It's been quite a while since I posted to this blog. But I had some things I wanted to get off my chest and this was the best way I felt I could do that. Anyone who knows me can probably tell by the title what this blog post is about, and if it is going to bother you to read about it, please don't.
A little over 18 years ago I was hired on as a communications technician (aka dispatcher) with the city of Dublin, Ohio. (A few years ago we became the Northwest Regional Emergency Communications Center) It didn't take me very long to realize that this was a career I was going to love, but also a career that would come with a lot of stress.
I think anyone in my profession who truly knows the job knows that our number one goal whenever we come in to work is to see to it that the men and women who are put in our care...the men and women who go out every day and risk their lives to keep the rest of us safe...go home to their families safely at the end of their shift. We accomplished that goal every day that I came to work, and even on my days off, for over 18 years.
Sadly, on May 19, the day turned out differently. We didn't meet our goal. One of our guys, Officer Sean Johnson #637 of the Hilliard Police Dept. did not go home to his family that evening. It was an accident that took our officer's life that day. No one is to blame. But that doesn't make the loss any easier. I've known departments and people who have dealt with Line of Duty Deaths, and like many things in life, there was part of me that was thankful it wasn't one of our guys. But this time it was.
Beginning very early in the process I began seeing many different reactions in myself and from the people around me. Some of those reactions gave me a deeper respect for people I work with, as I watched how they stepped up and did what needed to be done to start dealing with something we knew would be difficult. Some of those reactions surprised me, while other reactions were what I would have expected.
Another role that I have in the public safety arena is as a member of the Mid-Ohio Critical Incident Stress Management team. When asked, we work with agencies whose responders, dispatchers, and employees have had to deal with a critical incident. As a member of this team, I was asked to respond to help out. This was a little unique, as I was responding to help people deal with a critical incident in which I was also part of. But there were a lot of unique factors in this situation, and responding as a member of this team was the way I felt I could help best. To anyone of my HPD or NRECC family who may read this...I hope that my presence there helped, or at the very least, has not hurt your ability to move through this incident.
When our people have experienced a critical incident, one of the things we tell them might help to work through it is to write down their thoughts. Journal (or blog). And that's part of why I'm posting this. But a bigger reason for posting this is to thank some of those people who did step up over this past week. I won't name any names, but I think if you see this you will know who I'm talking about.
At many departments, each year, the officers fill out a form that outlines their wishes should they ever be injured or killed. One of the questions on the form asks if there is a specific person on the department that they want making the notification to family. In this case their was. Sean had asked for one of his friends and fellow officers to make that notification. That officer became the person responsible for being with Sean's family throughout this time. One of my co-workers and fellow dispatchers, in turn, spent a lot of time handling the household chores for that officer, so he could be with Sean's family.
Other dispatchers covered extra time in the communications center so that those who wanted to attend calling hours or the funeral could attend.
Others covered extra time in the communications center so that I could be out of the communications center working with the Mid-Ohio CISM team.
Others worked went to the Hilliard Police Dept. to cover for their Records Dept. staff, allowing them the time they needed to grieve, attend calling hours and the funeral.
Others covered extra time in the communications center so that those shifts in the Records Dept. could be covered.
Many did this without complaint. Some made it a point to let the supervisors know they were available for extra coverage.
One of my fellow dispatchers and friend became my sounding board. The person I was able to vent to when I needed. She spent one particular morning getting her phone blown up with my "venting".
I'm told that five other dispatch centers also offered to help cover for us during this time, and to those agencies I also say thank you!
For everyone, please know that there has been a fund set up to help out the family of officer Johnson. If you can contribute, even a little, please do.
To all of my HPD and NRECC family, the grieving doesn't necessarily stop when the funeral is over. We know this. It will take some time to find our new normal. But we will. We will learn from this tragedy. We will go to bed every night praying we never have to deal with it again. We will honor Sean and his life and his impact on those around him.
A little over 18 years ago I was hired on as a communications technician (aka dispatcher) with the city of Dublin, Ohio. (A few years ago we became the Northwest Regional Emergency Communications Center) It didn't take me very long to realize that this was a career I was going to love, but also a career that would come with a lot of stress.
I think anyone in my profession who truly knows the job knows that our number one goal whenever we come in to work is to see to it that the men and women who are put in our care...the men and women who go out every day and risk their lives to keep the rest of us safe...go home to their families safely at the end of their shift. We accomplished that goal every day that I came to work, and even on my days off, for over 18 years.
Sadly, on May 19, the day turned out differently. We didn't meet our goal. One of our guys, Officer Sean Johnson #637 of the Hilliard Police Dept. did not go home to his family that evening. It was an accident that took our officer's life that day. No one is to blame. But that doesn't make the loss any easier. I've known departments and people who have dealt with Line of Duty Deaths, and like many things in life, there was part of me that was thankful it wasn't one of our guys. But this time it was.
Beginning very early in the process I began seeing many different reactions in myself and from the people around me. Some of those reactions gave me a deeper respect for people I work with, as I watched how they stepped up and did what needed to be done to start dealing with something we knew would be difficult. Some of those reactions surprised me, while other reactions were what I would have expected.
Another role that I have in the public safety arena is as a member of the Mid-Ohio Critical Incident Stress Management team. When asked, we work with agencies whose responders, dispatchers, and employees have had to deal with a critical incident. As a member of this team, I was asked to respond to help out. This was a little unique, as I was responding to help people deal with a critical incident in which I was also part of. But there were a lot of unique factors in this situation, and responding as a member of this team was the way I felt I could help best. To anyone of my HPD or NRECC family who may read this...I hope that my presence there helped, or at the very least, has not hurt your ability to move through this incident.
When our people have experienced a critical incident, one of the things we tell them might help to work through it is to write down their thoughts. Journal (or blog). And that's part of why I'm posting this. But a bigger reason for posting this is to thank some of those people who did step up over this past week. I won't name any names, but I think if you see this you will know who I'm talking about.
At many departments, each year, the officers fill out a form that outlines their wishes should they ever be injured or killed. One of the questions on the form asks if there is a specific person on the department that they want making the notification to family. In this case their was. Sean had asked for one of his friends and fellow officers to make that notification. That officer became the person responsible for being with Sean's family throughout this time. One of my co-workers and fellow dispatchers, in turn, spent a lot of time handling the household chores for that officer, so he could be with Sean's family.
Other dispatchers covered extra time in the communications center so that those who wanted to attend calling hours or the funeral could attend.
Others covered extra time in the communications center so that I could be out of the communications center working with the Mid-Ohio CISM team.
Others worked went to the Hilliard Police Dept. to cover for their Records Dept. staff, allowing them the time they needed to grieve, attend calling hours and the funeral.
Others covered extra time in the communications center so that those shifts in the Records Dept. could be covered.
Many did this without complaint. Some made it a point to let the supervisors know they were available for extra coverage.
One of my fellow dispatchers and friend became my sounding board. The person I was able to vent to when I needed. She spent one particular morning getting her phone blown up with my "venting".
I'm told that five other dispatch centers also offered to help cover for us during this time, and to those agencies I also say thank you!
For everyone, please know that there has been a fund set up to help out the family of officer Johnson. If you can contribute, even a little, please do.
To all of my HPD and NRECC family, the grieving doesn't necessarily stop when the funeral is over. We know this. It will take some time to find our new normal. But we will. We will learn from this tragedy. We will go to bed every night praying we never have to deal with it again. We will honor Sean and his life and his impact on those around him.
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