About Us
It was my first trip to Croatia. The Bosnian War was afire, and refugees were fleeing the hot spots seeking, some kind of safety. The refugees came… with stories of the losses of homes, family members, friends, community, and personal safety from abuse. As a retired licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and specializing in trauma recovery, I had been sent by generous donors to help provide trauma support.
Yes, I did find refugees in need, but I also found volunteers with incredible hearts, courage, and creativity in providing various ways to heal. It is that experience that led me to focus on what volunteers could do. I also knew that many nations use some kind of volunteers or lay support to help people heal from tragic situations. I was asking myself, “How could I take my professional knowledge and experience and apply it to the special moments that occurred between a person in need and a volunteer or first responder?”
Warren L. Dale
Warren L. Dale is the Director of International Trauma Care Services and holds a Master of Divinity degree in Pastoral Counseling, a Master of Arts in counselling psychology, a California state license in Marriage and Family therapy, and an Honorary Doctorate for his work in trauma recovery and conflict resolution. In 1986 he helped to start the Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center in San Mateo County and continues to serve with the centre. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. He has provided training in trauma recovery, conflict resolution, domestic violence prevention and mediation for schools, humanitarian groups, and governmental agencies while making over 40 trips to Bosnia and Kosovo, New York after 9/11, El Salvador, Mexico, Sri Lanka and Indonesia after their earthquakes and tsunamis. He has collaborated on a trauma recovery and reconciliation project with street kids and child soldiers in Angola. He also has conducted training in trauma recovery and violence prevention for police chaplains working with the Benoni rape crisis center in South Africa. He also has provided training in trauma recovery for several programs dealing with human trafficking in the Bay Area and in Sri Lanka.
Warren Dale is a retired licensed marriage and family therapist who specialized in trauma recovery. He also worked with his wife on projects of domestic violence prevention in Romania, human trafficking prevention in San Mateo County, and with mayors in citizen engagement through U.S. AID in Bosnia and Hercegovina.
He has received several awards for his work including the California Maritime Academy Distinguished Alumni Award, The John McNellis Award for outstanding service in Conflict Resolution, and an award shared with his wife, “The Sequoia Awards Citizen of the Year” for the city of Redwood City.
