Boston

Boston Launches Neighborhood Program to Help Families Deal With Violence

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh wants to do more to help families dealing with violence.

On Tuesday, Walsh and the city's health commission launched Neighborhood Trauma Response Recovery Teams.

“It's about how do we get somebody who might not go and see a counselor of ours but how can we reach out to them and give them assistance,” said Walsh.

The teams will be dispatched from five Boston neighborhoods, including Roxbury, Dorchester, East Boston, Mattapan and Jamaica Plain.

The goal will be to provide immediate and ongoing support to victims of tragedy.

“Sometimes, that means going on scene and providing some support to the people who are there, giving them information about trauma supports,” said Charlene Luma, a member of the trauma response team. “Sometimes, it's going out to the home and meeting with the family who has been victimized.”

The mayor says the idea came from the input of 350 residents and 14 listening sessions.

“If you're impacted by trauma, you may want to go out and hurt somebody,” Luma said. “We want to make sure we're giving folks the support that they need, but also addressing that piece of the work so that people aren't going out and retaliating.”

The program will be overseen by the Boston Public Health Commission. The counseling provided will be free to patients.

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