WENATCHEE – Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison announced that his department’s Behavioral Health Unit (BHU) has been awarded a $49,100 grant from the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WACJTC) for officer wellness promotion activities for fiscal years July 2024 through June 2025. The grant will fund a variety of programs aimed at improving the mental health and well-being of law enforcement officers.
Grant approvals include:
– Peer Support Training
– Serious Accident Stress Management Training
– Neurofeedback Machine
– PTSD Workshop for Police Officers and Their Spouses
– Continuing education materials and books
This grant follows a previous WACJTC Officer Wellness Grant awarded to Chelan County in 2023. Sheriff Morrison emphasized the importance of continually seeking outside funding to ensure optimal resource utilization, maintain fiscal responsibility and meet resident expectations for services.
Ana Gonzalez, BHU Program Manager and Licensed Mental Health Counselor, played a key role in securing this funding. Over the past two years, her successful grant applications have resulted in eight grants awarded for a staggering total of $1,970,588.24. Of these, three grants totaling $268,578 will go towards Officer Wellness and five grants totaling $1,702,010.24 will go towards the Behavioral Health Unit.
BHU is a collaborative response program that partners mental health professionals and case managers with law enforcement officers to respond to calls regarding behavioral health and social service needs. This collaboration connects individuals to appropriate community resources and provides immediate crisis response and follow-up. The primary goal is to divert individuals with behavioral health issues from the criminal justice and emergency medical systems.
Sheriff Morrison expressed his deep appreciation for the support and cooperation he received from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Wenatchee Police Department and East Wenatchee Police Department in implementing the Officer Wellness Program and the community behavioral health initiative.
