Marc Kovar
Executive Vice President
Get help if you need it…now
At the State PBA meeting on Dec. 5, I took a minute to ask all
members to be their sisters’ and brothers’ keepers. We know it
was a time of year when we can all get down, and I wanted to
make sure we were there to help each other should anybody
have tough times that would lead to alcohol or drug abuse,
mental health issues or worse.
And then we lose four of our members who took their own
lives during the month.
As I was driving to those departments to help the members
who lost a colleague or calling to try and provide whatever they
needed as quickly as possible, I was angry. Angry, of course,
over the fact that members thought there was no other option
but to take their lives. And angry because they didn’t get the
help they needed, the help that is out there.
So I’m speaking up here to tell you all to get the help. There’s
no shame in asking for help. Times are getting tougher and
tougher, and it seems like we never get a break. You’re work-
ing extra road jobs to make a little extra money because you’re
only getting a 2-percent raise, if that. The extra work is adding
stress on you and your family. Or, like many of our corrections
officers, you are told you have to work back-to-back shifts, and
you can’t go to your cousin’s wedding or watch your kid play in
a game.
That stuff takes a toll on you. It’s proven.
But that’s why I’m urging you not to be afraid to get the help.
Nobody has to know about it if you don’t want to tell them. The
services we provide are 100 percent confidential unless you
choose to share your experiences.
The resources we have available will make you grateful that
you made the call for help. Cherie Castellano, who runs the Cop
2 Cop 24-hour suicide prevention and mental health hotline,
does a phenomenal job. Our two PBA therapists, Dr. Gene Ste-
fanelli and Dr. Michael Bizzarro, will find a way to meet with
you anytime and even anywhere. They are there to listen when
you might just need somebody to talk to who understands what
you are feeling.
The PBA Peer Assistance Response Team will also respond
immediately. The co-chair, Moe Farallo, is a walking, talking,
always-smiling example of how getting help can change your
life. Our former peer assistance chair, retired member Ken
Burkert, now works at Princeton House, one of the treatment
facilities in New Jersey that has helped so many of our mem-
bers. Nobody know what you are going through like Kenny
does.
And if you need to get away to get some help, we can get you
to Florida House, a treatment facility in Deerfield Beach, Flor-
ida. State President Pat Colligan, Moe and I have checked out
Florida House. It’s a top-notch facility.
So there’s no reason to take your own life. I hear about marital
troubles and financial troubles, and I can imagine how bad it
must be to go through these terrible times.
But there is help. Doctors might need to put you on medica-
tion. Or you might need two weeks off to clear your head. Your
work doesn’t have to know that. Get a doctor’s note, call out sick
and clear your head. Or see that therapist every two weeks. Let
them know what’s going on emotionally.
Or if you are going out seven nights a week and fear that you
might have a drinking problem, we have bottles and badges
groups that are Alcohol Anonymous just for cops. Nobody has
to know you are going. And here’s a news flash: There is proba-
bly somebody in your department who is already going.
Let’s everybody keep our eyes open even more now that we
had such tragic losses in December. This is not just the State
Delegates and the Local presidents looking out. Everybody
must be on watch, all the way up to the chiefs.
There is no reason to be in fear or feel ashamed. This is not
1990. We are embracing your problems. We want to help you.
Please join me in sending our thoughts and prayers to the
family, friends and colleagues of Jersey City Lieutenant Christo-
pher Robateau, who was killed in an accident on the New Jersey
Turnpike on Jan. 5 while on his way to work.
And join me in welcoming a great next four years under the
leadership of New Jersey’s new governor, Phil Murphy, and our
newly elected officials in the state senate and general assembly.
We are very excited about the future and what we expect to be a
memorable and successful working relationship. d
Welcome new PBA State Delegates
The following new Local State Delegates were sworn in
during the NJ State PBA meeting on Dec. 5 at Pines Manor
in Edison:
• Paul Perez, Red Bank Local 39
• Frank Pelaez, Guttenberg Local 88
• Scott N. Christofides, Middlesex Borough Local 181
• Justin Insalaco, West Windsor Township Local 271
• Douglas Shortway, Kinnelon Local 341
www.njcopsmagazine.com
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