Joe Richey, left, Roger Moore and Joel Bengtson started the NW Brotherhood Foundation last year as a resource for first responders to seek financial assistance needed as a result of injury or illness.
Firefighters and emergency responders bear witness to some of the most traumatic, scarring moments of human life on a regular basis. Their line of work is also physically demanding, which can lead to serious injuries and the onset of chronic conditions.
About 18 months ago, a trio of first responders associated with South Thurston Fire & EMS decided to do something about what they saw to be a lack of available resources for their compatriots in need. The Northwest Brotherhood Foundation came to fruition in late 2017 and will host its second annual Fireman’s Ball fundraiser on March 30 at Great Wolf Lodge.
“If something happens on the job, you’re covered through work,” said Roger Moore, president of the nonprofit and a South Thurston firefighter based out of Tenino. “If you’re put out of work for an extended period, you’re going to have bills and costs that insurance won’t cover. “I guess you could kind of think of it like we’re AFLAC (American Family Life Assurance Company), in that we’ll help pay for the stuff that nobody else will.”
Moore hopes to grow the foundation into a two-pronged support system for career and volunteer first responders, dispatchers, and their families. He’d eventually like the organization to have the finances available to help people seek treatment or cover other expenses, while also creating a network of local resources that can step in if more in-depth assistance is required.
The nonprofit is currently limited to offering $1,000 per person and has only been able to help a few first responders who have reached out so far. Among those the organization has helped is someone who flew to New York in order to seek treatment for a brain tumor.
Grant funds have helped get the foundation off the ground as have burgeoning partnerships with service providers such as Great Rivers Behavioral Health in Chehalis. Moore and his co-founders Joe Richey and Joel Bengtson have also made inroads with fire departments in Lewis, Thurston, Mason and Pierce counties.
“I appreciate and support the work of NW Brotherhood,” Lewis County Fire District 5 Chief Laura Hanson wrote in an email. “The cumulative effects of difficult calls and physically challenging work can take a toll on responders and ultimately their families. … I look forward to the continued success of the organization and appreciate the commitment and dedication of NW Brotherhood to this important work.”
Moore said that as the nonprofit has gotten off the ground, it has started to shift more of its focus toward issues such as mental health and suicide prevention.
According to the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance, at least 115 first responders died by suicide in 2017. Additional studies have documented the rise in mental health issues reported by firefighters and emergency services workers, one Moore attributes in part to there being less of a stigma within the profession.
The state legislature passed a bill in 2009 stating in part, “All communications to crisis referral services by employees and volunteers of law enforcement, correctional, firefighting and emergency agencies, and all records related to the communications, shall be confidential.” Moore said that made a big difference as well, because first responders didn’t want to suffer the repercussions of revealing a weakness.
“It used to be hidden and nobody wanted to talk about it,” Moore said. “We’re supposed to be the best of the best, the toughest of the tough, and it was thought that we couldn’t show that weakness. Typically, every year there are more suicides than there are deaths in the line of duty, so you’re starting to see a lot more resources available now and people talking more openly about it.”
The Fireman’s Ball on March 30 is open to members of the public ages 18 and older. Tickets cost $75 per person and include two drink tickets along with a buffet dinner.
A silent auction will take place while guest speakers Steve Redmond of the Seattle Police Department and Rebecca Wolf, suicide prevention program manager for the Washington National Guard, give presentations. For more information, visit nwbrotherhood.org/events.
