Bonnie Carroll, president and founder of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), an organisation that runs assistance programmes in support of the families of soldiers who lost their lives in war, was in Bucharest on Wednesday and urged Romania to be part of this international community.
Leviatan Design supports this approach through the presence of CEO Cătălin Podaru at the event where Bonnie Carroll detailed TAPS objectives. Cătălin Podaru stressed that Leviatan Design will support the establishment of TAPS Romania, sharing the values and activities it promotes around the world and which have a strong positive social impact. Leviatan Design also supports the strengthening of the partnership that Romania has with its strategic partner, the United States of America.
Death and loss are inescapable repercussions of violence and war. People living in, or have lived through, conflict, trauma and war teach us how to turn the devastations of war into a path toward global peace.
Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is an American organization that cares for all those who have lost a loved one in the military, whether widows, parents, children. The program brings families together to offer support, to know they are not alone and to be able to find healing.
Asked by CaleaEuropeană.ro about what TAPS means, what are the biggest goals and why she wants to develop this specific program in our country, Bonnie Carrol said that in the last 20 years she has worked with organizations around the world and found that there are countries that, while honoring their heroes, have never created a program for families, for the heirs of sacrifice.
“They need to come together to feel part of a global community that transcends language, religion, culture and truly speaks from the heart,” said Bonnie Carroll.
According to her, the program has a beautiful partnership in Iraq and Afghanistan, countries where America has suffered many casualties.
“Now we can bring American widows, mothers and even children together with Afghan and Iraqi families. It’s really about love. You know, grief is not not a mental illness. It’s not a physical wound. Grief is a broken heart. We grieve because we love, and that is the common bond, being an honor we bestow on our loved ones who were willing to put on the uniform and serve in defense of their country’s freedom,” added Bonnie Carrol.
Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors has contacts in countries around the world and is part of a global federation of organisations that care for the families of the military deaths.
“We believe that the sacrifice of soldiers and the love we have for those who have made this a part of their lives brings us together in countries around the world. I know that here in Bucharest you have magnificent war memorials to pay tribute to those who died. Wreath the flag of Romania on the coffin of those who are buried after their military deaths. So why not have a place where families are honoured as living legacies of that sacrifice. We will meet with the families of those who died in Ukraine and hope to learn more about their needs,” she added.
Seven years ago, the Ukrainian government reached out to Bonnie Carroll’s organization, asking if it could “mentor the creation of a program for all those who mourn the loss of a loved one in the 2014 War.”
“So they immediately adopted our model of care. They came to see our program with military mentors working with children and they absolutely adopted it. They translated all of our materials into Ukrainian and set up this program very quickly and it was amazing. In some cases they even did some things better than we ever did. So right now, the foundation of this program in Ukraine is helping bereaved families. They need to know that they are not alone, they need to know that there is a future and there is a place where they can find support,” she stressed
In November 2015, Barack Obama awarded Bonnie Carroll the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work and support of grieving families.
“This is a wonderful organisation, part of a global Federation. Romania has not been part of this beautiful, loving and caring international community. So we would love to bring Romania into this fantastic opportunity”, Bonnie Carroll concluded.
