Imagine You and Changing Tides partner for a Training

In partnership with Changing Tides Family Services in Eureka, California, Imagine You is launching training to support the long-term recovery from the Humboldt earthquakes. The training, specifically designed for disaster case managers/secondary responders, will provide the opportunity for participants to deepen their personal resilience, learn about ways to mitigate absorbing secondary trauma, and gain skills and tools to better serve disaster survivors on their road to recovery. This training for the Humboldt Earthquake Disaster Case Management has been generously funded by the Humboldt Area Foundation & Wild Rivers Community Foundation’s Disaster Response & Resilience Fund, and the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California and Episcopal Relief and Development Partnership. The Imagine You Team is honored to partner with Changing Tides and these funders in this effort.

Imagine You and the Disaster Cycle

Imagine You® is a training resource for disaster response, recovery, and preparedness. Since 2010 Imagine You® has trained a wide variety of organizations in Northern California, providing tools and skills that help individuals move toward living their best lives.

Second responders, disaster case managers, volunteers, social services providers, lay ministers, and healthcare staff are using Imagine You® to support and enhance their work and their own resilience. Funders of Imagine You trainings include: American Red Cross, Alliance Medical Center, Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County, Catholic Charities of California, North Valley Community Foundation, Kaiser Permanente Community Benefit, Child Parent Institute, and more. See our Partners and Collaborators.

GOALS AND OUTCOMES OF THE IMAGINE YOU® METHOD:

• Early rapport with clients to help them prioritize their disaster recovery.

• Reduced stress, especially in the recovery phase of the disaster cycle.

• Increased self-care capacity for service providers.

• Increased community resilience which impacts the social determinants of health.

WHO WE HAVE WORKED WITH:

• Second responders across all sectors

• Disaster case managers and others supporting long-term disaster recovery

• Professional volunteers

• Social services providers

• Lay Ministers

• Healthcare staff

PARTNERS AND FUNDERS

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

• Cynthia Calmenson, Executive Director – email, or call 707-582-2237

• Ellen Barnett, MD, PhD, Director of Outreach and Program Development – email

Imagine You launches statewide training in partnership with Catholic Charities of California - Disaster Case Management Program

This month Imagine You begins training a group of 60 Disaster Case Managers (DCM) from 18 disaster-impacted counties across the state. The training, which will run until July 2024, will equip the DCM teams with additional tools and skills to enhance their impact while helping disaster survivors move forward. The Imagine You tools are shared with disaster survivors, supporting their mental wellbeing, providing practical coping skills while facing adversity.   The training also provides skills designed to support the DCMs to boost their own resilience while working with traumatized communities and individuals. 

James Coble, Catholic Charities of CA Disaster Case Management Program Manager commented about his previous training session:  

“… by using all the tools that are available to us now, it has helped us create relationships with our survivors and each other at a faster pace  than I could have possibly hoped for. “

For more information on bringing Imagine You to your team, please reach out to cynthiac@imcfound.org.

Imagine You hosts Aliados Staff Health Retreat

Imagine You provided 40 staff members of Aliados  Health with a culturally relevant self-care/self-reflection workshop to teach resilience, help participants set and maintain wellness goals, reduce burnout, and mitigate the vicarious trauma they may absorb on the job. The workshop was broken into two parts; one focused on teaching the staff how to better support their clients, and the second portion focused on arming the staff with tools to handle the vicarious trauma they experience working with this particular clientele. 

Participants came away with an image of wellbeing they created and most reported a positive experience in the workshop. Imagine You provides staff wellbeing classes and workshops to prevent burnout and overwhelm. Please reach out to find out more information about these opportunities and email info@imcfound.org.

Imagine You would like to thank Aliados Health for their contribution.

Napa Promotores Team Receives Spanish Imagine You Training

Imagine You provided part one of the all-Spanish Imagine You Training for Community Resilience to a group of 27 Promotoras working in Napa Valley, California. The training provided participants with skills that help them more effectively offer client support and utilize skillful ways to move clients forward. It also provided tools to boost the Promotoras’ own resilience, reduce burnout, and mitigate the vicarious trauma and chronic stress they experience. The Promotoras who participated in part one of the Imagine You Napa series are the trusted messengers in the BIPOC Napa Valley communities they serve. They report being able to immediately apply the Imagine You skills and tools with the community members they serve in housing programs, health education, parenting classes, and many other programs and initiatives.
Promotoras who participated represent the following: Napa Valley Community Housing, The Neighborhood Initiative, Napa County Recovery Center, Puertas Abiertas Napa, Parents Can, Providence Queen of the Valley Hospital, Shearer Family Resource Center, Parent University, Silverado Farming, Child Start, and Vision y Compromiso.

Imagine You is grateful for the partnership and in-kind support from Napa Valley Community Housing.

“Open Hands” self-reflection for mental health graphic created by one participant at the training

Participant quotes:

“This training gave me resources at hand to remember and review. I have learned how to share these resources with more people.”

“I will start up healthier habits because this training has helped me become more self aware with my actions/habits and how they affect me.”

“This training helped me to be able to listen to others, and to have the compassion to let go of my agenda.”

Imagine You would like to thank Kaiser Permanente Community Benefit Napa/Solano for making this project possible.

Promotores Outreach Team Receives Spanish Imagine You Training

In December 2022, wildfires were a constant threat, and the role of secondary responders were crucial yet underrepresented. During the aftermath of the devastating Camp Fire, marginalized members of the Latine community found themselves in extreme circumstances, and needed help. Responders, like the NVCSS Promotores Outreach Team were the crucial linkage to fire recovery services for the Latine community affected by the Camp Fire.

These Promotores assist in translation, advocacy, trauma-informed support services for those fire survivors. Continuing to provide this  support had taken a toll on the mental health and wellbeing of the Promotores and others serving to help Latine community members recover. Facing immigration trauma, loss of identity, loss of family structure, as well as other coping challenges of these Camp Fire survivors left the responders looking for guidance and assistance. 

This is where Imagine You stepped in, and provided an all-Spanish Imagine You Training to build the skills and foster the resilience of these Promotores. The Promotores learned how to best utilize Imagine You tolls, boosting their own resilience and reducing the suffering of the Latine Camp Fire survivors. The 19 participants in this training came from Northern Valley Catholic Social Services, Butte County Behavioral Health, Sutter County Behavioral Health, and Modoc County Behavioral Health. 

Here is a quote from participant Norma S. Lacy, Assistant Director of Community-Based Programs, Northern Valley Catholic Social Services:

“Mental health is still stigmatized in the Latine community. Immigration trauma already causes a complete loss of identity and familiarity in families. Furthermore, immigrants are left without the proper tools or resources to help them cope with new environments that transition leaves deep scars. In addition, the layered impact of the Camp Fire and  COVID-19 pandemic has created a much-needed dialogue within the community expressing the need for mental health support services. However, many survivors continue to suffer in silence due to being uninsured, a shortage of Spanish-speaking counselors, and fear of Public Charges or information sharing if they utilize low-cost services. Creating trauma-informed, mental health and wellbeing skills will offer Latine Camp Fire survivors the ability to thrive as they continue to navigate their recovery process after their many losses.”

 Imagine You would like to thank the generous support from North Valley Community Foundation’s Butte Strong Fund:

Promotores Serving Sonoma County Receive Imagine You Training

Imagine You created a Resilience and Skills Training for Community Health Workers, Promotores, Case Managers, Enrollment Counselors, and Resource Referral Specialists working in Sonoma County. The goal was to help enable participants to better connect and support their patients/clients, while empowering them to self-advocate and discover inner strength along their respective health journeys. As typical of any Imagine You training, the course provided participants with stress relieving tools, skills working with patients and the healthcare team, and how to relate all this information back to their own personal values and strengths. Here are some sentiments from two of the 24 participants:

“ I liked the way the training was presented with respect and empathy.”

“I have and plan to incorporate them as a Community Health Worker, especially when it comes to supporting clients in a work environment, but also within myself when I feel overwhelmed and stressed. I really enjoyed learning the S.T.O.P.P. Technique and the handouts we were given helped me understand the benefits and how their implementation can help in further instances of crisis or emotional support.”

This training featured Imagine You trainer Claudia Leiva, and founder Ellen Barnett, MD, PhD in English, featuring materials in English and Spanish.

Imagine You thanks the founders who made this possible:

Imagine You at the Disaster Preparedness Fair

Imagine You participated in the Be Disaster Ready Expo, hosted by the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California. A family friendly free event for churches and community members to learn to be ready when disasters strike. Sponsored by the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California, and presented by St. John’s Church in Roseville, this featured helpful training, displays, and resources to help prepare for disasters.

Imagine You Trains Caldor Fire Second Responders

Due to the generous funding provided by El Dorado Federated Church, Marshall Foundation for Community Health, and the West Slope Foundation, Imagine You was invited to train over 27 participants from the Salvation Army, West Slope Foundation, and El Dorado County Library Hub Navigators. Having survived the Caldor fires only 18 months ago, and often battling the global traumas of the past few years, the Caldor Fire Long-term Recovery Group leadership realized their team has been burdened by the emotional toll of disaster recovery work. CLTRG reached out to Imagine You for help. In moving through the Imagine You training, CLTRG members were able to develop skills to mitigate secondary trauma and prevent burnout -very common in disaster recovery situations. 

Participant feedback:

“My team is helping  community members navigate their recovery. Our team’s personal resilience is stretched thin. They are benefiting from Imagine You  training and support to address the toll taken by the Caldor Fire, as well as build their capacity for future potential events.”

Imagine You appreciates the generous support for this training from the flowing funders:

Dr. Ellen Barnett is Interviewed by the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County

The Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma interviewed Dr. Ellen Barnett about the Imagine You  Spanish language program created to assist and encourage investment in mental health among the Latine and Indigenous communities. Since the 2017 wildfires and the pandemic onset in early 2020, staff and volunteers of organizations serving the Latine community in Sonoma County have been experiencing burnout and compassion fatigue. Local mental and behavioral health resources are stretched thin and are unable to meet the increasing demand for local staff support and retention, so Imagine You  stepped in to fill the void.  The Imagine You training aims to protect and enhance these community assets by boosting their resilience, increasing their capacity, and mitigating the vicarious trauma they absorb. Thanks to the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County’s generous funding, over 40 spanish-speaking staff were trained in the Imagine You Modules and can better assist their communities in times of trauma.

Please click here to read the full article

All spanish Imagine You training in Healdsburg

"The Imagine You training is effective in its simple approach that centers each of our own unique sense of well-being. The Spanish language Imagine You program meets a critical need to invest in mental health supports that recognize cultural wealth. The bilingual, bicultural facilitators put power in the hands of the Latinx and Indigenous Promotora CHWs who in turn reaffirm that power in their clients. Thank you for the good reminder that we have the power to feel better!”

- Jocelyn Boreta, The Botanical Bus

“I have used the tools for me, it helps me a lot to manage my stress, and it also helps me to provide a better service to our clinic clients because it helps me clarify my mind so I can be more present, calmer for our clients.”

- Promotora de salud

Reflections from a Disaster Relief Team Leader

James Coble, the manager of Disaster Relief services for Catholic Charities of Fresno, shares his experiences learning the Imagine You Curriculum and how it’s helped his team of disaster case managers. James Coble and his team recently completed the 10 module Imagine You Curriculum. Watch his testimonial below:

James shares his experiences leading a wildfire relief team

If you are interested in learning more about how Imagine You can help your team, please contact info@imcfound.org

La Familia Sana Receives Imagine You Training

La Familia Sana Staff

The Imagine You Training was presented in Spanish to La Familia Sana staff as part of a pilot project supported by the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County.   La Familia staff serve their community in a variety of ways as promotores de salud, community organizers, hosts of educational events, and more. One La Familia Staff member said:

“I will be using the STOPP training for myself and also for clients when at work. Along with the small steps I think they are very valuable in moving forward in situations and life.”

Thank you La Familia Staff and the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County for allowing us to work with you!

Imagine You trains team of Disaster Case Managers in Plumas County

DCM Staff

Imagine You is partnering with Plumas Rural Services and Northern Valley Catholic Social Services to provide disaster resilience training to 22 staff members. Both organizations are helping fire survivors recover from the 2020 Dixie Fire that impacted Plumas, Butte, and Lassen counties. Some of the DCM’s are fire survivors themselves and have chosen disaster case management as a way to serve their community in long term disaster recovery. We thank training participants from Plumas Rural Services and Northern Valley Catholic Social Services for their wonderful work within their communities and for allowing us to work with them in developing self resilience and skills for working with their clients. Support for this training was provided by the North Valley Community Foundation and Almanor Foundation, in collaboration with the Dixie Fire Funders Roundtable.

Imagine You Receives Grant Funding from North Valley Community Foundation and Almanor Foundation

The Imagine You Project received new grant funding. The grant was awarded by the North Valley Community Foundation and Almanor Foundation, in collaboration with the Dixie Fire Funders Roundtable. It will support the Imagine You Training for Community and Second Responder Resilience. 

As wildfires become more common, the role of secondary responders has emerged as crucial in helping communities rebuild. Late last summer the Dixie Fire burned through five counties decimating the towns of Greenville, Canyondam, and Warner Valley.  Since then, second responders from several agencies have been on the job to help fire survivors cope with their losses and navigate the maze of difficult decisions that make up the recovery process. This work has inevitably taken a toll on their mental and physical wellbeing. 

In response, a group of committed funders have come together to support The Integrative Medical Clinic Foundation and its Imagine You Project to provide training to build the skills and foster the resilience of second responders and disaster case managers helping survivors of the devastating Dixie Wildfire. 

"We know from experience after several years of wildfires that secondary, lasting emotional trauma is both pronounced and often unaddressed," said Kim DuFour, program officer at North Valley Community Foundation. "The Imagine You Training is exactly the type of support our second responders need and often cannot get. We appreciate the Integrative Medical Clinic Foundation for focusing on this important program. We need to care for one another. That includes fire survivors and the people caring for them."

Kim Dufour, Program Officer, North Valley Community Foundation

Since 2017, over 175 disaster case managers and second responders across the state have been trained through the Imagine You training. The training is trauma-informed and designed to provide much needed wellbeing skills and tools to mitigate the effects of the secondary trauma these staff have been exposed to. The training also provides staff with additional skills and tools that support their work with fire survivors, helping them prioritize goals, focus on what matters most, and strengthen their resilience for the long road ahead.

Imagine You Receives Grant from Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County

Thanks to a generous grant from the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County, we will be able to build out our Imagine You Resilience Skills curriculum in Spanish. The process will involve two northern Sonoma County partner organizations to make sure the content, concepts, and delivery are truly culturally responsive. Imagine You is proud to announce our first partner in this project, La Familia Sana. We are excited the La Familia team will be contributing to the much needed adaptation of our curriculum. We look forward to announcing our next partner soon. Since the 2017 wildfires and the pandemic onset in early 2020, local mental and behavioral health resources are stretched thin and are unable to meet the increasing demand for local staff support and retention, as staff and volunteers of organizations serving the Latino community in Sonoma County have experienced tremendous burnout and compassion fatigue. The Imagine You training aims to protect and enhance these community assets by boosting their resilience, increasing their capacity, and mitigating the vicarious trauma they absorb.

“We are thrilled and grateful to receive this endorsement of the work we are doing in the community,” said IMCF Executive Director Cynthia Calmenson. “While many disaster case workers, home caregivers, Promotores, early learning providers, and other staff serving our Latino community are bilingual, presenting the Imagine You curriculum in Spanish relieves them of the additional burden of code-switching when working with clients.”

“This is critical work being done at a critical time” said Healthcare Foundation Executive Director Kim Bender. “These organizations [we are supporting] are making an outsized contribution to the mental health of our region and particularly for our most vulnerable residents. We could not be more proud to support their efforts.”

Imagine You Provides Training to First 5 Sonoma Early Learning Providers

Imagine You was happy to partner with First 5 Sonoma to provide two trainings in Spanish to a wonderful group of First 5 Early Learning Providers. Participants consisted of staff from state preschools, Head Start, Child Care Homes, and Child Playgroups. Participants reported satisfaction with the training objectives, with all providers saying that they were likely to recommend the workshop to others. One participant reported that “This truly made us think and take time for ourselves, since we are always prioritizing our families and our work above all.” First 5 Sonoma also provided Imagine You with a great infographic depicting program participants and findings. Thank you First 5 Sonoma County for your participation and partnership!

Imagine You Provides Training to Staff from Via Esperanza

Imagine You partnered with Via Esperanza, a program of the Sonoma County Community Action Partnership, to provide resilience training to 12 staff members. This training was conducted in Spanish by trainer Claudia Leiva and consisted of 6 hours of interactive skills sessions. The focus of the training was to boost the participants’ personal resilience and provide them with skills to share with their clients to adapt and respond to change. Participants reported that they appreciated the use of small tools to manage stress and hope to incorporate their knowledge into their daily work.

One participant remarked that “I loved all the techniques. They have helped me realize that I have to think about myself before everyone else. If I’m ok, people around me are going to be ok.” Thank you to all Via Esperanza staff for participating in our training!

Imagine You Provides Disaster Case Workers with Support

We are thankful for the opportunity to provide Imagine You training support to disaster case workers working with fire survivors in various areas of Northern California. In the past couple months, we have worked with staff from Northern Valley Catholic Social Services in Redding to provide 10 Imagine You support modules to their staff. In addition, we recently completed 10 modules of training in partnership with Catholic Charities of Fresno County. Participants in the Catholic Charities of Fresno County cohort reported that the training provided excellent tools to incorporate into their personal life as well as their interactions with client. One participant from the Fresno cohort reported “I think these tools are universal skills that can benefit someone regardless of their employment or impact from a disaster”. We are appreciative of the opportunity to expand our tools to new regions of California and thank all of our participants for their kind words, attention, and support.

Imagine You Supported by Butte Strong Fund

Imagine You is thankful for the generous support provided by North Valley Community Foundation and the Butte Strong Fund to improve upon our Imagine You curriculum and provide training to 40 disaster case managers, crisis workers, and other secondary support providers involved in Camp Fire relief efforts. 

North Valley Community Foundation has provided consistent and compassionate support to promote the rebuilding and revitalization of communities in the North Valley region affected by disaster. The Butte Strong Fund was created in partnership with Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and the Aaron Rodgers NorCal Fire Recovery Fund to provide long-term recovery to those impacted by the Camp Fire. 

Through grant support provided by the Butte Strong Fund of North Valley Community Foundation, Imagine You was able to build the capacity of the Imagine You Project to deliver online live training to staff and volunteers of community-based organizations offering Disaster Cycle support across Butte County. In this endeavor, Imagine You succeeded in codifying a curriculum of 10 modules to promote disaster resilience and facilitate client wellbeing. These materials were adapted in English and Spanish and tested by a group of 10 individuals,who provided invaluable feedback about the effectiveness of the modules. 

In addition to expanding the breadth of Imagine You curriculum, Imagine You was able to provide 10 modules of Imagine You training to 2 cohorts of 20 people each. Participants in the training session included disaster case managers, Crisis Outreach Workers from 211.org, and clergy members actively serving those affected by the Camp Fire. 

Overall, participants enjoyed the Imagine You training modules and found them helpful to building resilience in the face of disaster. In fact, 83% of training participants reported that they were likely to incorporate lessons learned from the training into work with their clients, and all participants reported good, very good, or excellent wellbeing post training. Kristy Collins, Hillel Director for CSU Chico and Imagine You training participant, reported that “I found the Imagine You training to be very beneficial for both my professional and personal life. The tools are simple enough to build my confidence as a guide and meaningful to use for an array of clients.”

Imagine You is immensely appreciative of North Valley Community Foundation, The Butte Strong Fund, and training participants for their support of Camp Fire survivors. Development and implementation of the Imagine You curriculum would not have been possible without their support and feedback. Moving forward, Imagine You is excited to continue partnering with community organizations to provide resources to communities affected by disaster. If your organization is interested in partnering with Imagine You, please reach out to Executive Director Cynthia Calmenson at cynthiac@imcfound.org.

Helping the Helpers

For ten years, the non-profit Integrative Medical Clinic Foundation has been building sustainable capacity in both individuals and our community by teaching our person-centered Imagine You® approach to diverse underserved populations—foster youth, homeless shelter workers, Latinx parents, and others.

Disaster challenges the capacities of everyone touched by it, whether as a survivor, a helper, or a community member. The Imagine You process taps peoples’ innate capacity for self-determination and increases their capacity to respond to a disaster’s demands and deal with personal trauma. Both second responders and survivors benefit as they progress through the cycle of response, recovery, and preparation.