WINONA, Minn. — Police Chief Tom Williams said a chaplaincy agreement with Rochester-based Salt and Light Partnership keeps Winona in line with a growing policing practice to address the mental and emotional well-being of officers. He called it a “culture shift.”Officers once felt like they couldn’t show weakness or emotion. In seeking City Council approval of the agreement, Salt and Lights founder George beech made the same point: “Normal people might see or be present for a horrific event maybe two or three times in a lifetime. Law enforcement, first responders, paramedics and firefighters all receive 400 to 600 traumatic events over the course of a career.” The new $15,000-a-year agreement has chaplains on call 24/7 for emergencies and to counsel and support first responders, their families, and victims. The chaplaincy program expands the department’s officer wellness offerings. Sincen 2021 the department’s Checkup from the Neck Up program requires officers to meet once a year with a therapist. The department also is looking at a peer-to-peer support program. So far, Williams said, one chaplain has been designated for Winona by Salt and Light and another is being interviewed. The department also able to draw on the other chaplains associated with Salt and Light if the demand that is greater than two chaplains, Williams said.
Williams. With Winona police since 1987. Chief since 2020. The department has some 40 officers plus support staff.
Salt and Light profile
The Rochester-based Salt and Light was created in 2021. Itts motto: “Serving those who serve.” The organization dispatches chaplains o help fire, medical, and police first-responders through crises — and also their families and communities. Salt and Light clients inclde the Winona Area Ambulance Service, the Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office, and the Rochester Police. The executive director, George Beech, is a Baptist pastor
Verbatim
Beech: “When someone has the fire department or the police department show up at their house, it’s usually the worst day of their life. While first responders did a very good job of making sure that people were OK, but essentially they dropped off an emotional cliff. What chaplains do then as part of the solution is to provide a segue from that moment where they receive this really terrible news, using triage counseling to help them on the worst day of their life.”