Thank a First Responder Day: Supporting Those Who Serve | Danny from Fortem Australia

In this special Thank a First Responder Day episode of Voices in VET, we're joined by Danny from Fortem Australia to discuss the people behind the uniforms and the importance of supporting first responders and their families. 

Thank a First Responder Day, held annually on 10 June, was created by Fortem Australia to recognise the incredible contribution first responders make to communities across Australia. 

Throughout this conversation, we explore the realities of frontline service, the impact emergency work can have on responders and their families, and the evolving conversation around mental health and wellbeing within the emergency services sector. 

We also discuss the role community connection plays in supporting first responders, the challenges many face during and after their careers, and how organisations like Fortem Australia are helping provide support, resources and opportunities for responders and their families. 

At Allens Training, many trainers, partners and team members are current or former first responders, making this an important conversation for both the training sector and the wider community. 

Whether you're a first responder, family member, trainer, student or community member, this episode offers valuable insights into the people who dedicate their lives to serving others and the ways we can all play a role in supporting them. 

Learn more about Thank a First Responder Day: https://fortemaustralia.org.au/tafrd-2/

Learn more about Fortem Australia: https://fortemaustralia.org.au/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to another episode of Voices in Vet. I'm your host, Taylor Leeson, and today we're recognizing and celebrating Thankor First Responder Day, held each year on the 10th of June to acknowledge the incredible contributions first responders make to our community. Thinker First Responder Day was created by Fordham Australia, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting the mental health and well-being of first responders and their families. When we think of first responders, we often think about the people who arrive when things have gone wrong. The paramedics, police officers, firefighter, SES volunteers, and emergency service personnel who step forward when others need help the most. Behind every first responder is also a family, support network, and community that experiences the realities of frontline services alongside them. At Allen's training, the first responder community is deeply connected to who we are. Many of our trainers and former trainers are current or former first responders, bringing real-world experience into training rooms across Australia. That connection extends throughout the organization. Founder Jim Allen spent 28 years as a paramedic, while senior leadership team member Jimmy Allen spent 11 years as a police officer before becoming a civilian prosecutor, witnessing firsthand the positive shift in conversations around first responder mental health and well-being. Today we'll be exploring the importance of Thank a First Responder Day, the evolving conversations around first responder well-being and the support available to first responders and their families, both during and after service. And joining us for the conversation is Danny from Fordham, Australia. Welcome to the podcast.

SPEAKER_01 1:23

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 1:24

To start, can you tell us a little bit about your own background and connection to the emergency service community?

SPEAKER_01 1:28

So I was a police officer in the UK first. I worked for the Westmidden Police Service for uh a couple of years and then was lucky enough to emigrate to Australia back in 2010. And then I joined the Queensland Police Service. So I was a police officer here in Queensland for 11 years, worked in several different regions and areas. And yeah, I was in the police service up until 2021 when um yeah, I saw the opportunity to go to Fordham and do the work that I am doing today, and yeah, there you have it. I jumped straight in, both feet.

SPEAKER_00 2:02

Can you tell us a little bit about Fordham and the work you do supporting first responders and their families?

SPEAKER_01 2:07

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So um Fordham has um been around since 2019. Um we're a national not-for-profit that supports the mental health and wellbeing of all first responders and their families. We provide holistic support basically from the moment someone becomes a recruit through to 10 years post-service. So it's that just full wraparound support. We provide social connection and well-being activities and engagements. We provide mental health literacy and mental health resources, all of them bespoke for the first responder community. We provide um counseling and psychology services, and we also offer treatment for more serious mental health challenges and issues, like treatments for PTSD and things like that. Um, and we also offer a career management service, which is basically designed to support first responders that uh have come to the end of the journey, at the end of their work life cycle, and um need to transition into the next stage of their career or next stage of their life. So we help people through that retirement phase, understanding the unique challenges that face first responders when they transition out. Um, so whether that's finding a new career, helping them into retirement, um, and in many ways we help them provide a support that can help them reinvigorate their their passion and their love for first responder work anyway. And uh, and so yeah, we find that a lot of people that come to our service actually re-engage with agencies and uh continue their career and go on to get promotions and stuff like that. So, yeah, yeah. Provide a whole service.

SPEAKER_00 3:52

That's amazing. It's from the start of the recruit up until then they retire and after that as well.

SPEAKER_01 3:58

Yeah, yeah. So for you know, for argument's sake, with the Queensland Police Service, we start very early and we go out and we speak to all of the recruits as they come through the academies because one of our main focuses prevention is better than cure. If we can stop something from happening, definitely, then it's far better. Uh, and it's far better for the individuals, far better for their families, it's far better for the agencies, it's far better for the communities they serve. Yep. So um, so yeah, that that's our focus. So prevention, first and foremost, challenges arise, which they will eventually with first responders. The work is relentless, it's challenging. Um, the support is there. So yeah, Fortum um tries to do everything we can to provide the support they need.

SPEAKER_00 4:41

Perfect. For people who may not be familiar with Thank a First Responder Day, what is the day all about and why was it created?

SPEAKER_01 4:48

Thank a First Responder Day is a national day of recognition for all first responders, um, where the communities can uh come together and really kind of show our appreciation, our gratitude for all of the sacrifices that the first responders make for the community. It's um being a first responder, it's it's it's it's challenging undoubtedly. Um it's um a selfless role. Um and in most cases, in almost all cases, it's kind of a thankless role as well. Uh and so by having a day uh where we can really as a community reflect and you know provide that gratitude and turn that gratitude into action for these amazing people, um, then it's only going to benefit you know the people out there on the front line. And and it really does make a difference. Having that just a simple you know, act of recognition and thanks makes a huge, huge difference.

SPEAKER_00 5:49

Yeah, especially because sometimes the the first responders turn up on the worst day as well.

SPEAKER_01 5:54

The worst day, yeah. And I more often than not, that is it. Yeah, if you if you're gonna call triple zero, it's because something terrible has happened. And you know, you don't want to find yourself in a position where you dial in triple zero and no one turns up. Yeah. You know, you you need people to turn up, we need these people to continue putting themselves in harm's way in these situations to to help us, to save us, and all that. And uh to do that, uh, we need to give them our support, and that support can start with just a little bit of gratitude.

SPEAKER_00 6:26

Yeah. What does the day mean personally to the first responders and the families that you work with?

SPEAKER_01 6:30

I'm sure if I ask 10 different people that give you 10 different answers, generically it it means a lot. When you when you speak to them, when you see when they turn up to these thank a first responder day events, and uh and we provide them the messages from the community, you know, the messages that have been written by children, um, you know, and and basically all members of the community, we kind of provide them and they they light up. And I think for most first responders, you go to work every day, you do the same things every day. It might be different people, different situations, but yeah, it's like an endless cycle, the jobs never stop. And it everyone, um, or everyone that I certainly have worked with feel like eventually they're not making a difference, they're not making an impact. It's just the same things every day. Um, but when I was able to step away from policing and step out of the frame so I can see the full picture and I can see these stories from people uh about how a first responder has changed their life or how they've saved their lives in many instances, you realise the positive impact that they have made. And so I think just really shifting the perspective of the first responders, and that's what these messages do. Like they they realise that what they are doing is making a difference. Although it doesn't feel like that a lot of the time, it it really is making a difference, and the community really appreciates the work that they do.

SPEAKER_00 8:03

Yeah, and they don't sign up to be a first responder to get the thank yous either.

SPEAKER_01 8:07

No, no, it's no exactly. That's that's not what it is at all. You're you're there because it's it's like almost a calling. It sounds cheesy, but you ask everybody, it's it's the same, it's just a desire to to serve, it's a desire to help people, and so you go out and you do it just time and time again. Whether you get thanks or not, people just go out and they just put themselves in the most dangerous situations. You've only got to look back over situations in the past, and you'll see people running away as you would, and then you'll see first responders running the opposite way, and that's just the people that they are.

SPEAKER_00 8:44

People often see the uniform, lights, and sirum, but not always the human side behind the role. What do you wish more Australians understood about the first responders?

SPEAKER_01 8:52

It's easy to forget sometimes that uh there is a human behind the the uniform. We often use the description that the uniform can act as a bit of a container, right? So as uh people go out onto the front line and you know you can see some really horrible scenes, you can be exposed to some really nasty things that that that most people will never see in their lifetime. But a first responder can't panic, they can't react in in an adverse way, everything needs to be uh composed, they need to remain focused, they need to remain driven, they need to think about what they're doing and stuff like that. So it doesn't stop these emotions from happening, but you just can't let them out. Like the the uniform can act as a bit of a a shield, and that takes its toll on a human like over time. It's like it's it's only natural. And and I think people forget that sometimes, you know, and at the end of the day, when the shift finishes, they take off the uniform, but everything that's happened still remains, and they have to go home, and they have to be a mother, they have to be a father, they face the same financial difficulties as everybody else, the same relationship challenges, family issues, like all the same stresses that everybody has on top of what they've seen and been exposed to that day. And uh, and I think that can be quite easily forgotten. Yeah, that that's that's probably the the main things. It's a really, really difficult job at times. And humans are imperfect. Yeah, we've got to give a lot of respect to the people that actually do wear any kind of uniform and and do this job because without them we'd be knackered, basically.

SPEAKER_00 10:40

Yeah, definitely. Do you think that's one of the challenges or pressures that is brought to first responders that we may not realise?

SPEAKER_01 10:46

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. 100%. There's I mean there's there's so many challenges, um, really. And you know, you speak to again several different first responders that all give you a different challenge that they face, but that's certainly one of them. You've obviously got obvious ones like the the shift work and the the critical incidents and the the dangerous situations that you'd be in, but it's it's often repetition of the exposure of of things that they're you know faced with out on the job. Um and when one job's finished, another one starts. You know, there's no big break, there's no big gap, the phones go in. Yep. Again, you've you've got to respond to that triple O call. There's no there's no rest, there's no downtime. Like you've you've got to go again. Yep. Uh, and so it can be relentless. And so um ensuring these first responders have the right support so they can continue answering the call um is is is is our main focus.

SPEAKER_00 11:46

Yeah, and I think it's like you just mentioned before that the incident that happens, it stays with them afterwards, and then if they've got another call, there's not that time to process, and I think we forget about that.

SPEAKER_01 11:57

Yeah, yeah. I mean, it's you're right, it's just one call to the next. I mean, I can give you a few uh incidents, you know, that that I've been to, and you know, one of one of the hardest ones to process emotionally, I think, as a first responder, is is when you have to um go and give a family member the worst news ever and say, I'm sorry that your your loved one has has died as a result of a tragedy. And you're literally turning up to someone's house and ruining their entire life, and then you go and do that, and then you leave, and then you're off to another job. And it could be going to ruin someone else's life, or it could be going to do you know something else, but you've just got to switch off that emotion, and now we're gonna go to this one, and um, yeah, like I say, it's not the uniform used to get described as a shield, um, you know, where this kind of stuff doesn't affect you, but um, as I said earlier, we refer to it as a container, it goes in, it's just it's not allowed to come out because you've got a job to do, but it's there, it goes in, and then the first responders have to have to process it and have to deal with it and manage it, and that's that's where the help comes in.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Yeah, it's super important. How does frontline work impact the families behind the scenes?

SPEAKER_01 13:15

I think it can impact them in a variety of ways. Um, one thing that's becoming more and more of a focus in in the mental health world of first responders is the is um the ripple effect that uh life as a first responder can have. So we've learned more and more things about vicarious trauma and secondary trauma and all of all of these kind of things. So the family members are exposed to to all of this as the support network for the first responder. They can come home, they could shed details about you know the jobs that they've been to, which exposes the the loved ones at home, or just the the the raw emotion that the first responder feels after a shift. It's the family members that are going to see that first, they're gonna see the the signs of the challenges that are facing them. And it can, when you care about someone, that that can eat away at you. Yeah, you know, when you see someone that you you love struggling or trying to manage something. And then you've got all the obvious things. You've got like um the challenge of shift work, and I know that exposes a a lot of jobs as well, but you know, night shift, you know, first responders can't really say no to a call out if a call-out comes your way. You've you've got to go. It it means people miss birthdays and anniversaries and all of those are the things. It puts a a huge burden on the family member at home. They might be doing more school pickups, school drop-offs, you know, this so it does shift a a lot of work on onto the person at home uh as well. And they can act as the emotional anchor as well for the first responder. You know, they support networks are critical to everybody's mental health and and well-being. And so when you're that primary support person for a first responder, it can be it can be difficult. So it's important that the family members get the support they need as well.

SPEAKER_00 15:12

Yeah, so it's both having it's both that the family needs support, but then it's also the first responder needs support from their family as well.

SPEAKER_01 15:18

Oh 100%. It's you know, it goes goes both ways. The family member might need support, the first responder needs support. It's you know, the social networks have been proven time and time again to be one of the biggest protective factors for mental health and well-being. If you have a strong social network, if you have a strong support system, then you're far better off psychologically. Um, and so it's never been more important for first responders. It's one of the first things we teach the recruits as they come through. Maintain your friendships, main, you know, keep your connections, make sure you prioritize time for yourself, prioritize time for your family. Um, and uh yeah, and everybody supports one another. Um, but sometimes it can be a heavy, heavy burden or a heavy load, and and people need help.

SPEAKER_00 16:08

Conversations around mental health and well-being and emergency services has changed a lot over the years. Are we seeing a positive change?

SPEAKER_01 16:15

100%. Yeah, yeah, 100%. It's I can see the difference now from when I joined Forum in 2021. There's a huge difference from then to when I started my service, and I I don't know anything about the services that was available to me in the UK. I was probably naive in in terms of my mental health, but I can tell you that um although stigma is still a challenge and it's still um uh an issue that everybody's working hard to overcome, it's much better now than than it has been. We see more and more people putting a hand up for help and doing it at the the right time, like seeking support early is is is critical. It's it's much better. Um, but yeah, we I mean we've still got a long way to go, but uh the amount of support on offer has has improved immensely. Um I still think there needs to be a focus on those um independent supports um and the variety of options available for first responders is still limited, you know, less so in in some states. Some states are better than others and have more support offerings. But, you know, people one of the main things is people want to feel safe when they're when they're reaching out for support. They want to have confidence, they want to feel like they're gonna be looked after, um, they want to make sure that it's confidential. Um, safety is is critical. And so having more, you know, independent services available for them away from their respective agencies, as good as all of the support offerings are within, um, I I think is is certainly where we're gonna go in in the future and and hopefully that makes a difference.

SPEAKER_00 18:00

Yeah, sometimes going to someone individual might be easier to open up and say stuff than in-house.

SPEAKER_01 18:06

Oh yeah, 100%. I mean, I can only again I can only speak for myself and for people that I know uh first hand. Um, but you know, I've had conversations when I was when I was uh you know in the agency, and you don't, it's not and it's not like a negative, it's not like a lack of trust. It's just you want to feel as safe as possible. And they teach in policing, there's a policing term, distance equals safety. And it's it's to do with like physical, you're like the further uh an offender is away from you, the safer you are, the closer they get, the danger increases. But I I kind of use that terminology a little bit myself, and if there's uh if you can get a bit of separation from the agency, but still seek the right support and the appropriate support, then people tend to feel safer.

SPEAKER_00 18:57

What are some of the biggest challenges first responders face when it comes to burnout stress or asking for support? I know we just mentioned that they are asking for support more and more now.

SPEAKER_01 19:07

Yeah, burnout's probably one of the biggest challenges, um, and that's a hard one to overcome. There's been lots of research in this space, and burnout comes from several different areas, and and uh there's both the operational burnout and um organizational burnout as well. And research has suggested that there's actually more coming from the organizational side than it is the operational, but you know, it's a it's a combination of of both. So it's it's really difficult to overcome that one. And I think one of the the best ways that we can do it is prioritize that that well-being. So you do need to balance the scales, you know, you can't constantly expose yourself to the stress of the job and the stress of the the jobs that you're facing whilst you're at work and the operational traumas and all that kind of stuff. You do need to take time for yourself, you do need to keep doing those hobbies that that make you happy and help relieve stress. You need to spend time with family, you need to spend time with friends and all these little simple acts that people just kind of take for granted or whatever, that they're so important for you for your mental health and and well-being and can make such a difference in terms of burnout and and stress. And as you've pointed, like reaching out for help, stigma's still a challenge, um, but we are seeing improvements. Yeah, and all I can say is I just encourage people to just you know do do the the research. There is support out there for you. For autumn being one of those organizations that you can reach out to, and um, and and you get that support from wherever you feel safest. And um, yeah, as long as you do that, brilliant.

SPEAKER_00 20:50

Do you think we've seen an improvement in burnout from like let's say 10 years ago to now? Do you think we've improved it's less burnout, or it's still the same?

SPEAKER_01 20:58

My instinct says no, it's getting worse. Um, and the reason it's getting worse is we're asking more and more of our first responders. Um we're living in a world now where natural disasters aren't infrequent, they're becoming more and more frequent, which is we're leaning on our first responders more and more to answer that call and and to manage that. Um you know, unfortunately, if if I focus on police officers for a moment, the the broadness of that job um just continues to to expand and grow. Police officers aren't just uh involved in enforcing law uh anymore. It's I mean, I could go into the nitty gritty, but they do so much, the the the police officers, and it just more and more and more. And there's more boxes to tick, there's more legislation to adhere to. And um, you know, uh everyone's got cameras. Now as well, so they're constantly on more scrutiny than ever before. Uh, and so the the challenge that that faces first responders now I think is is greater than ever. In in some ways, you can say that there's fewer resources. We've probably got more police officers on the road now than than we used to, given the nature of the jobs that we have to respond to. It's still still very, very difficult. So um, yeah, I would say that burnout is actually on the the increase rather than the decrease, but uh they're certainly paying more focus to it now.

SPEAKER_00 22:35

Before you mentioned about the support networks that Fortum creates for first responders, but what does that actually look like?

SPEAKER_01 22:42

Um so Fortum what we do is nationally we we organize what we refer to as social connection and well-being activities across the country. So it um these activities adhere to um the five ways to well-being framework, which is something that was developed by the Royal Melbourne Hospital. Um I'm gonna test my memory, but it's uh the five ways are giving, uh learning, being mindful, being physically active, and connection, being connected to one another. And uh essentially the five ways to well-being framework says that if if you are doing activities that adhere to one or more of these things, it is gonna have a positive effect on your mental health and well-being. So, what Fortum does is we run activities that maybe uh help people connect with one another and is a physical activity, and we might learn a new skill when we're doing it. So, we're doing three of the five ways of the well-being framework. So, as long as you come to that activity, you're gonna seek a bit of a benefit from psychologically. And we refer to it as stealth health because just by coming along and taking part in the activity, it's gonna help you, it is gonna be a benefit. And um, we have our uh community engagement coordinators at these activities that help kind of generate conversations and will games within a game if if you like, that basically just to try and spark connections between the participants. So uh an ambulance family could come in the door and um meet a firefighter family that they've never met before. And the idea is that you come, you have some fun, you meet people that you've never met before, all like-minded people, all of them understand what each other are going through because we're all first responders, we've all kind of lived that life, and uh and connections get built and they exchange numbers, and now these families get together for barbecues and conversations, and their support network has just increased by one. And that's kind of what happens. Uh, also helps build interagency communication and stuff like that, and yeah, that's kind of how it all starts, and then it's just organic from there when people kind of experience it and feel the benefit. Uh, and we know that they do, but they they kind of complete this survey and they come back to us and they give us their feedback, and um, social networks just grow and grow and grow, and then people just take it upon themselves to go, you know what, I enjoyed that, I'm gonna start a surfing club, and then they'll go start one for first responders and they'll start inviting a bunch of people, and it just it grows, and it's yeah, it's quite magic to see it, to be honest. It's it's it's really cool.

SPEAKER_00 25:27

Yeah, it sounds super cool, and and you just mentioned as well, so the events aren't just for the first responders, they can also take some of like their family along to some of them.

SPEAKER_01 25:35

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. And um, you know, there's research that suggests that if if you come with your family, then the well-being benefit is enhanced. So you actually get more of a benefit for yourself by coming along with a family member or your partner or your friend. And and we've done um research that kind of proves that, and uh, and so that's what we we encourage people to do, you know. Uh bring bring your family along because it's not about just building new connections with new people, it's about enhancing the ones that you've already got. And sometimes when you're just at work all the time and you're on shift work and your partner's working, you know, maybe you don't go on a date for a long time, or maybe you don't get to spend that quality time with your kids that you did beforehand, or you know, just life gets in the way. But you come along to a forum event and then everyone has a great time. Uh, you talk about it for weeks gone by and you think, oh, well, we should really make time, like even if it's once a fortnight, once a month, and we should do that again. It makes the world a difference. Yeah, so that's that's what it's about. That's kind of what we do, and it's about inspiring uh and educating people to take this on themselves and keep doing it.

SPEAKER_00 26:53

Yeah, I think that's super unique that they can bring their families along.

SPEAKER_01 26:56

Yeah, yeah, I think I think it is too. Like there's uh there's not many organizations out there that does this kind of thing, and yeah, it's it's really, really impactful.

SPEAKER_00 27:04

What's one thing people don't often think about is what happens after a first responder leaves the front line. Why is that transition such an important part of a conversation?

SPEAKER_01 27:12

Most of it comes down to the biggest challenge when from first responders are leaving service is that that link to uh purpose, that link to I identity. You know, people have um I think we said it earlier in the in the pod, it's it's a calling, like you don't just choose it and go, oh that that'll do. It's it's something that there's just that innate desire to do the job. And so when you do look to transition out, whether it's by your choice or not by your choice, there is that sense of losing your identity when you take off the uniform and you're not allowed to do the job anymore. And that tends to be the the biggest challenge when uh when people leave service, and certainly something that we need to pay attention to.

SPEAKER_00 27:55

Fordham provides career management for support for first responders. Can you tell us a little bit about what that looks like and why it's needed?

SPEAKER_01 28:02

We we do. We provide a it's it's called the Career Management Program, uh, and it's they're designed to support people leaving service no no matter their circumstances. So whether you're age retiring, whether there's a medical discharge, um, whether it's uh it's resignation, maybe you've made that decision yourself. Like this this job is is no longer for me. Um and and that was certainly my case after you know uh 11 years, even though I made the decision, it was still a really difficult one, and one that took me about 18 months, two years post-leaving to kind of accept and be okay with. And there were so many times I thought about going back. So that's it's really challenging, and it all comes back to that identity and you know, what am I offering the community when I'm not doing that? You know, that's who I am. I want to serve providing a program that can help people navigate those feelings, those emotions, that those thought processes, while at the same time helping them realize the value that they have out in the community from a vocational aspect as well. So you develop so many skills as a first responder that you think identify with just that job. Um, but when you actually break it down, the stuff that you do in the job can translate into so many skills that can be applied in so many industries outside of service. And you know, helping people see that and helping people, you know, find new employment or find new training opportunities is is really rewarding, and then they can go on to have a happy, healthy life beyond service, which is you know uh exactly what anybody deserves.

SPEAKER_00 29:50

So yeah, many of Alan's training current partners or trainers are either former or current first responders and they've gone on to start and grow their own business because it's allowed them to continue sharing that knowledge, like you just mentioned, and educating and giving back to the community in a different way with skills that they do already have and experiences that they've got. For first responders who may be approaching a career transition, what advice would you give to them?

SPEAKER_01 30:14

I would let them know. Um, basically I'd reaffirm the things that we've just been talking about that that you do have the skills to go and pursue basically whatever it is that you want to do. I um remember having a distinct conversation with a colleague of mine when I was in service, and um it was about two years before I actually did transition out, and we were looking at job opportunities that we thought we could do, and we were going through seek, and it was so intimidating because I was oh we don't do that, and we haven't got those skills, and that's that's not us, we can't do that. And so, you know, you start Googling jobs that we can do that require no qualifications and stuff, and you just don't realize what you're capable of, and so I would um encourage anybody just to if if it's something that they're thinking about, go go and explore it, go and speak to a professional, um, really look into it, and um just know that you can do pretty much whatever you want because you the amount of skills that you've got are just incredible. And the moment you actually pursue it and you have a look and you see it there written in black and white, that you've got this, you've got this, you've got this, it's it can be life-changing for a lot of people.

SPEAKER_00 31:33

Yeah, and I know we've mentioned that it's for first responders, it's just a calling that they have, it's not something that they wake up one day, it's a calling that they have. So I'm assuming that they don't really think about a neck a backup option or a different career path. Like that's the career that they want, so they don't think about after or happy. 100%.

SPEAKER_01 31:50

Yeah, you you go in and think it's your forever job. I did, everyone else does. It's you know, it's uh, you know, all of the the opportunities that you think about in the future are internally, you know. I'm gonna go into forensics, I'm gonna go and be uh a dog officer, I'm gonna fly polaire, you know, everything's in in internal, uh, and you just you don't think externally at all. Um I didn't consider it one bit um until basically it started to dawn upon me that maybe I haven't got 30 years of service left in me, maybe I actually do need to start thinking about it, and then all that does is just build anxiety and terror because I was like, what can I possibly do? Um, but yeah, people go on, like you've said, go on to have amazing careers or build their own businesses, uh, and a lot of them from zero qualifications because they join the police service or fire service like real early, you know. So um yeah, it's it's pretty remarkable.

SPEAKER_00 32:55

What are some meaningful ways Australians can support first responders beyond just think a first responder day?

SPEAKER_01 33:00

First and foremost, thank you first. Although it's a day, I think we can certainly start to show our gratitude and appreciation all year round for the amazing work that they do. But I I think we we need to not just show our gratitude, we need to turn it into action. And and so Australians can support um in a variety of ways, one of those being supporting Fordham Australia so we can continue to provide these vital services to um first responders out there on the front line so they can continue to turn up for us on our on our worst day. Um and so there's there's plenty of ways to get involved and support Fordham Australia. You can volunteer with us and and help us run these events and and lots of other initiatives. But I suppose the first thing is um I'd encourage everybody to go to our website on uh thankafirstresponderday.org.au. There's a gratitude gallery on there. You can leave a message of gratitude that can be seen by first responders nationally. Uh, and then you've got the option there to to leave a small donation and and help support a first responder because uh for every donation it's you know goes towards uh all of our services that can provide a vital clinical session to someone that really needs it.

SPEAKER_00 34:16

Speaking of donations, Allen's Training would like to offer our support to the cause and to help support first responders and their families by donating a thousand dollars to thank us first responder day.

SPEAKER_01 34:26

Oh, that's amazing. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 34:28

So we also encourage anyone that's watching or listening to contribute what they can and help give back to the people who dedicate so much to serving our communities.

SPEAKER_01 34:36

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 34:37

I don't know if we've already mentioned it already, but can you tell us a little bit more about the important impact that donations like this have and how they help support first responders and their families?

SPEAKER_01 34:46

Yeah, well, being a not-for-profit, like every um dollar that that comes towards Fordham Australia goes directly back out to supporting the first responders on the front line. So it will go towards providing those clinical sessions that we need uh for first responders um that are facing those challenges, the social connection events, the it can help an individual transition out of service. So yeah, rest assured that all of the money gets used to support the people that support us day in, day out.

SPEAKER_00 35:16

Before we finish, what message would you want most listeners to take away from this conversation?

SPEAKER_01 35:21

First and foremost, let's let's remember that the uh people um behind the uniforms are are humans uh and they deserve our gratitude and they deserve our support. And um, there's just so many ways to do that. So, yeah, let's get behind our first responders.

SPEAKER_00 35:39

Yeah, 100%. Now, if someone is listening today and they want to get involved in Think a First Responder Day, where should they start?

SPEAKER_01 35:45

They should start by going to our website, absolutely, um, which is again www.thinkafirstresponderday.org.au. Uh there's countless initiatives on there, but uh I would just encourage everybody to go on there and leave a message of thanks uh for a first responder. If you've got a uh story about a first responder about how they've you know changed your life, um please feel free to to recognize a first responder with uh which is another initiative that we've got going as well. So if um you've got a particular story about how a first responder has done something amazing, please put it in there and we will share that with with the agencies to make sure that it reaches the ears of the right people.

SPEAKER_00 36:30

Danny, thank you so much for coming on the Voices Invent podcast. It's been an insightful conversation in just how simple a thank you can mean to a first responder.

SPEAKER_01 36:38

Absolutely. No, thank you. It's my pleasure. Thank you for the invite. It's been amazing.

SPEAKER_00 36:41

As we wrap up today's conversation, thank a first responder day is a reminder to pause and recognize people who step forward when our communities need them the most. It's also an opportunity to acknowledge the families, friends, support networks who stand beside them throughout their careers. If you'd like to get involved, this thank a first responder day. There are many ways to show your support. That could be taking a moment to thank a first responder, getting involved in a local event, sharing the message with your community, or supporting organizations like Fortum throughout donations, fundraising initiatives that help provide ongoing support to first responders and their families. On behalf of everyone at Allen's Training, thank you to all the first responders, past and present, for the contribution you make to our communities every day. If you'd like to learn more about Thankor First Responder Day, Fortum Australia, or ways that you can support the first responder community, we'll include links in the description. Thank you for listening to Voices and Vet, and we'll see you in the next episode.