Integrated Resilience Office fosters year-round emotional, social resilience Published Jan. 5, 2026 By Airman 1st Class Emma Funderburk 319th Reconnaissance Wing Public Affairs GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE,N.D. -- As temperatures drop, days shorten and winter sets in, many airmen and family members face difficulties navigating the holiday season away from home. To help curb these hardships, the 319th Reconnaissance Wing Integrated Resilience Office focuses on year-round skill and relationship building to help airmen withstand sub-zero temperatures. “(The Resilience Program curriculum) is a science-based skill development course that every base across the Air Force uses,” said Master Sgt. Ella Marie Alvey, lead Master Resilience Trainer for the 319th RW. “Resilience is a skill you can build, a way to break our fight, flight or freeze responses and find a way to go through the difficulties in our lives.” Master Resilience Trainers and Resilience Training Assistants are volunteers who work within their units to build a positive command climate and teach skills to their wingmen. The curriculum is also taught at the First Term Enlisted Course, which is mandated for all airmen to take within 45-days of arrival to their first base. “For a lot of airmen, this is their first time away from home so they don’t have the (skills needed) to deal with difficulties and uncertainties that can arise,” said Senior Airman Erin Klein-Nathanson, 348th Reconnaissance Squadron human resources and administration specialist. “Having a good mental health toolkit to maintain a resilient mindset is very important.” In addition to skill building, the Integrated Resilience Office launched a home-grown social resilience program called Peer2Peer in winter of 2024. The program offers an additional non-clinical option for those needing to talk through a problem, get advice on a situation or those who just need social support. Peer supporters are airmen and civilian volunteers who attend evidence-based training to learn the skills necessary for navigating difficult conversations, providing non-clinical support and identifying when someone needs to be referred to a higher echelon of mental or emotional support. “With Peer2Peer we look at the airmen involved as liaisons to our helping agencies,” said Janet Nelson, prevention specialist for the 319th RW. “We train them in active listening, emotional intelligence, building trust, empathy and how to handle people in crisis, not on a clinical level, but to recognize what they can handle and when they would need to make a hand off.” The Peer2Peer and Unit Resilience Program team offer airmen a friendly, and familiar, face to turn to in times of emotional hardship or when they just need to have a chat. These evidence-based programs offer emotional, mental and social support year-round in an effort to equip members of the base community with the skills and support system necessary to navigate the unique challenges associated with North Dakota winters and military life. Unit Resilience Program teams and Peer2Peer program are open to all military members, adult dependents and Department of War civilian employees to use and volunteer with to help strengthen resilience across the base community. If you are interested in volunteering or being connected, call the 319th RW Integrated Resilience Office at (701) 747-4772.