Oklahoma City VA Health Care System
Oklahoma City VA Launches New "Let's Talk About It, Oklahoma" Book Club
June 21, 2017
Oklahoma City, OK – The Therapeutic Recreation Department at the Oklahoma City VA Health Care System announced today that it will host the “Let’s Talk About It, Oklahoma” book club entitled Hope Amidst Hardship. The event is made possible by a grant from the Oklahoma Humanities Council with generous funding from the Inasmuch Foundation and the Kirkpatrick Family Fund.
The Therapeutic Recreation/Creative Art Therapy department’s goal is to help individuals to improve quality of life and reach optimal health through participation in recreation and leisure. One focus is to teach Veterans how to cope with stress and feel more comfortable in a social setting through leisure, art, and recreation. Veterans are referred to the clinic from a physician or other clinician in the hospital to focus on mental health or physical goals. The department currently offers a variety of programs, some of which include art therapy, adaptive sports, and yoga.
Sandy Bond, Recreation Therapist, relates how this program fit well with their current program goals stating, “We saw literature as a great way to help Veterans feel more connected to their peers, and this program also helps connect them to their community. The Veterans will have the opportunity to connect life experiences to character and peer experiences and relate how they can overcome personal challenges and thrive in life.”
The five-book “Let’s Talk About It, Oklahoma “ program involves reading a common series of books and exploring the theme in a monthly scholar-led discussion. Discussion groups will meet the last Thursday of the month from July through November at 8:30am in the VA Hospital Health Wing. The first discussion group on July 27, will focus on the book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, led by guest scholar Richard Rouillard. The Downtown Library has also partnered with this program by offering two librarians to assist with small group discussions. For more information on the program contact the Therapeutic Recreation program at the V.A. Medical Center. Veterans are eligible to participate in the program after a referral from their clinician.
The Chief of the Recreation Therapy department states “We are grateful to the Oklahoma Humanities Council for making it possible to provide veterans with yet another evidenced-based treatment option in for our clinic. Participation in this program will allow veterans the opportunity to work on their personal goals related to improving their overall quality of life.”
For additional information on the event, contact: Sandy Bond: 405-456-4226 or Casandra.Bond@va.gov
About the Oklahoma Humanities Council
The mission of the Oklahoma Humanities Council (OHC) is to strengthen communities by helping Oklahomans learn about the human experience, understand new perspectives, and participate knowledgeably in civic life. OHC is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. As the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, we strive to stimulate discussion, encourage new perspectives, and to actively engage people in the humanities disciplines, such as history, literature, philosophy, and ethics.
