[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 22 (Monday, February 8, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E154]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         PAKA OUTREACH PROGRAM

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ROBERT A. UNDERWOOD

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 8, 1999

  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, last year supertyphoon Paka struck the 
island of Guam causing nearly $400 million in damages and leaving more 
than 4,000 families homeless. The speed of this particular recovery is 
unprecedented in the annals of Guam's typhoon-prone history. In 
situations such as this, however, the emotional needs of disaster 
victims and stress levels of workers tasked to restore normalcy are 
often overlooked as other necessities such as restoration of services, 
reconstruction of homes and businesses, and procurement of basic 
supplies receive much of the attention.
  It is for this reason that the ``Paka Outreach Program'' was 
implemented. A Crisis Counseling Program established to bring attention 
and support for the emotional aspects of disaster recovery, the 
outreach program was authorized through a Memorandum of Understanding 
between the Child and Adolescent Services Division of the Department of 
Mental Health and Substance Abuse and the College of Agriculture and 
Life Sciences, Guam Cooperative Extension Program of the University of 
Guam. Deriving funds from a Regular Service Grant from the Federal 
Center for Mental Health Services, the program provided counseling as 
well as resource and service information about improvement of stress 
coping responses among disaster victims.
  Teams of crisis counselors provided outreach services to people and 
organizations within the Guam Community. This multi-lingual and 
culturally diverse group visited homes, shelters, schools and Senior 
Citizen Centers. Since the inception of ``Paka outreach,'' team members 
have assisted over 2,000 individuals with services such as crisis 
counseling consultation education and support groups.
  One year has passed since Supertyphoon Paka. Debris has been 
collected, services have been restored, damages have been repaired, and 
the island of Guam is green and beautiful once again. Conditions have, 
more or less, returned to normal. As were recognize the countless men 
and women who have made possible the island's speedy and successful 
recovery, I would like to take this opportunity to make special note of 
the contributions of the Paka Outreach Program. On behalf of the people 
of Guam, I commend the members of this outstanding team and submit 
their names in special recognition of their outstanding public 
service.***HD***Paka Outreach
  Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse.--John W. Leon 
Guerrero, Director; Aurora Cabanero, Deputy Director; Mariles 
Benavente, State Coordinator.
  University of Guam--Dr. Jeff D.T. Barcinas, Dean/Dir., Coll. of 
Agriculture & Life Sciences; Victor T. Artero, Associate Dean, Guam 
Cooperative Extension; J. Peter Roberto, Principal Investigator, Paka 
Outreach.
  Paka Outreach Staff--Sr. Stella Manglona, Project Coordinator; 
Venancia Colet, Mental Health Consultant; Ronnie Babin, Team Leader; 
Jeanie Perez, Team Leader; Joseph H. Salas, Team Leader; Jose Caluag, 
Eloisa A. Chan, Filomena Doone, Jenette Muhat, Karmelin Pachkoski, 
Marie Pereda, Felisa Quitugua, Marchelle Sablan, Misko Shuru, Dirk 
Taitano, Remedios Taitague, Simona Cushing Viloria.

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