Publication Date: Friday Feb 25, 1994
We almost had one such hero in skier Arsen Aroutiounian, the first winter Olympian from Armenia. But he was kicked out of the Olympics this week after being told something Eddie wasn't--that although he was the best from his country, he wasn't good enough for the Olympics. So I have lost interest in these games.
I found someone else who captured my support last week, someone who is still competing in the former Yugoslavia, site of the 1984 games, but receiving little attention for his efforts.
In many ways, Warren L. Dale's journey overseas started in the southern section of Zagreb, Croatia, at a major intersection of two four-lane roads, something like Van Ness Avenue and Market Street in San Francisco. Locals remember the day life changed in this capital city. It happened at this intersection. And it happened shortly after June 25, 1991 when Croatia declared its independence.
When they approached this corner that day, locals "saw a burning car and they thought maybe it was an accident," said Dale, a clinician from Palo Alto-based Family Service Mid-Peninsula who has just returned from a four-week trip to Croatia. What was really happening did not cross their minds. Not here.
"Then they noticed that people were crouching, and then they noticed a sniper up in a building," he said. What they were witnessing were the first signs of war. "Every time they approach that intersection now they relieve that experience," Dale said.
Zagreb repelled the Serbian assault that day, but the terror did not end. Since then this city of 700,000 has become home to 130,000 refugees from war in Bosnia-Herzegovina--Croatians, Muslims and some Serbs. Many of them live in special camps. Most live with relatives or acquaintances they knew before the fighting began. Twenty percent of the city's resources are going to care for these refugees.
The needs are many. But the greatest is dealing with the trauma of rape, of witnessing the deaths of friends of family members at the hands of people they thought were friends, and dealing with fading hopes these people have of ever returning to their homes.
This is where Dale fits in. He is a licensed marriage and family counselor and director of trauma care services at Family Service Mid-Peninsula since 1987. He has worked closely with victims of rape, war and other violence. He has helped those traumatized by natural disasters including fires in Santa Barbara and the Loma Prieta earthquake.
But Dale, who is married to Redwood City Council member Georgi LaBerge, the daughter of a native of Bosnia, had never even been to Europe before he noticed a newspaper article a couple of years ago about a group helping Bosnian refugees. Soon after, with the help of funding from private groups, friends and members of his church, Dale was in Zagreb helping refugees on a massive scale by conducting workshops on major grief counseling.
Dale will be one of the featured speakers at a public forum on "Rape as a weapon of war in Bosnia" on Sunday at Palo Alto City Hall at 1 p.m. The forum is sponsored by a host of agencies, including the American Association of University Women's Palo Alto chapter.
"The one thing that is fairly clear with this war is the strategy of rape and torture is designed to make it irreparable for (women refugees) to return to their homes. The whole process of that warfare has been to terrorize. This is not just loss, but loss in a horrendous kind of way," he said.
He told the story of one Bosnian he counseled who planned to visit a neighboring town but was warned by a Serbian friend not to go. "The next day two friends of his who were in that town were killed (by Serbs). And then a week later this same friend who had warned him had killed two (mutual) friends," Dale said. "Here is a person that you did so many things with and all of a sudden they were the ones committing the atrocities," said Dale. And these stories are ongoing.
"What I'm trying to do is to make sure that there are people in place who can respond to the needs as they emerge."
Dale has been to Croatia four times. Although he recognizes the magnitude of what he is trying to accomplish, he has plans for many more trips.
Here is a spirit I can admire.
The forum on Bosnia will be held on Feb. 27 at 1 p.m. at the Palo Alto City Council chambers, 250 Hamilton Ave. Those interested in contacting Warren Dale may do so through Family Service Mid-Peninsula at 326-6576.
Paul Gullixson is editor of the Weekly.
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