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Servicemembers receive victim advocate training in Missouri

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Michael Crane
  • 139th Airlift Wing

Servicemembers from the Navy, Air Force, and Air National Guard received victim advocate (VA) training at Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph, Mo., on April 12.


The training is part of the DoD’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) program and is an annual requirement for servicemembers who volunteer to become victim advocates.


The class was taught by staff from Mosaic and a member of the YWCA.


Servicemembers learned best practices and necessary steps to assist someone who has been the victim of a sexual assault.


Becki Restrepo, the SAPR coordinator for the Missouri Air National Guard’s 139th Airlift Wing, helped organize the training.


The training also coincides with Sexual Assault Awareness Month.


The 139th has 12 VAs, but the training was open to all servicemembers in the surrounding area. Airmen from Whiteman Air Force Base, Kansas Air National Guard’s 190th Air Refueling Wing, Missouri ANG’s 139th Airlift Wing and 131st Bomb Wing, and sailors from the Naval Operational Support Center in Kansas City also attended the training.