Here a resource that may be helpful as you help our first responder communities.

Thank you.

Phil

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Commissioner/Colonel/Executive Director/Department Heads,

I wanted to provide your organization with material on a hotline that is beneficial to your officers and their family members.  The topics of Officer Wellness and Resiliency for first responders is on the forefront of numerous Law Enforcement agencies across the nation and CopLine would like to do our part in spreading the word that Help and Support is only a phone call away.  CopLine is an international law enforcement hotline that is manned by retired law enforcement personnel.  It was established as a lifeline for police officers both active and retired across the country.  We are a non-profit organization providing 24/7/365 coverage of trained peer active listener volunteers who deal with the different stressors officers and their families face including crisis intervention along with referrals to vetted mental health professionals that specialize in the law enforcement community.  .

With more law enforcement officers taking their own lives each year and the lack of resources available to the many small and medium-sized departments, CopLine is a crucial life-saving program that will help numerous officers during times of need.  Our hotline is CONFIDENTIAL and callers often remain anonymous so in essence we provide an environment that removes the stigma of discussing one’s feelings and more importantly the fear of any repercussions and/or retaliatory actions for having done so.  Who better to discuss the graphic violence one encounters daily and the effects it has emotionally than another officer who has experienced similar situations in his/her career thus having insight and empathy. 

The attached handout is two-fold; an outreach to those in need of support and outreach to retired officers interested in volunteer work.  This is a great opportunity to give back to those still wearing the badge and serving our communities and also providing support to those that oftentimes have no one to turn to.  I cannot think of a more important call to take then one from a fellow officer who is experiencing difficult times.  Our volunteer force consists of officers from various ranks and agencies across the country. 

All retired volunteers are trained in active listening.  The training (40 hours) is at no cost to the volunteer and our lead instructor is a police psychologist from the Los Angeles Police Department.  Potential volunteers can go to our webpage and click on the Volunteer tab in the upper right hand corner, then click on the link to complete a mandatory questionnaire.

It is our hope that this email is forwarded to your Employee Assistance Unit or Retirement counselor as employee wellness and volunteer work are great topics of discussion and agenda items for future meetings and/or conferences.  This resource is a WIN-WIN for everyone and our outreach is to increase awareness of the critical situation law enforcement is experiencing internationally.

Any follow-up inquiries can be directed to our Director/Founder Psychotherapist Ms. Stephanie Samuels at director@copline.org or forward my email for further information.  Please let me know if you require any hard copy material for distribution and please forward to your partnering agencies if you see fit.  CopLine 1 800 267-5463, www.copline.org   Be safe and take care, Jim

James A. Alvarez

LAPD Captain (Retired)

Vice-President, International Law Enforcement Relations

Copline, Inc.

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