When FBI Supervisory Special Agent Paul Vick retired from his position, he indeed didn’t withdraw from his mission. Still, a member of the Wichita Crime Commission, Paul hasn’t slowed down one bit, founding the Blue Dragon International Consultants, LLC, with the finest men he knew only last year.
Blue Dragon International Consultants is a relatively new agency but combines several decades of history between the legends who make up this team. Vick, a former detective, an FBI supervisory special agent became intensely dedicated to meeting the emotional recovery needs of front-line men and women in police and firefighter units nationwide. Suicide after suicide, Paul and his Blue Dragon brothers, Dale and Stephen Vick, Richard Morris, James Frawley, and Mark S. Jones, realized early on that their conferences must offer high-level training to the men and women who needed it most. They would have to be impactful. They would have to save lives, and they would have to prepare front lines before traumatic events ever occurred to walk out solutions after the facts. Over the last two months, two more officers within Paul’s local department in Wichita, Kansas have taken their own lives, leaving families behind to pick up the pieces. They never saw it coming.
As a new era has dawned on the American public, an equally catastrophic reality has hit local police and fire departments nationwide. The Veteran’s Administration estimates that 22 active duty and ex-military take their lives every day, but no number reflects the loss of first responder’s families experience due to rampant suicides.
The crisis is different today. Violent aggression in our neighborhood schools and churches hit too close to home, and the snapshots of officers who have had to use deadly force, or who have seemingly lost control under pressure, are under such scrutiny – it can feel like a battle that cannot be won.
“Over the last few years, an evident hostility has been brooding in some local communities towards their officers. How do we support those who support us, when they’ve seen too much? Where do they turn when they are repeatedly harassed, disparaged, and in some instances, even marched against them? Little thought is given to the people who run toward the danger, and when they go home at the end of their shift, how much of that pain and discouragement goes with them?” asked Vick.
Daily, first responders see abused children and babies; they see overdoses and gang behavior, they see burned flesh and homes burned to the ground – they are everyone’s rock until they are not. However, the public feels about those who protect and serve, until and unless trauma is addressed more comprehensively, it is easy to see how this gap between first responders and the communities they serve could widen.
Blue Dragons have put together conference training that not only emphasizes tactical response training to deter and de-escalate violence and destruction but also recovery training vital to first responders and their spouses. The title, ‘Developing a Bulletproof Mind and a Bulletproof Heart’ was not considered lightly; it has great significance. Spouses of first responders and ex-military can join the conference free of charge. Officers can get TCOLE and POST credit for attending.
In the public sector, most realize that when a person goes through a traumatic event, or even if they witness one, it may take significant time to heal from experience. Officers and firefighters often return to duty in as little as 48 hours or less and are expected to perform as usual even if attending counseling sessions. General public attendance, side-by-side the first responder community, will bring us all closer together and help to heal our communities.
Hear from Paul Vick and the rest of the Blue Dragon International Consultants – as well as subject matter experts in stopping ISIS threats, civil rights liability, and relationships – at 9100 N. Normandale St. Fort Worth, Texas starting at 8 AM on August 30-31, Thursday and Friday before Labor Day Weekend. Tickets are on sale now at BDIC.net.
Blue Dragon International Consultants, LLC is headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, and exists to offer high-level training and recovery resources to local police and fire departments, security details, and Independent School Districts throughout America, in addition to services provided at a federal and international level. Go to BDIC.net for dates and registration to attend upcoming events near you. All vendor inquiries should be directed to OffBeat Business Media at Susan@OffBeatBusiness.com or 214-714-0495 for details.