We’ve all heard the phrase, “It takes a village”, when it talks about kids… but really, it takes a village for everything! And your village makes such a huge difference in how far you can go.
Back in the day you relied on your neighbors and your family for so much! The whole town would rally around someone that needed help and acts of kindness abounded. But nowadays, with horrible news and skeptical people who’ve been burned in the past, it’s a little harder to find quality help.
And I get it, especially when it comes to charities, I mean the FTC has a guide JUST for police and Firefighter charities because people would take advantage of our first responder name and misuse funds they had collected.
But your tribe of good people IS out there, and they really want your help!
So we’ve collected a wonderful assortment of Charities and Organizations that support our Firefighters and First Responders Families. Let’s take a look at some wonderful organizations that would love your help!
But first, how do you support an organization for firefighter assistance?
You might not always feel compelled to help charities with direct monetary donations, but there are many other ways you can assist them in their missions.
How you can help make a big difference:
👩🚒 share their posts on social media
🚒 email them and volunteer with any special skills (or just your time)
👨🏻🚒Purchase any products they make or give them items for a donation
👨🏿🚒 Make a donation in their name to a cause that both benefits you to raise awareness of their cause
🔥 Raise money in indirect ways, like a facebook birthday campaign, using amazon smile, or holding your own in person fundraiser at a local event.
👩🏽🚒 Sign up to donate on a monthly basis. This is the BEST way- especially if you love more than one organization. even something as small as 5 dollars can make a big difference when you give every month.
FireFighter Charities
Next Rung
Our goal is to provide resources to help combat the mental health issues that plague ALL First Responders (Fire, EMS, Police, and Dispatchers). We serve our communities so faithfully, now it's time that we take care of our own.
Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance
The mission of FBHA is to collaborate, develop and implement behavioral health awareness, prevention, intervention, and post-crisis strategies to provide firefighters with an easily accessible and confidential source of information.
Firefighter Cancer Prevention Advocates | Carney Strong Initiative
The Carney Strong Initiative assists fire departments throughout the country with occupational cancer prevention through education and the donation of decontamination supplies. Our focus is on smaller fire departments in suburban and rural locales comprised of volunteer, combination, and career staffing. Our purpose is to help combat occupational cancer to ensure that firefighters go home to their family, so they don't suffer at the hands of this dreadful disease.
Eric Marsh Foundation for Wildland Firefighters
The Eric Marsh Foundation supports wildland firefighters and their families in the event of a LODD or other Line of Duty trauma.
CFFW Foundation
CFFW Foundation inc is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that was created for fire families to help bridge the gap in the home life and station life. Doing so through seminars on mental health, fire cancer, home life, etc., hosting gatherings to build community, CPR certification classes, and more.
911 Buddy Check Project
The 911 Buddy Check Project is the Mental Health Revolution. We help providers climb and conquer the four mountains: mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
Iverson Foundation for Active Awareness
It is our mission to raise awareness of the mental and emotional state within first responders, help remove the stigma that tells them they are unfit for the job if they are not mentally sound, and shift the culture; encouraging them to be proactive within the workplace and actively work to improve their mental and emotional health.
Code Green Campaign
The Code Green Campaign® is a first responder oriented mental health advocacy and education organization. Also known as Code Green, we serve all types of first responders. This includes firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, dispatchers, police, corrections, air medical, and search & rescue.
Wildland Firefighter Foundation
Wildland Firefighter Foundation’s main focus is to help families of firefighters killed in the line of duty and to assist injured firefighters and their families.
Stevie LaDue Firefighters Foundation
At Stevie LaDue Firefighters Foundation, our mission is to promote the emotional and behavioral health of first responders and their families. By taking a proactive approach to education, awareness and behavioral health services, our resolve is to reduce the number of suicides among in-service and retired first responders.
Honorable Mentions
For Three Sisters– For 3 Sisters is a national grassroots organization dedicated to raising awareness and improving the lives of men and women affected by breast cancer. It was founded by retired firefighter, Marshall Moneymaker and his wife Shannon after he lost three older sisters to breast cancer.
Crowned Fire Belles– Our mission at Crowned Fire Belles is to create and find supportive resources to support in maintaining a first line of defense in the home front of our first responder firefighter relationships and families. We are the strength that stands beside our fire heroes in Dedication, Love and Honor.
Are you Ready Training- owner/instructor of Are You Ready LLC is passionate about changing the first responder mentality of not speaking to a therapist and dealing with stress and trauma.
That’s not the end
Do you know of more active organizations that are making a positive impact on our firefighter community? Tell me about them! Drop a comment, or send an email to info@firedeptfamily.com
We are so excited to see the big changes happening the last decade in the fire service, and we know these organizations are going to do even bigger things with our help!