Community Support Group:

The Jewish Federation of St Joseph Valley is starting a free and open pilot program directly in response to the October 7th tragedy in Israel. This support group will be facilitated by a licensed clinical social worker from our community. While this is not intended to be group therapy, our hope is for the community to find it therapeutic. It will be a largely participant directed program, and will be formatted to make space for dialogue, grief, uncertainty, support and everything in between.

We as a community are experiencing collective trauma and we do not want you to feel alone in this. It is the goal of this program to create somewhere you can be heard, or for you to feel supported should you prefer not to talk or struggle to find the words. 

As this will largely be based on the needs of the group, the frequency may shift. To start with, we plan to meet for an hour on a weekly basis. The first group will meet on 10/8 from 6-7 at the Federation.

Due to the sensitive nature of these conversations, we request that only consenting adults and older adolescents join these groups. Please come with an expectation of connection and respect, even if you happen have a different perspective from other participant(s). Disrespect will not be tolerated and may result in expulsion from the group.

Facilitated by Kira Bloom, LCSW
Kira is a licensed clinical social worker working at Beacon Health providing therapy. She is a dual Israeli American citizen and made aliyah before returning to the US for grad school.  She primarily works with adults struggling with anxiety, depression, grief and trauma. She is in the final stages of certification in EMDR, a trauma processing modality. 

Originally born in Texas, she moved to South Bend in May of 2022 by way of Colorado. She enjoys making pottery, walking her dog, and spending time with her partner.