CCIR’s beginnings were hatched by Adrienne Carter, an experienced psychotherapist who worked for many years in Victoria and then beyond - to regions of war, natural disasters, and refugee camps. Adrienne recruited and trained local counselors in various countries, who provided direct counseling services to children and adults suffering from the impacts of trauma, conflicts, torture and severe losses. Adrienne also provided ongoing assistance and supervision to all these counselors. When she returned to Canada in 2015, Linda McLagan, a former colleague, who also had international counseling experience, joined her. Together they approached VIRCS, a local immigration society, with the knowledge that refugees were to arrive in Victoria. They then made an appeal to counselors to complete training in trauma counseling, and to commit to one year of pro bono work. Today, CCIR is an independent organization in the throes of becoming a charitable organization. It has in excess of 35 counselors, as well as interpreters of many different languages - Arabic, Mandarin, Spanish, and Urdu. Additionally, a family physician, psychiatrist and university faculty have joined the group, as well as a cadre of people from various backgrounds and talents who are eager to support our efforts. The work involves direct service and training. Referrals are made from settlement agencies, sponsorship groups, public health and schools. The reasons for referral are the emotional, mental and psychological consequences of war, loss, conflict and migration: consequences that compromise daily living. Individual, family and group counseling is offered. Training has been provided to teachers, public health workers, social workers, and first responders. The objective, of course, is to reduce the symptoms of trauma and increase resiliency for those we serve. Our counselors are committed to supervision and on-going training. CCIR is driven by the value of culturally effective and efficient services, and our counselors strive to not only remain current with best practices on our field, but to ensure that research is also conducted. We want to be the very best we can be. It is an investment in the future of our communities.
