by John Dowd
This Memorial Day, Christina Cain, a Missoula social worker who was raised in Stevensville, was afforded the opportunity to be a part of an outreach program in Washington D.C. Cain is a licensed clinical social worker and therapist who works for a branch of the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Readjustment Counseling Services. Based in Missoula at the Missoula Vet Center, Cain was nominated by her directer there to take part in the event.
Nationwide, there are 10 districts of the program, and each one nominated someone to take part. The outreach event is one of two of its kind throughout the year. One takes place on Veterans Day and the other on Memorial Day. During the event, Cain and others worked to talk with people and spread the word of the program’s existence and attempt to provide help to veterans nationwide
“I’m very honored,” said Cain. Along with providing support to veterans who may need it, Cain also helps build community relations and can even provide on the spot counseling services. “We will do a lot of community building and social engagement type stuff,” said Cain. The outreach in D.C. took place at both Arlington National Cemetery and the National Mall.
The subset program of the VA was started for veterans of the Vietnam War, and is meant to help vets re-acclimatize to civilian life, and move forward from trauma. The program employs numerous counseling and other psychological services to members of the armed forces. These services can help veterans tackle subjects like grief, combat, loss, post traumatic stress, military sexual trauma, marital problems and other tragedies related to service life.
“A lot of our focus is how do we help people readjust from trauma back into the community,” added Cain. “It’s really about moving people forward.”
Cain herself was a member of the armed forces. A truck driver for the U.S. Army, Cain was deployed to Afghanistan. She brings a passion for helping people adjust and move through negative experiences in life. She was looking forward to getting to see several of the monuments and veteran memorials in D.C. She was especially excited for the work she’s doing there.
“I think these events are just so powerful for people. I think it’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” said Cain.
Cain visits the Stevensville American Legion the third Tuesday of every month. Other members of the Missoula center also visit Stevensville on several other days of the month. There are branches of the Readjustment Counseling Services in Kalispell, Great Falls and Billings, with an additional out-station in Helena. The Readjustment Counseling Services offers tele-services as well as in person counseling. The Missoula branch is located at the Missoula Vet Center at 910 Brooks Street and can be reached by calling (406) 721-4918.