LAS VEGAS, NV – Last week, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) held a press conference in Las Vegas to highlight nearly $1 million in federal funding they secured to provide mental health training and support to thousands of firefighters, law enforcement officers, and first responders. The senators announced this funding earlier this year as part of the Community Project Funding they secured in the FY24 bipartisan government funding package.
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Southern Nevada first responders get a boost for mental health services
By Ricardo Torres-Cortez
- The touch of cold water unnerves Clark County Deputy Fire Chief Rian Glassford.
- “I hate it when my hands touch cold water,” Glassford said Friday, explaining that it brings him back to a tragic day nearly two decades ago when he pulled a boy out of a pool, a toddler who later died.
- “I can still take you to that house. I can tell you exactly where it was, and I can tell you every single thing that happened,” Glassford said.
- He was speaking from Metropolitan Police Department headquarters where Sens. Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto announced nearly $1 million in federal dollars for mental health services dedicated to Southern Nevada first responders.
- Rosen opened her remarks by praising those in the profession. “Your work is crucial to the health and well-being of Southern Nevada, and we recognize the risks you take every day as you put on your uniforms and you leave your home,” she said. “You put your life on the line every day for our community, and for that we are forever grateful.”
- Sheriff Kevin McMahill has repeatedly said that mental health resources are a priority for his department. “I believe if we take care of our first responders better than we ever have, they will in turn take care of our community better than they ever have,” he said in a statement. “The money that Clark County Fire Department Deputy Chief Glassford, Senator Cortez Masto, and Senator Rosen secured, will help fund programs that will make this a reality.”
KLAS Las Vegas: Rosen, Cortez Masto highlight funding they secured to support first responders’ mental health
Anchor: “Our first responders put their lives on the line to keep our community safe, and that could put a toll on their mental health. Today, Nevada’s Democratic Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen announcing they have secured nearly a million dollars in funding to support first responders’ mental health. It will be used to improve mental health programs and support for first responders, which includes mental health training, peer-to-peer counseling, as well as other resources.”
KVVU Las Vegas: Rosen, Cortez Masto highlight funding they secured to support first responders’ mental health
Anchor: “Studies show the average person may experience two or three traumatic events in their lifetime. But for first responders, that number can run into the hundreds over their careers. Today, Nevada Senators Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto announced a nearly $1 million grant to expand the County’s ability to help police and firefighters cope with stressors on the job. A deputy fire chief spoke on the impact calls can have on the men and women who answer them every day.”
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