H.O.P.E Beyond The Badge

Mike Peterson returns to the podcast - He is a Veteran, a federal LEO, and a mindfulness expert who also works in the First Responder Mental Health Field. Mike shares his story with raw, unflinching, honesty – he speaks about his own pathway into service, his military deployments, thehardship and loss he and his fellow soldiers endured – how he reacted to those difficult stressors in real time, and the impact those events had on hi...

Erin Lynch is a Suicide Loss Survivor. She lost her father Eddie Lynch, a 35 year Boston Firefighter to Suicide in 2014. Erin shares what it was like being raised by a firefighter, she discusses the dynamics of her family, speaks openly about the day that her father passed, the days, weeks, months, and years that followed.

She talks about the initial shock and turmoil, she describes the weight of her grief and how she was impacted b...

Brianna McCarty joins us on the podcast and shares how she was inspired by a family legacy in law enforcement, which led her to pursuing a career in policing where she gained firsthand experience in the realities and challenges of the profession.Brianna not only talks about her career in law enforcement, she talks about the calls she responded to that stayed with her, the ones that impacted her, and caused disruption in her life; p...

Chief Michael Assad joins the podcast and shares with us about his career in law enforcement and some of the mental health challenges he has faced himself throughout that career. He talks about the importance of prioritizing family, not just for himself but for his officers as well. Chief Assad also explains the specific steps he has taken to implement a culture of wellness within his department, how he incentivizes exercise and fi...

Scott & Lorena Bergan return to the podcast and join us for a follow up. They share a story about Compassion, Love, the Desire to Help others - Family and Loss. They describe their daughter Kaitlin and how she lived, the passion she had for life, her motivated and enthusiastic approach to entering the fire service, her love of the job, along with the grief they experienced when she died by suicide. The Bergan's also update ...

Barb Bigalke joins us on the podcast.

Barb is the founder of the Center for Suicide Awareness, a 501 c3 non-profit where they create the kind of mental health support that doesn't wait for someone to hit rock bottom. No red tape, no judgment, just real, early intervention. Barb talks about working for the department of justice delivering death notifications, and how those duties led her to an awareness about the impacts of death by ...

Sean Kilbreth joins us on the podcast and shares about his experiences in law enforcement, his path to wellness and continued service.

Sean has been a police officer for 26 years, he joins Linda and Jay to discuss his career - including his experience in an officer involved shooting. Sean shares how the job impacted his mental health, his family relationships, how stigma played a role in his life, how mindfulness and other recovery ...

Kammie Juzwin, PsyD is a clinical psychologist and holds professional certification as a Police Psychologist.  She is an embedded Psychologist Consultant for Bartlett Illinois Police Department, where her primary role is officer wellness and support.  She provides wellness and officer-involved critical incident consultation to individual officers or to departments, participates actively as a volunteer on several crisis intervention...

Brian shares with us how and why he chose to serve in the Marine Corps, his transition into a career in law enforcement following his military service, the many roles he held as a cop, and his pride in service.

Brian talks openly about the challenges he faced, the struggles he endured, how he had been coping, and how a new friendship that blossomed into a mentorship gave way to a new pathway of healing, of coming to understand his ...

David Berez is a retired Police Officer and Drug Recognition Expert, having served more than 20 years with the East Windsor Police Department and a total of 33 years in Emergency Services, including EMS and OEM. Following his retirement, Mr. Berez is now the President and Founder of Six4 Consultants, a Public Safety Consulting Firm. Mr. Berez is also the author of A Resilient Life: A Cops Journey in Pursuit of Purpose, co-author of...

Chief Deboard joins us on the podcast and discusses her 38 year career in law enforcement, from how it started, early experiences on the job, proving herself, climbing the ranks, the associated pride, commitment, as well as all the pressure and stress that went along with it. Chief Deboard shares about some of the strategies she began using to manage mounting stress, she talks about her experience going through Boulder Crest's Warr...

Danielle and Karla join us on the podcast and discuss their family connection to First Response, their lived experiences as first responder family members, and why the work they do serving first responders at Boston Firefighters Credit Union is more than just a job.

They also share with us the many ways they can assist first responders towards achieving their financial goals, plan for long term stability, and discuss their Guardian...

Katherine Boyle - the daughter of a Philadelphia Police Lieutenant - joins us on the podcast and details her experience of growing up in a first responder family. She shares her unique perspective on the challenges faced within first responder households, and discusses the work she does with Beyond the Uniform, where she uses her experience to help families build stronger bonds and stay connected, despite the demands of the job. Ka...

David joins us on the podcast and shares his story of what led him into the fire service, the love he found for the job once he was there, the challenges he faced through transition into retirement, and the importance of finding purpose post service.

David talks about the importance of early introduction to mental health and wellness concepts for first responders, the importance of consistently revisiting these topics throughout a f...

Erin Lynch is a Suicide Loss Survivor. She lost her father Eddie Lynch, a 35 year Boston Firefighter to Suicide in 2014. Erin shares what it was like being raised by a firefighter, she discusses the dynamics of her family, speaks openly about the day that her father passed, the days, weeks, months, and years that followed.

She talks about the initial shock and turmoil, she describes the weight of her grief and how she was impacted ...

Tracy Ryan joined First Responder Therapy Dogs in August 2021 with her dog Sparkie in an effort to spread therapy dog love to First Responders on the East Coast.  She resides in East Bridgewater, MA, where she is a High School Guidance Counselor, mom to 2 boys, and wife of a firefighter.  Blaze most recently joined the ranks as her 2nd FRTD certified dog in 2025.  Being able to share her dogs with first responders, has been an abso...