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News | April 11, 2013

NORAD, USNORTHCOM holds Religious Affairs Conference, discusses wildfires, mass shootings

By Tech. Sgt. Thomas J. Doscher NORAD and USNORTHCOM Public Affairs

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. – More than 60 people from local, state and federal faith-based and first responder organizations attended the NORAD and USNORTHCOM Religious Affairs Conference here Tuesday.

Hosted in partnership with the Colorado National Guard, the conference focused on two recent Colorado disasters: Wildfires and the mass shooting in Aurora.

Rev. Ray Woolridge, Deputy Director of the NORAD and USNORTHCOM Chaplain’s Office, said the conference is designed to improve coordination and collaboration with local, regional and national faith-based disaster response mission partners.

“Face-to-face conversations are the most productive,” he said. “A lot of our work is bringing people together. Chaplains are connectors. As connectors we know people involved in the community. It’s in networks that communities have resiliency.”

This year’s conference was dual-focused, with panels discussing both the wildfires that struck Colorado last year and the mass shooting in Aurora that killed 12 people and injured nearly 60 more.

“There’s been an epidemic of these events across the country,” Woolridge said. “It indicates a need for chaplains and religious leaders to think about spiritual care. We want to help congregations prepare for the worst day of anybody’s life.”

One of the guest panelists was someone who lost their home in the Waldo Canyon Fire. Breaking down in tears at times as he spoke, he told the attendees about his loss and role faith played in moving through it. Woolridge said it was important that the attendees get a sense of the feelings of loss people feel in the aftermath of disasters.

“I was hoping that people would feel what he and his wife went through,” Woolridge said. “That they would feel the pain, and they certainly did. Sometimes we just talk about what we think, what our ideas are, but as human beings we are mind, bodies and emotions. A lot of spiritual care is emotional care as well.”

The success of last year’s conference “broadened the net,” Woolridge said, bringing in even more attendees this year.

“The relationships built last year have led to more success this year,” he said. “We have a lot of people who are repeat attendees who are back for more. There are also a lot more people involved. Disaster has a way of forcing a realization of need.”

Woolridge said he wanted everyone who attended the conference to leave it asking themselves, “how can we prepare for next time?” “What do we need to do within our organization to prepare for the next disaster?” he asked.