Organization that provides mental health services to firefighters in desperate need of funds
RED HOOK, Brooklyn (WABC) -- An organization dedicated to providing mental health services to firefighters, who are 38% more likely to attempt suicide than civilians, is in desperate need of funds to keep going.
Friends of Firefighters is an old firehouse in Red Hook, Brooklyn that dates back 150 years. They offer everything from acupuncture to intense therapy that has saved firefighters lives with mental healthcare since 9/11, when the idea for this started.
"And here we are almost 25 years later, and we're slammed with phone calls," said Nancy Carbone of FriendsOfFirefighters.org.
There's a common misconception that firefighters don't need help. They're the "bravest," the ones we call when we are in big trouble. But it turns out, they do need help. They need it more than anyone else because of their jobs.
"They'll come home and think they're putting it all together and putting your face on and smiling," Carbone said. "Everyone in the family picks up that mommy or daddy is not all there and so usually children take it in and blame themselves," Carbone said.
This is free mental health care for the whole family.
Friends of Firefighters has cut back and fundraised, most recently, a bike tour in Ireland. Lieutenant Timothy Hines was one of the riders. He needed mental health counseling himself, so did his family, after he almost died on the job, fighting a fire.
"My wife, and I were concerned that our children were not dealing with my near-death experience as openly as we had hoped," Hines said. "We wanted them to be able to get anything off their chest that they needed to with professional help."
What about health insurance? Friends of Firefighters insist that's not nearly enough to cover firefighters and their families' needs.
"You know, there's so many people that need counseling -- first responders, their families, it'll never end," said John Sorrentino of FriendsOfFirefighters.org.
But Friends of Firefighters is in trouble.
"We need money," Carbone said. "We have it squared away as far as services. We know what we're doing. We have excellent clinicians. We need money to keep going."
"When tones go off, we don't ask questions. We go 100 miles per hour as quick as we can to help whomever it might be asking for help," Hines said.
Now they need help.
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