Damn it! It has happened again. Damn it! We have lost another friend and firefighter brother. No matter how hard we try, no matter how much we reach out, no matter how much we care, the darkness of someone taking their own life pervades our every thought tonight.
We counsel people on how to grieve, to work through the stages of grief, the denial phase, the anger, the bargaining, the depression and then hopefully, the acceptance. They do not necessarily come in any order and it affects us all in some manner whether we are being cared for or we are the caregivers.
Today, we all lost a friend, and we simply cannot decide why. As much as we want to offer his fellow firefighters, friends, and family members some peace and comfort, we are struggling as a Team. The “what ifs” are taking ahold of us. “What if” he had reached out, “what if” we had paid more attention to his moods, “what if” we had worked harder to spread the message of self-care to him and those around him, would it have made a difference? Sadly, we will never know, but we will honor his friendship, our memories of him, and try harder in the coming days. We know that we can make a difference because we have in the past and, we will never give up trying to be there for others. Not just our team but all of us in our circle of family members, friends, fellow firefighters, co-workers, and anyone else who will continue to fight the fight with us. Help us my friends by looking out for one another. Talk to someone if you are troubled, are hurting, or do not know where to turn. We will help you with all that we have.
We know many of you are having great difficulty. Please reach out if we can help. 843-609-8300 any time day or night.
Rest in peace Brother, we will see you on the other side.