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The soldier is the one deployed,
but the whole family serves.


About SOFAR

SOFAR is a unique and innovative program to aid the families and loved ones of army Reservists and National Guard deployed in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait.

Family members at home experience severe stress when coping with a loved one's deployment.  While the stresses families face during deployment are well-known, the difficulties they encounter when soldiers return are often just as profound.  Without treatment and support, this stress can lead to divorce, substance abuse, unemployment, behavior problems in children, and other related issues that can have a lasting impact on family life. 

SOFAR:Strategic Outreach to Families of All Reservists is a pro bono, mental health project that provides free psychological support, psychotherapy, psychoeducation and prevention services to extended family of reserve and national guard deployed during the Global War on Terrorism from time of alert through the period of reunion and reintegration.

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Our mission is:

  • to prevent secondary trauma which can impact family members for generations

  • to prepare the family for the return of the soldier and

  • to work with the reunited family when the soldier has returned to help the family negotiate the difficult process of reintegration

We are committed to building resilience in families in order to increase coping skills and to provide free, completely confidential therapy services when needed. When the soldier serves, the whole family serves. We serve the families, the hidden casualties of war.

SOFAR volunteers are licensed mental health professionals who are oriented to the unique strain on extended families of military when a soldier deploys and as the soldier resumes a role as a civilian in the family upon return.

Our volunteers, all of whom possess advanced degrees, have received training to acquaint them with the special culture of the military and the unique stresses the families face.

Co-Directors

Jaine L. Darwin, Psy.D.
Kenneth I. Reich, Ed.D.

Advisory Committee

Members

BG (Ret.) Joseph Milano
BG (Ret.) David Mahn*
Lyle Michelli, M.D.
Clinton Hermes, Esq. ,Ropes & Gray LLP
Robert Ahern Jr., The Ahern Family Charity Foundation
Col. (res.) Uri Segall, Israeli Defense Force
Col. Chaim Knobler, M.D., Israeli Defense Force

*deceased

Steering Committee

Chairs

William G. Bishop, BA
Carol Daynard. Ed.D.
Joan Katz, MSW
James A. Martin, Ph.D., BCD, Colonel (Ret.)
Gerald Stechler, Ph.D.
Susan Strang, LICSW

Sponsors, Endorsers & Supporters

American Academy of Pediatrics

February, 2007, Cambridge, MA – The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has endorsed the Strategic Outreach to Families of All Reservists (SOFAR) program. SOFAR offers pro-bono counseling and support services to families and children with loved ones serving overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan and other war zones.

“Formal endorsement by organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics is a testament to the importance of the mission we have undertaken,” said Dr. Kenneth Reich, co-chair and founder of SOFAR. “Support from the AAP is invaluable in terms of helping us provide mental health support to military families across the United States.”

SOFAR is a unique program that provides pro bono support for families of Army Reservists and the National Guard. SOFAR allows mental health professionals in civilian life to provide pro bono services that support families at all stages of overseas military engagement (alert, mobilization, deployment, reunion.)

“The So Far Guide for Helping Children and Youth Cope with the Deployment of a Parent in the Military Reserves” is one aspect of the SOFAR program that is available to educators, parents, pediatricians and other professionals. After reviewing the pamphlet, the AAP provided information that was incorporated into the final edition.

Families of soldiers, children in particular, face special challenges during wartime. SOFAR recognizes that anxiety and depression may be caused by separation and fear for their soldiers' safety. Untreated anxiety and depression may lead to infidelity, divorce, domestic violence, suicidal thoughts and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD.)

SOFAR is designed to address a significant need. Some estimates show that 40 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq, Afghanistan and other nations overseas will suffer some form of psychological difficulty. Mental health professionals who volunteer in the SOFAR are trained to work with families of Army Reservists and the National Guard on several issues, including:

  • Impact on the family when a soldier first returns home from a war zone deployment. The joy of a family's reunion is coupled with the challenge of coping with changes in family relationships that take place when a family member leaves and returns.

  • The long-term impact of soldiers' return from the war theater. Research shows that symptoms not previously seen are most likely to appear six months after soldiers return from the war theater.

  • How different family members might feel at any point during different stages of overseas engagement and how children may be impacted at different stages of their development.

SOFAR mental health professionals also are trained to provide psycho-education to provide the families of reservists and national guardsmen. All SOFAR mental health professionals are volunteers who are trained to provide service to families and to give consultation and support to each other. SOFAR creates teams of volunteers, with each team assigned specialists and a senior supervisor.