One year after the Camp Fire, people are doing a lot of reflecting: on so much loss, so much devastation and so much recovering left to do. Some people say this one year mark seems like an eternity. For others, if feels like the fire just happened. The community has scattered. Some people are rebuilding, some want to come back, some know they never will.
First responders are members of their communities, but they are also apart from them. They are expected to save people. Or at least try to. But, in small communities where most people know each other, being a first responder can have a different meaning. You’ve experienced the enormity of the loss along with friends, neighbors and family members. And yet, you still have to go to work, doing what you tried to do to save your town. It can feel overwhelming.
In this segment of Insight, North State Public Radio’s Sarah Bohannon talks with Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea. Honea requested money from the North Valley Community Foundation’s Butte Strong Fund for the Butte County First Responders Trauma Response Program for law enforcement and fire agencies. The program provides mental health and wellness services, and has developed the "BCSO Health and Wellness App."