Sarasota, FL – Caring for others can come with a price. People that witness trauma in the workplace, like first responders, medical professionals, teachers, and nonprofit employees, commonly report higher levels of burnout, stress, and demoralization—all factors that take tolls on the mind and body. The pandemic has alsoincreasingly impacted those on the frontline.
Resilient Retreat, an organization committed to helping those impacted by trauma and abuse, has recentlyreceived funding to ramp up its efforts in providing therapy and programs to help those at risk. Theorganization will hire an additional staff member to provide input on program development, increase trauma-informed training at workplaces, and organize a networkof more than 150 community volunteers.
“Employers now better understand the factors that lead to burnout and emotional exhaustion,” says LisaIntagliata, Executive Director of Resilient Retreat. “Led by certified trauma professionals, our free programs arehelping people heal from the impacts of stress andtrauma on their mind, body, and spirit.”
Thanks to $125,000 from Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, the grant will also fund a second phase ofResilient Retreat’s neurofeedback program, which will offer services to twenty first responders and healthcareprofessionals. This therapy is a leading treatment for reducing the symptoms of traumatic stress and candecrease anxiety, reduce substance abuse, and improve memory, concentration, and wellness.
“Those whose take care of our community deserve to be taken care of,” says Teri A Hansen, President|CEO of Barancik Foundation. “For too long the burden has been on the individual to help themself cope. Now these programs will help facilitate healing and reduce burnout.”
This past year has been unprecedented in terms of reframing trauma, and the number of people served byResilient Retreat has increased by 196%. Community surveys report that roughly half of firstresponders/helping professionals are experiencing compassion fatigue in our community, and 74.6% notedtheir job has been harder since COVID-19. This grant from Barancik Foundation will allow Resilient Retreat toreach and serve significantly more people who are in need of trauma care.
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About Resilient Retreat:
Resilient Retreat was founded in 2018 to empower survivors of abuse and those that experience trauma in the workplace, like first responders and helping professionals, to thrive through self-care and community. In October 2020, ResilientRetreat began construction on a new 84-acre retreat center at13010 Fruitville Road, Sarasota, FL 34240. Upon completion in 2022 Resilient Retreat will be able to further expand its capabilities and capacity to offer healing services to the community, including modalities like neurofeedback, yoga, meditation, massage, time in nature, gardening and support groups as well as enhancing self- care skills through workshops on healthy cooking, journaling, and otherbeneficial activities. In addition to the free and confidential day programs currently being offered, once retreatconstruction is complete, peaceful multi-day retreats focused on healing the entire person will be added to provideparticipants with the necessary tools to not only survive after trauma, but to thrive. For more information about theservices of Resilient Retreat, please visitwww.ResilientRetreat.org or call 941. 343.0039.
About Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation
The Charles and Margery Barancik family has long believed in the power of philanthropy to shape our world and enrich the lives of all people. It was the expression of this belief that led them in 2014 to establish Charles & Margery BarancikFoundation—a private, family foundation located in Sarasota, Florida. Barancik Foundation creates initiatives andawards grants in Sarasota and beyond in the areas of education, humanitarian causes, arts and culture, theenvironment, and medical research. For more information,visit www.barancikfoundation.org.