Blog Posts

Lieutenant Donald Carter Webb, Jr. Born: January 28, 1972 EOW: June 28, 2022 Law Enforcement Officer, North Carolina Loving, humble, hardworking, laughter, authenticDon earned his B.A. in Criminal Justice and Music from the University of Virginia, where he had the...

Friends and Families,   Today we received the call we had been waiting for. H.R.6943 - Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022 PASSED and is on its way to the President’s desk for signature. We have been proud to support and endorse this bill for the past three...

Do you remember playing hide-and-seek? After the first game or two you know who you wanted to play with again, you know who was fun and who wasn’t. You knew who you could beat and who you couldn’t. In our childhood innocence, we didn’t want to play with the kid that...

Police Week, a place of honor, camaraderie, and a wonderful tribute to the law enforcement profession. Established to honor all law enforcement "designated the week in recognition of the contribution the police officers of America have made to our civilization through...

FirstNet, Built with AT&T, teams with First H.E.L.P. to support First Responders in Lorain County with #ResponderReadiness Training ELYRIA, Ohio – Apr. 11, 2022 First H.E.L.P. (Honor, Educate, Lead and Prevent) and FirstNet®, Built with AT&T, are teaming up to...

Let's talk about keeping your composure in 5 minutes or Less. Maintaining focus in composure in volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) situations is an essential skill for first responders.  The thing is, when you’re about to respond to a call, you can’t...

Auburn, MA February 01, 2022. First H.E.L.P. and FirstNet®, Built with AT&T, have teamed up to provide dozens of communities and thousands of first responders with world-class mental health training through First H.E.L.P.’s #ResponderReadiness Workshop Series....

Why Resilience? What to Look for in a First Responder Resilience Training Program. Most often, resilience is defined as the ability to “bounce back” from adversity.  I define resilience as the ability to leverage tools and resources to recover well and grow stronger...

Finding the Story Within - A Journaling Workshop.  On January 29th, First H.E.L.P. hosted Patricia Classon as part of our ongoing Team Member Professional Development Series for First H.E.L.P. Volunteers.  This two-hour workshop gave eleven...

Blue H.E.L.P. is among Susan G. Komen, Johns Hopkins and AARP at the top of the Anthem Awards Nominee List. Our Program, Blue H.E.L.P. has been named a finalist in the Best Health Awareness Campaign in the Inaugural The The Anthem Awards Social Impact Celebration....

32-Hours of training made possible by FirstNet - Built with AT&T. San Antonio, TX - From January 10 - 12, Joe Willis and Steve Hough conducted a Responder Readiness Workshop hosted by Bexar County, Fire District 7. Denise Thompson, the District's Wellness Director...

September 11, 2021 It is popular amongst first responders to use thin colored lines usually displayed as flags or stickers to represent their chosen profession, but what do they mean and where did they come from? The first known use of a “Thin Line” reference was...

Joliet, IL - Christy Lister, the state representative for Blue H.E.L.P. Illinois is a frequent guest speaker for recruits. Christy lost her law enforcement husband, Kenneth Lister to suicide June of 2019 and is committed to saving other families from enduring what...

“Mom, I don’t want to have to wait to see Daddy again... Mom, I don’t want to wait till I’m 90 to see Daddy again! I want to see him.....” These words sting. These words hurt. These words cut deep! With tears in his eyes, these were the words my little one said to me...

My late husband was a police officer and he died by suicide. I want to tell you how his department did nothing but stand and watch me on my hands and knees screaming for them to help me, after I had found him. I want to tell you how a noticeable amount of his...

We have seen significant progress toward smashing the stigma of law enforcement mental health, but we have a long way to go.  Blue H.E.L.P.’s #IWillListen campaign works to improve how law enforcement officers demonstrate their willingness and commitment to...

Until April 2009, I considered myself lucky to have not lost anyone close to me. Sadly, the loss of my Dad to leukemia was the start of an exceedingly difficult period of loss. He died only four weeks before my wedding. I then suffered the losses of my Grandpa,...

Everyone has a different experience. Mine is not exactly the same as anyone else’s, nor is it exactly different. I’m not a first responder so I didn’t face the same challenges, but I believe we can all learn something from each other. I don’t walk around and tell my...

Since 2016, Blue H.E.L.P. (Honor.  Educate. Lead. Prevent.) has been supporting the families of law enforcement officers lost to suicide.  It is the objective of Blue H.E.L.P.  to reduce mental health stigma and bring awareness to suicide and mental...

Here are 8 ways to observe No Brainer Day. No Brainer Day is one of those made up days that makes its way into the long list of mental health days each year. The founder of this day,  Adrienne Sioux Koopersmith suggested that one should stay calm and not stress...

Here at Blue H.E.L.P., we aim to honor officers lost to suicide and support the families left behind, educate the public to bring awareness to mental health issues and reduce the stigma, lead in advocating for benefits for those suffering from post-traumatic stress,...

What is a Law Enforcement career? Service to the community, the dedication to the brothers and sisters in blue, or is it the fulfillment of something more personal. I have spent a lifetime, a career of walking that thin blue line; life and death, justice, and...

One of the biggest debates many agencies and organizations that support those left behind by an officer’s suicide is should this be a line of duty death.  Blue H.E.L.P. doesn’t debate this, we have already made up our mind.  When an officer is hired, they go...

We often find ourselves doing nothing because we do not know where to start.  When I am asked what agencies should be doing, I often start with first they need to recognize better from worse.  It is truly that simple for many of the decisions we make that...

What’s your breaking point? Your spouses? Could you predict it? If trauma after trauma was piled upon you for years, would you believe it would be something as innocuous as a shoplifter being released again? That’s what broke Brian. Brian served his country...

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Public Safety Officer 4 Support Act of 2020’’ Last week, the Law Enforcement Suicide Data Collection Act was signed into law by President Trump, this was an historic bill not only supported by Blue H.E.L.P. but a result of their efforts...

This is the story of a good man, a good wife, a good department, and a bad disease. Of the 100 confirmed law enforcement officer suicides in 2016, this is the story of number 41.  It is not just a number but a man, a husband, a father, and a police officer. When...

Guest post by John Avery Within the Public Safety Community there has been an increase in awareness of what individual officers and employees encounter and how they deal with traumatic incidents and cumulative stress.  How an employee deals with these incidents and...

In this week’s #Mindset Monday we’re encouraging readers to set SMART goals to make Self Care a priority.  A recent Law Enforcement Bulletin from the FBI Website lists self care as the first recommendation to combat “Compassion Fatigue.”  Self Care Saves...

Yup, you read that right. I know there are millions of you that hate cops, and there are millions of you that love them. I’ve given it a lot of thought and realized the haters have a point. I mean seriously, in 1962 John F. Kennedy decided to set aside an entire...

I should be preparing for tonight’s board meeting, actually, I really should be cleaning my office. Instead, I am writing you this letter. Who are you? Friends, family, volunteers, board members, advisors, supporters, LinkedIn connections, family members who have lost...

Oftentimes, as a police officer, the holidays may mean nothing more than a regular workday or overtime for you. However, over the course of the year you are subjected to increased levels of stress. Unfortunately, the holiday season may increase levels of stress ever...

A struggle ensues, you lose your balance, and your head hits a concrete wall. The offender is trying to get your gun, you’re trying not to lose consciousness while your will to live keeps you engaged in the fight of your life. The offender now has your gun and it’s...

September 20, 2019 Blue H.E.L.P. Receives Motorola Solutions Foundation Grant - Worcester, MA – September 20, 2019 – Blue H.E.L.P., an organization devoted to law enforcement suicide awareness, stigma reduction and family support, today announced it has received a...

She was the first professional of her family. Drugs and alcohol were something that affected her life from birth. Despite the family life she grew up in, Erika said, “not me.” She started off in the Police Explorers and a declaration of her future employment at the...

Grieving families often look for ways to prevent future suicides, assist where needed and find some way to fill the void in their lives. Whether it’s through advocacy, photography, writing or other means, they are fighting against suicide daily. We have been gifted a...

We’ve lost one hundred officers to suicide this year. It’s June 25. Are we sensationalizing it? No, just telling you what we know; raising awareness and making people pay attention. Why? If not us, then who? Since January 1, 2016 we began collecting the data and the...

Having interviewed hundreds of law enforcement officers and their families, I noticed a common theme. Although not all of the interviews were geared toward critical incidents, eventually all discussions ended there. If the officers weren’t personally involved in a...