The Corporation is organized exclusively for providing crisis intervention training and response services to first responders and community members with a goal of equipping individuals and/or agencies to deal with critical incidents, within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), or the corresponding provision of any subsequent federal tax law.
We can help your agency with proper protocols for funerals, arranging for extra support for the agency during the days immediately following the incident, making sure the family is aware of the benefits available to them, and more. The more you prepare and train in ADVANCE, the better for all!
We offer support and resources for LEO’s “Law Enforcement Officers” and Dispatchers who want help with:
- family issues (we have programs for spouses and families)
- financial matters
- suicide prevention, intervention, and follow-up
- alcohol and/or substance abuse problems
- spiritual issues
- other personal concerns
We have a chaplains’ component within our program, which offers great benefit to many officers.
For those who have received the training, we now have a great law in Alabama that defines our communication as “privileged.”
WHY WE DO THIS
We do this because we have seen it help other Officers and Dispatchers.
We do this because it works!
We do this because it’s needed and it makes sense.
It’s no secret that a law enforcement career places unique stressors on cops. We’re good at what we do because we can exist on Adrenalin and caffeine; we’re doggedly determined, fiercely loyal, and always “in control.” We remain stoic and professional in the face of the senseless tragedy we view daily. Despite the low pay, long hours, and no “normal” life on holidays and weekends, we report for work as scheduled because the battle of good versus evil rages on. We know that without us, anarchy would rule society. Only a cop understands that this is who we are, not just what we do. We really are 24/7. The bottom line is that what makes us good at our jobs does take its toll on the rest of our lives. We’re taught to “keep it all in” from the first day at the academy, to protect our families, because society just doesn’t understand the cop sub-culture and because it’s just not “police” to show emotion. Every day, police face high-stress events – situations that hold the potential to invoke powerful emotions which have the potential to interfere with our ability to function, either at the scene or later. Shootings, accidents, use of physical force, injuries, seeing injured victims (especially children), deaths (especially line-of-duty-deaths), suicides (especially police suicides), sudden health problems, and the myriad of tragic events that we witness happening to others (and ourselves!) daily are all examples of critical incidents. But sometimes, our “survival techniques” are self-destructive.
DID YOU KNOW
- the life expectancy of a cop is 59 years (78.56 years for civilians)
- there are 125-150 cop suicides each year; two to three times as many cops kill themselves each year than are killed by a bad guy!
- there is a 72% divorce rate among 10-year veterans
- alcoholism among cops is twice the national average
- domestic abuse is twice the national average
THIS DOESN’T HAVE TO BE; THAT’S WHY WE’RE HERE.
We’re cops just like you. We’re here to respond and help you deal with the physical, emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and spiritual effects of job-related stresses. You are not alone! If you have any questions, please get in touch with us.
You should know this about us too:
ALLEAPS is made up of professional emergency responders who care enough to volunteer their time to “be there” for their brothers and sisters in tough times. ALLEAPS is privately funded. We have no employees, no government grants, and we are independent of being “controlled” by any agency or department. ALLEAPS proudly provides focused, practical peer support and training to emergency responders without cost.
Our purpose, motivation, and reason for existence are for the same reason you do your job. We are your fellow officers who answer the same calls, deal with the same people, write the same reports, and experience the same unique challenges as you do. If you have experience from the interior of our law enforcement brotherhood, you have brothers and sisters at ALLEAPS that understand things the way you do.
Statute 36-21-14
In the State of Alabama, statute 36-21-14 provides all Emergency Responders with privileged and confidential communications with a peer who has been trained and appointed by their Chief/Sheriff as a Certified Peer Support Member.
The Peer Support appointment form is on this website under the Members Only section. Download and complete the form which includes having your Chief/Sheriff sign the order, you can mail the form to:
LT. Heath Carpenter, SBI
State Coordinator, ALLEAPS
104 Adris Place, Suite 20
Dothan, AL 36303
Tim P. Faulk, PhD, CTTS
Clinical Director, ALLEAPS
1450 Ross Clark Circle, Suite 3
Dothan, AL 36301
Download Instructions and Blank Peer Support Form Here
Statewide Peer Support Dispatch
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), provides a toll-free peer support telephone number available to all emergency responders (including dispatchers) and their families. Your call will be answered 24/7 365 days by ALEA Central Dispatch resulting in the activation of peer support personnel (regardless of your agencies participation in a peer program).
Since October 2017, ALLEAPS has worked to develop and provide a quality peer support program with the goals of assisting law enforcement officers experiencing personal and/or professional stress-related problems . All peer support communication is privileged and confidential per Alabama Statue 36-21-14.
The goal of Peer Support in Alabama is to make contact with an officer or an agency within thirty minutes of receiving the call; and provide a consistent and effective standard of care for those who answer the call and protect others.
Should you or your agency need assistance, please call: 833 219-2461
Heath Carpenter, LT, SBI
Tim P. Faulk, PhD
John Gallups, Chaplain
ALLEAPS/ALEA State Coordinator
ALLEAPS, Clinical Director
ALLEAPS, Chaplain Coordinator
(334) 726-3250
(334) 701-9624
(334) 201-2432
Romans 13:4-5 (NLT)
4 The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing
wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you.
They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do
what is wrong. 5 So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment,
but also to keep a clear conscience.