
We have a history of collaborative, important and big things. This opportunity should not be allowed to pass
By Tim Tharp
My fifth birthday party was in the fire hall of the Beltsville volunteer fire department in Prince George’s County, MD. My cake was shaped like a giant red fire engine. From early on, there was little doubt where I was headed, although the path wasn’t direct.
I tried college and went to school as a pre-med major. Eighteen months later, I was out of school and living in the local volunteer fire station in Clinton, MD. In 2009, I retired from the Prince George’s County fire department as a battalion chief paramedic, and I stopped being an active responder in 2019. If only that 5-year-old boy had understood what life had in front of him.
Overcoming Challenges
My journey has taken me through three marriages, a couple of career changes, and a trip to rehab. My 26 days at the Harbor Of Grace in Havre de Grace, MD, were the beginning of a new life. Since my stay, the facility has shifted to working exclusively with first responders, but when I first stepped inside, I couldn’t have told you where I was headed. I had no idea where I was, much less where I was going.
Ultimately, it has landed me back in my home community, the fire service, working in mental health and wellness. I was a fourth-generation Prince George’s County firefighter, and I have two brothers. One is retired from Prince George’s County, and one is still working in Washington, D.C. It’s in our blood.
Why does any of this matter, and why am I telling you this? The reason is that this journey has led me to what I believe is my calling and is certainly my passion. As I looked back on three years of recovery and considered all the great tools and techniques and ways of engaging with society and myself that have helped me feel better, I wondered, “Why didn’t you tell me this shit at the beginning?” I thought, “Why do we wait until we’re in trouble and need help and actually get help to really find the tools to help us be better?”
That said, I don’t expect anybody really cares what Tim thinks. But as I look around, I see our industry, toiling in every corner to figure out how to do better to help our folks not just survive but thrive through a career as a first responder.
Good Mental Health for First Responders
What I can’t find is the center mass for this issue within the industry. Let’s flash back to 1997 and the release of the IAFF/IAFC firefighter health and wellness initiatives. I was a captain and a safety officer in Prince George’s County when this occurred, and had the opportunity to visit our neighbors in Fairfax County, where a state-of-the-art center had been built to house a model program, based on the initiatives.
Years later, the initiatives are still there, and they reflect the kind of co-operation I’m hoping to generate among everyone who’s interested in good mental health for first responders.
Those initiatives have continued to grow and provide other opportunities for us to find, prepare and care for people who are interested in this work. What was unique about this 1997 incident was that labor and management came together in an unprecedented way, joining to address critical human-related issues in our industry.
This establishes a clear history of the type of collaborative work that has continued for decades around a number of issues affecting our industry. Building codes, sprinklers, recruitment, and retention … the list goes on.
‘Drop Everything’
On some of these things we work well together, and on others, we have fractured or siloed efforts; all well intended, but not necessarily coordinated. I challenge us all to view the current state of mental health in our industry as an immediate all-hands operation. This is one of the few things that has a “drop everything” feeling to it as we continue to watch addiction, divorce, and suicide ravage our ranks.
The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the First Responder Center for Excellence (FRCE) have teamed up to provide, to my knowledge, the first national conference centered wholly around firefighter mental health and wellness. This important event, occurring March 19-21, 2025, in Nashville, TN, will bring together leaders and partners from across the country to discuss where we are, what we’re doing, and where we’re headed.
Here in front of us is the opportunity to join with our U.S. fire administrator Lori Moore Merrill, and her concept of one voice, to bring together all voices in our industry, put all our cards on the table, and develop best practices to address this most important issue.
We have a history of collaborative, important and big things. This opportunity should not be allowed to pass, and I encourage all who care deeply about the topic to make every effort to be present in Nashville in March. See you there.
Tim Tharp is a retired battalion chief, Prince George’s County fire/EMS department in Maryland, and is the CEO and founder of First Responders Resilience Network.