Mass trauma has made entire towns and cities into monuments of heartbreak and loss. Here is a book to guide the communal recovery.

After the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, local caregivers, civic leaders, and first responders had the daunting task of navigating emotional and physical trauma as they stitched their community back together. The recovery process takes years, and as the coordinator of the Newtown Recovery and Resiliency Team, Melissa Glaser managed the town's response. She developed a unique set of therapeutic and transferable best practices that other communities can learn from. The impact of an intense media presence and the long-term financial needs of recovery work are also included in Healing a Community. Through heartbreaking insights, Glaser conveys the importance of meeting traumatized individuals where they are at in the process.

Lessons learned in Newtown can be used to create a universal community mental health disaster plan so leaders, therapists, and families know what to do the next time tragedy occurs.

Melissa Glaser, MS, LPC is a community response and recovery leader. She was the coordinator of the Newtown Recovery and Resiliency Team (NRRT) from 2014 to 2016. Glaser is currently in private practice as a psychotherapist and actively consults with other organizations and communities. Previously, Glaser was the Director of Behavioral Health and Related Services at Catholic Charities of Fairfield County, CT. She has also served as the Director of In-Home Services at Wellmore Behavioral Health in New Haven County, CT, and as the Clinical Director of Child and Adult Behavioral Health at Northwest Center for Family Service in Litchfield County, CT. Glaser is a Member of the American Counseling Association, the Connecticut Counseling Association, and the Naugatuck Valley Community College Advisory Board for their Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Counseling program.

The tragedy of large-scale trauma has etched the names of cities on a national monument of heartbreak and senseless loss. First responders, caregivers, and civic leaders are often left with the daunting task of navigating the emotional and physical aftermath and stitching their communities back together-a trajectory of healing that can take months and years. Healing a Community offers real-world advice from one of the country's preeminent community response and recovery leaders. As the coordinator of the Newtown Recovery and Resiliency Team (NRRT) and a psychotherapist with a focus on trauma, Melissa Glaser presents a unique set of pragmatic best practices that communities can learn from and immediately adopt.