Noah's Ark - let's throw a lifeline to laid-off DC Gov't employees living in DC

With hundreds of DC Government employees who live in the District now out of work, has anyone in the Administration thought of offering counseling to help ease their pain? I'm a volunteer with a group that provides bereavement counseling to families of homicide victims, and I know grieving when I see it. Or hear it. The night before last, a newly-laid off worker cried her heart out to me, and I know darn well she's typical of many more. Hasn't anyone in the Administration noticed that many former DC government employees now have PTSD? There are good ways and bad ways to lay people off, regardless of how well those now-unemployed persons performed, and DC seems to have chosen one of the more unfeeling ones, including escorting people out of the buildings in which they worked as if they were suddenly criminals. I think that's barbaric, and we can and should do better.

I call upon the Houses of Worship of this city, and the other helping professions to volunteer to counsel former DC Government employees. These folk need help in bringing to closure the work life they have just left, as well as help in envisioning and planning a new work life. Right now they feel worthless and unwanted. For many of those who have lost their job, the DC Government had been their only employer, and they were in no way prepared for being fired. A little compassion goes a long way.

There are plenty of other people being laid off as well, God knows, but the DC Government folk may be the largest single group of District residents who have lost their jobs. Let's reach out a hand of caring to them. DC Government - are you willing to join in and help the people you have let go learn how to cope with unemployment and the feelings of uselessness that losing a job brings on? Houses of Worship and the helping professions - can you take on this task? If the response is positive, an emergency committee to coordinate this counseling should be set up posthaste. I'd call this program Noah's Ark, because we're all in this boat together.