SpokaneFāVS
Warrior Songs Spokane, the local branch of Warrior Songs Inc., is sponsoring “The Welcome: A Public Listening” at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 9. The event will consist of stories, songs, poetry and paintings by veterans. It is the culmination of a four-day Veteran Healing Retreat using the creative arts.
The Spokane Veteran Healing Retreat is free to veterans and is hosted in a rural conference center in the Spokane area. The 15 participants leading the retreat all have experienced posttraumatic stress disorder and/or military sexual trauma and will share their truths through music, storytelling and other creative arts during the retreat in an attempt to experience healing. They will also create a plan to continue their healing and story-telling process.
Warrior Songs Inc. is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to facilitate healing for United States military personnel, veterans and those who work with veterans through the creative arts.
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane is located at 4340 W. Ft. George Wright Dr. Suggested admission to “The Welcome: A Public Listening” is 20 dollars, but any level of donation is welcome. The event is free to veterans and their families.
Josie Camarillo is a recent graduate of Whitworth University, where she majored in English and psychology. Currently pursuing her Master in Social Work at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, Camarillo writes for SpokaneFAVS from afar, but plans to return to the Spokane area after attaining her licensure as an independent social worker. She dreams of becoming a relationship therapist and a published author. Her hobbies include photography, horseback riding and writing poetry.
Camarillo has a passion for photography and writing, especially poetry, and is interested in creative counseling methods like narrative therapy and using horses in therapy. Someday, she would like to be a counselor and a published poet. Her favorite poems are “The Singing Woman from the Wood’s Edge” by Edna St. Vincent Millay and “The Art of Drowning” by Billy Collins.
During fall 2013, Camarillo worked for Spokane Faith & Values as a copy editing intern, where her specialities included deleting Oxford commas and adding hyperlinks. Since then, she has transitioned into becoming a regular contributor to the site as a writer and photographer.
