Dr. Thomas Demaria, administrative vice president of behavioral health at South Nassau Communities Hospital, saw an immediate need for targeted mental health services. He founded the World Trade Center Family Center shortly after the attacks to provide crisis counseling, education and support to those directly affected.
Rockville Centre was chosen as the home for the organization because the village had one of the highest concentrations of bereaved 9/11 children in the tri-state area. The center has been operating at 310 Merrick Road since the fall of 2001.
Recently, six young women who lost parents in the attacks and have participated in the center's programs were offered a chance to take part in a project for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." The special project was coordinated by Dr. Toni Tarnell, a psychologist at the center.
Tarnell is the facilitator for the Teen Girls Club, which meets regularly at the center. "This is a very cohesive group of girls," she said. "[Teenage girls] are traditionally a difficult group to get into counseling." The group offers the teens a forum in which to discuss their shared experiences without fear of judgment.
The club has gone beyond group discussions of loss and grief, venturing out on field trips to New York City. The trips were intended to help the teens move through the healing process. "At first, the discussions on the trip in were about their parents working there," said Tarnell. "Over time the conversations evolved, and the travel time was used to plan what they would do in Manhattan."
Through many hours of therapeutic sessions, the teens have evolved emotionally, and eventually reached the point where they were ready to start giving to others. "During group sessions, the girls often talked about the wonderful things that happen on ABC's 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,'" said Tarnell. She made a phone call to the network, and inquired about how the girls might be part of an upcoming project.
ABC personnel "were more than willing to help," said Tarnell. "They were very sensitive to our needs, and very interested in making it happen for the girls." The group traveled to Washington, D.C., where they assisted in the remodeling of a home for a single mother and her children who were the victims of domestic violence.
While on the set, the teens met "Extreme Makeover's" carpenter and self-described jack of all trades, Ty Pennington, helped redecorate the house, and saw it revealed to the family for the first time. "The experience the girls had with the show supports our efforts to find ways to help them cope with tragic events and turn them into productive experiences," said Dr. Minna Barrett, director of research and training at the family center.
Liz, a 16-year-old participant from Rockville Centre who lost her father on 9/11, is a huge fan of the show, and was thrilled at the opportunity to participate in an episode. "For me, it hurts to see bad things happen to good people and to watch people in pain, especially since I know how it feels," she said. "By helping people, it's given me reassurance that I'm doing something good - possibly amazing - for someone who needs it. And for the final product to be tears of joy instead of tears of sadness - that is the largest reward I could ever receive. By doing this, it's helping me grow mentally as a person, and it is such an honor."
Funding for the WTC Family Center will run out in November. Staff members are applying for the continuation of existing funding and looking for alternate financial sources. If further funding is not secured, there will be dramatic cutbacks in services, including the teen program.
The "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" episode in which the girls participated is titled "Ginyard family," and is set to air on ABC this season.
Comments about this story? RVC editor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext.285
