Post 9/11 Foundation Helps Heal Emotional Wounds

Ten years after the anniversary of their son's death, the Aldermans of Bedford remain focused on leaving a mark of his life on the world.

Liz and Stephen Alderman of Bedford lost their son, Peter Alderman, in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. He worked for Bloomberg LP and was attending a conference in the twin towers when they fell. He was 25.

The ten-year anniversary of the attacks has many reflecting on the events of that day. But for the Aldermans, 9/11 isn’t relevant as an event in their lives anymore. They say what is relevant is the work that grew from their grief over losing their son.

After experiencing the affects of mass violence so personally, they chose to help other victims of severe trauma from terrorism, mass violence or torture. They established the Peter C. Alderman Foundation with the mission of healing the emotional wounds of those victims by training indigenous health workers to provide psychiatric care in post-conflict countries around the world.

Friends of Peter Alderman have joined their efforts. After planting a copper beech tree in Peter’s memory in the Alderman’s backyard, they created various fundraising events to support PCAF. Now, the third annual "Friends of Peter" walk will be held Sept. 18 in Mt. Kisco.

Not ‘Park Avenue psychiatry’

“What’s relevant to us now is PCAF, and the [9/11] anniversary presents a fundraising opportunity—an opportunity to raise awareness and funds for our work,” said Stephen Alderman, a retired physician. “People ask us, why are you dealing with mental health? But if people don’t care whether they live or die, they won’t take their medicine or go to work or function in society. We are getting people back to functioning.”

The Aldermans estimate that PCAF has trained 1,000 health care personnel in effective mental health practices to provide services in 22 countries across four continents—leading to the treatment of 100,000 people around the world.

The foundation funds annual training seminars and has opened six mental health clinics in countries where there are established government partnerships, including Cambodia, Uganda and Liberia.

Though the Aldermans said they think the counseling does make people ‘feel better,’ the affects of mental health treatment on individuals who have experienced atrocities in other parts of the world are more far-reaching.

“This isn’t Park Avenue psychiatry,” said Stephen Alderman. “The treatment lifts people out of poverty to help rebuild their countries.” His wife and partner in the foundation, Liz Alderman, added that the psychiatric care “brings people back to life” after witnessing things “people should never see”—violent deaths of family members, rape, ethnic group burning. The training is “culturally appropriate,” and combines Western medicine with local healing traditions.

$50 a cure

The Aldermans have been hands-on philanthropists from the beginning. They attend the annual training seminars, through which they have built close relationships with health care workers around the world. Those networks are key, say the Aldermans, to the development of new training workshops and potential sites for PCAF mental health clinics.

“We won’t go where we don’t have a signed agreement with the government,” said Stephen Alderman. Because they use existing facilities and staff, their programs are cost effective, he said. “It takes $50 to cure a person—to give them the necessary treatment to return to society,” he said. “Mental illness affects more people than heart disease or cancer; the cost of keeping people disease free is very small.”

This summer, the conference was in Nairobi and boasted a pan-African attendance. There they encountered many countries who wanted clinics but either there was no infrastructure or they were population was still in conflict. They have tentatively decided on a potential site for their next clinic to open: Kibera, Kenya, which the Aldermans describe as a slum the “size of Central Park,” where women are afraid to use an outdoor bathroom at night for fear of being raped. A relationship they forged with the African Mental Health Foundation this summer may lead to psychiatric counseling at a maternal child clinic there.

Carrying on Peter’s legacy

When they are home, they work from an upstairs office in their Bedford home. Several eight-by-ten framed photos of their son, Peter, rest along a back wall behind a couch, photos that on alternate days may be inspiration for their work, a source of joy or pain.

The hallway leading to the stairs features a photo gallery of prints from a family trip to France taken in August 2001. Peter had returned home to New York City to work, while his parents stayed on. The elder Aldermans were still there when the twin towers fell. Michael Bloomberg sent his private plane to bring them home.

“Ten years ago seems like yesterday,” said Liz Alderman. “An incident like 9/11 is like a break in time, it was such a powerful moment and the loss was so great…as goes by, in one sense that loss becomes more painful and his birthday is a more difficult day to endure, because of all the things he misses with each passing year.”

Peter’s friends have kept the Aldermans in their lives, keeping them up-to-date with marriages, babies and careers, which can be “bittersweet,” said Liz Alderman.

“Though it can be a reminder that life won’t go on for Peter, they are the future of the foundation,” she said.

The Friends of Peter Alderman is now registering people for the third annual walk. Their fundraising goal is $100,000. Registration information can be found here.