Arriving back in Zagreb, Croatia, following the critical incident de-briefing in Bosnia, I receive a request from an international aid organization. The US government’s Refugee Resettlement Program has made a number of places available, for rape victims who have fled Bosnia, to immigrate to the United States. I’ve been asked to go to a refugee center in Croatia to interview a family which has been identified as a possible candidate for this program. Time is of the essence for these refugees, as allocated places are filling quickly. Entering the counseling room at the refugee center, I meet Hab ..read more

Three weeks later, almost to the day from Nicole’s rape, Sharon and I arrive on Crete. We have long been planning the trip, never dreaming it would be in the aftermath of this horrible assault. The weeks have been rough for me, and there is massive relief in finally seeing my daughter. Sharon, who has been my best friend and occasional roommate for 15 years, has been a powerful support for me always, and particularly during this time. She loves Nicole as much as I do, so I never feel alone, and being with her on this trip provides much comfort. I couldn’t do it without her. Believe me. And th ..read more

From the moment of saying “yes” to Marianne and Irene, our trip to the war zone is set in motion. I hadn't envisioned a career path that would include international work, but the decision I make that day is life changing. Certainly I wouldn’t have guessed that, as a result of this “yes,” I would be spending the next decade living and working in the former Yugoslavia. And never could I have imagined to be blessed with the people I am to meet there. Five of us begin making plans for the journey. Marianne and Irene, decades long friends and colleagues, are joined by Tom, a psychologist with exper ..read more

I feel gratitude and relief. No need to get into a car with a total stranger. I’ll be with someone who is a local businessman. My backpack lightens a bit, and my tension and fatigue ease. Home is now a visible light at the end of the tunnel. I have time to use the restroom, drink a coke, and read a magazine, A few minutes after 10pm we are in his car heading towards Baltimore. He introduces himself as Larry. Though he doesn’t say much at first, he seems quite relaxed, whistling and humming along with the radio. He invites me to roll down my window and feel the fresh evening air. We’ve only bee ..read more

My decision to remain in Zagreb, Croatia in June 1993, following two separate three-week stints with my volunteer team, has proven to be a good one. Though my colleagues have left, I've made enough connections to secure a room to rent in a friend’s apartment. With some consulting work for humanitarian organizations, I can pay my rent and feed myself, and that will be enough. I have a strong desire to do more work with war victims. There aren't many professionals with mental health/trauma experience on the ground here, and there's a need for creating programs and services, as well as training l ..read more

The office in Zenica is staffed by 40 local Bosnians and 8 international staff, courageous souls all, working in an environment of high-stakes danger. The local Bosnian staff are all in an extremely desperate situation. Prior to the war these men and women were the cream of the crop of successful young adults. They were doctors, dentists, teachers, university professors and students, engineers. The war has stripped them of their jobs, professions, careers. Many have lost their friends, homes, family. Some have family members being held virtual prisoners in the siege of Vitez, where they are so ..read more

When Sharon and I had visited her on Crete, I asked Nicole to please come home with us and return to Greece for the trial. By then she had retained a lawyer, and I suggested she just “let the wheels of justice turn” for the next months. Her response was, “I need to stay here because I’m not sure the wheels of justice will turn on their own.” Probably very wise. And looking back now, I know that year in Greece for her was a very important and empowering one. She needed to face it without mom. She needed to not run away, to work through her relationship with P., to be with her friends and in the ..read more

I’m in war ravaged Sarajevo, Bosnia, with 21 local mental health providers; psychiatrists, social workers, and psychologists. I’m here to offer support and training for the work they’re providing, the response to and treatment of traumatized war victims, many of whom have been raped. In 1993 the Warburton Commission (established by the European Commission in late 1992) estimated that approximately 20,000 women (possibly up to 50,000), mostly Bosnian Muslims, have been raped in the war and require special assistance to address their injuries, particularly the psycho-social ones. For over a yea ..read more

This isn't my first trip into Bosnia, to the Sarajevo airport, but it is my first into the city of Sarajevo itself. I feel more daunted in anticipation of this one. My other trip had been dangerous, anxiety ridden, but brief and contained. It was one thing to face three days on a dangerous mission for the UNHCR, under their auspices and in their vehicles, into the front lines in central Bosnia. But this trip is for one week, and it’s just Claudia and I with the assistance of some generous aid organizations. Also, since the last trip I’ve grown even more attached to the physical comforts of Zag ..read more

We check through at the airport Quonset hut, and from there to the gate leading outside. My colleague Claudia beckons; our ride's here. With a heavy heart, dragging my 40-kilo bag through the dirt behind me, we head into the center of Sarajevo. Our car makes its way through streets under sniper and rocket fire. At that time Sarajevo had been under siege for months. Who would have guessed then that it would continue for another three years? The ride from the Sarajevo airfield is tense, bumpy, and frantic, as we avoid roads which make us an easy target for snipers. Damir is driving, and I'm boun ..read more