Eva J. Usadi, MA, BCD founded Trauma and Resiliency Resources, Inc. after having been intricately involved with the mental health response to the events of September 11, 2001. She specializes in the assessment and treatment of PTSD, Complex PTSD (attachment and developmental trauma) and Combat-related PTSD. In her private psychotherapy practice in Manhattan she treats New York City firefighters, police officers, warriors and all their family members, as well as civilians. She holds a Certificate in Traumatic Stress Studies from the Trauma Center in Boston, Mass, is a Level II EMDR clinician, has completed Certificate-level training with the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute (SPI) of Boulder, CO and currently assists in SPI trainings in NYC and Brattleboro, VT. She is certified through EAGALA, the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, since 2007 and conducts psychotherapy sessions and demonstrations of equine assisted psychotherapy, especially highlighting its application to the treatment of combat trauma. She is Certified in Critical Incident Stress Management and is also trained in Structural Family Therapy, yoga, and mindfulness meditation. In 2007-2008 Ms. Usadi spent 7 months treating traumatized soldiers and their families at Ft. Drum, home of the 10th Mountain Division of the U.S. Army, and in 2010 provided weekly equine assisted psychotherapy sessions for warriors enrolled in a DoD funded Military Wellness Program, located at an inpatient psychiatric facility in New York City. She is an approved provider for Military OneSource and Tricare, a POPPA clinician (Police Organization Providing Peer Assistance) for members of NYPD, and a contract therapist with the FDNY. Ms. Usadi has taught courses and presented at numerous public conferences in the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as providing advanced clinical trainings on the topics of PTSD, Complex PTSD and Combat Trauma. She is the author of many of the articles and pages on TRR’s website and the Producer of TRR's film, Warrior Camp.
Rudy Sanfilippo
Vice President
Rudy Sanfilippo retired from the FDNY after 23 years of service, from February 1988 through March 2011. He served as the Manhattan Trustee for the Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater NY from August 1999 through August 2005. On September 11, 2001 he responded to the World Trade Center from the time of the first tower collapse until the Ground Zero closing ceremony on May 30, 2002. In his capacity as Manhattan Trustee, Rudy directly assisted the 2000 firefighters of Manhattan as well as the families of the 150 Manhattan firefighters who died on 9/11. He advocated for additional mental health counseling services for all 12,000 members of the firefighter’s union and supported similar efforts for the 8,000 members of the Uniformed Firefighter Officers Association, by chairing a committee made up of individual therapists and representatives of the mental health agencies set up to address 9/11-related psychological challenges. Rudy oversaw the work of photographer, Gary Suson, Official Ground Zero Photographer for the UFA, who regularly credited Rudy as the reason there is a photographic record of the rescue/recovery effort. With a son-in-law in the U.S. Navy, Rudy is dedicated to using his wealth of experience with line of duty trauma to assist our nations’ warriors.
Robert Pliskin, M.S. Ed
Treasurer
Rob Pliskin has been an Equine Specialist for EAGALA, the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, since 2003, co-founding EAGALA programs in California and Ohio. His special clinical interest is providing trauma and recovery services to communities and their first responders, military personnel, and families. He also teaches Equine Assisted Therapy in the Equine Studies Department of Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio. Rob has an M.S. Ed in Guidance Counseling and spent 15 years as a public educator. He is a former U.S. Forest Service firefighter who served on Helitack, Inter-Regional Hot Shot, and Engine Crews. Since 1998 Rob has gentled wild horses at national and local workshops and training programs presented by the U.S. DoI-BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program. His work at a wild horse workshop where two FBI agents healed trauma issues with the horses inspired Rob to join EAGALA. Rob has written articles on natural horsemanship for the U.S. DoI-BLM Online Newsletter, as well as articles for Natural Horse Magazine on Equine Welfare and Equine Assisted Therapy. He has presented at national events on these topics. Rob lives with his two mustangs Duster and Nortazo at South Farm in Middlefield, Ohio. His 2011-2012 Equine Assisted Growth and Learning clients include Leadership Geauga County, OH; Rustler Ranch of Ashtabula County, OH; Genentech; and the Israel Defense Forces through a joint program with the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. Rob will graduate in May 2012 with a master’s degree in Social Work from Case Western Reserve University.
Hana van der Kolk
Secretary
Hana van der Kolk is a choreographer, performer, and movement educator. Her work in each of these areas in primarily focused around interrogating the mind/body split and examining the affects of thought/consciousness on the body/movement. Hana was based in New York (2001-2005), Los Angeles (2005-2010), and currently works throughout the U.S. and in Amsterdam. Her choreographic projects combine elements of conceptual practice with postmodern choreography, foreground humor and collective celebration, and take place in a wide range of sites, including the stage, studios and galleries, in writing, on film, and in outdoor, public spaces. She is highly influenced by legendary post-modern choreographer Deborah Hay who imagines the body to be "not just the site where movement and shape are produced, but a threshold where energies shift, multiply, and become visible." She learned Hay's work and adapted it for stage, film, and city parks from 2000-2006. Hana has taught dance, yoga, and choreography to diverse populations throughout the U.S. as well as in the Netherlands and Estonia. She is the 2011-12 Arthur Levitt Fellow/Artist-in-Residence at Williams College and holds an MFA in choreography from UCLA’s Department of World Arts and Cultures. More at www.hanavanderkolk.com and www.vimeo.com/channels/hanavanderkolk.
