Michigan peer-to-peer groups offer crisis support during tragedies

(CBS DETROIT) - The way every community reacts to tragedy is different.

Common Ground, which operates three Resiliency Centers in Michigan, works to meet communities where they need support.

Advocates with Common Ground's Resiliency Centers say as our communities learn what happened in Georgia , they continue to heal from our own mass shootings.

"I think normalizing those reactions to these events, even if they're across the country — making sure that people understand that these are normal reactions to a very abnormal situation," said Jamie Ayers, the director of victim services for Common Ground.

In Oxford , the community has really responded positively to having a space to gather and reflect, Ayers said.

"Some people may be impacted and some people might not be impacted, and so whatever that impact is, is a valid feeling," she said.

Ayers said that Michigan's three Resiliency Centers offer different programs depending on what each community needs — so what you might find just off campus at Michigan State's Resiliency Center will be different than at Oxford's.

"Therapy Dog Thursday is our busiest day by far," Ayers said.

That's when therapy dogs hang out in the Resiliency Center space, offering their own kind of furry support.

"We utilize our Oakland County Sheriff's Department comfort dogs — they are adorable and everyone loves them, and they're tiny and cute. The sheriffs are always a welcome entity in the center as well. The community feels safe with them there, and they're really people who love spending time with the Oxford community," she said.