Hernando organization hopes mental health resources will ease shortage of law enforcement officers
SPRING HILL, Fla. - As law enforcement agencies across the country experience officer shortages, a Hernando County organization is working to provide mental health resources for active and retired military, first responders and their spouses.
According to the Police Executive Research Forum, officer resignations were up 47% in 2022 compared to 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd case fallout. This comes as Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry recently declared a State of Emergency due to an officer shortage.
Jesse Diaz-Franco, the founder and executive director of Responders First, said many first responders are also military veterans.
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"A lot of the times, it’s trauma that they’ve been walking with for decades," he said.
Monday, Responders First hosted a fundraiser at Marker 48 Brewing for its pilot week-long retreat program, which is modeled after SOCOM's.
"These alternative therapies are incredibly powerful," he said.
The program would feature yoga, accelerated resolution therapy (ART) and group music therapy.
The fundraiser featured live bands, raffles and speeches from veterans like Kevin Cagle, who went through a similar program.
"For decades I didn’t know that it [resources] existed until I heard about this organization and understood that they believed in me," he said.
Retired Pinellas County Sheriff's Office Crime Scene Supervisor, Marie Milges said she's grateful for resources like this.
"These people are called to this profession, and they’ll do it no matter what. But, I think with the way times are now, it’s a very scary situation sometimes," she said, "I think people need to know that they have support groups to lift those people up when they’re down."
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