Stranger Than Fiction: 100th Episode Final Push-Part C

Jason has been with the Hamilton Fire Department in southern Ohio for 20 years. He has been a peer support since 2017. The idea of having a peer group within the OAPFF and their Local really struck a cord with him. As Jason looked back on his career, he realized that the fire service actually had an unofficial peer group long before they gave it a name. The bond they share causes them to rally around each other when things don’t go as planned.

In recent situations in his own personal life, the members of Local 20 gave him support that no one else could give. Being part of the peer team, gives Jason an opportunity to give back to them and others what has been given to him. Jason told the OAPFF, “As firefighters, we are exceptional at taking care of others, and now it is time we take care of ourselves.”

In an interview with Cincinnati WCPO in January of 2019, Jason shares, "People in public service professions tend to be “fixers,” Hamilton Fire Department Lt. Jason Callihan said Monday night. Unsolvable problems stick in their gears."

For Callihan, that problem was the Dec. 28, 2015 death of colleague Patrick Wolterman.

He rode in the procession carrying Wolterman’s remains three days later, looking out over crowds who had come to show their support for the fire department. He spent over a year walking by the empty gray locker.

The true shock of it still wouldn’t hit until 2017, when he and others at the station realized how tightly they were gripping their pain.

“I shoved it all down,” he said. “When we got out on… Read More

Introducing Chris Perry, a remarkable individual whose life journey has been a testament to resilience, transformation, and an unwavering commitment to mental health advocacy.

Chris's upbringing was deeply rooted in a police family, as his father served as a Cincinnati Police K9 Officer. From an early age, he was exposed to the harsh realities of law enforcement, including the tragic loss of officers in the line of duty. At just six years old, he experienced the profound impact of the line of duty death of officers, with Cincinnati PD enduring four such losses in a span of 11 months, including on his father's birthday, May 5, 1979. These events marked a pivotal turning point in Chris's life, forcing him to confront the harsh realities of the world at a young age, and forever altering his perspective.

Despite the hardships he witnessed, Chris's calling to serve his community as a police officer became apparent as he grew older. Sixteen years later, he fulfilled this calling, embarking on a nearly 30-year career in law enforcement. Throughout his dedicated service, he encountered unimaginable challenges and endured devastating losses, which took a toll on his mental health.

For 22 years, Chris lived with the burden of PTSD, a silent struggle that he kept hidden. In 2020, he took a courageous step forward and sought help, leading to a diagnosis of PTSD and the commencement of treatment. Through his journey of healing, Chris successfully completed therapy and embarked on a path of self-reinvention.

Today, three years later… Read More

William has worked in the correctional profession since March of 2005. He has worked as an Officer throughout his facility in various areas ranging from Sanitation to Segregation and almost everywhere in between. Currently, he is working to develop a new role for his agency as the Wellness and Retention Coordinator. William is the Assistant Coordinator for his agency’s Crisis Negotiation team, a member of the Peer Support team, and has been a part-time training instructor for his department since 2009.
William is the author of two books, When Home Becomes a Housing Unit and The Nothing That Never Happened. Both books highlight the way that the correctional environment can negatively impact an officer on the outside, in his/her personal life.
In addition to his writing, William creates correctional content on his YouTube channel (Just Corrections with William Young). Currently, he has over 10,000 subscribers and over a million views. William’s videos are being viewed around the world in countries such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Germany.
William has appeared as a guest on several podcasts and has presented information related to correctional staff wellness at several agencies and conferences to include an appearance on the Dr Phil show.
His mission is to assist correctional staff by helping them identify, manage, and reverse the side effects that surface when subjected to situations that are considered just “part of the job”.
To contact William email him at Justcorrections@gmail.com or visit his Facebook page at www.facebook.co…

Ricardo Martinez II is a storyteller, author, and the host and creator of Within the Trenches - True Stories from the 9-1-1 Dispatchers Who Live Them, a podcast based on the experience of being a 9-1-1 dispatcher. He is a former 9-1-1 dispatcher and supervisor of 13 years and is now the head of Within the Trenches Media with 22 years of public safety experience. In August 2016, Ricardo started the #IAM911 movement that spread from the United States to Canada, the U.K., and Australia. Its popularity and success have brought the Thin Gold Line into the spotlight and have opened the eyes of millions to what 9-1-1 dispatchers deal with daily.