport and the Red Cross staff to lay out a disaster plan. Freedheim and Roth have negotiated 25 agreements with mental health organizations and agencies to respond to a major local emergency. Most recently, the Mental Health Committee members received assistance from agency personnel in staffing a hotline which the Red Cross set up after the September attacks.

Freedheim says his work is difficult, but rewarding. "We often experience the stress others are suffering in traumatic situations, but it is helpful to know that your efforts are appreciated -- and we are told that time and time again," he says.