Matthew and Elizabeth Fiorenza join us on the podcast .

Matty and Liz are husband and wife, they are both strong advocates for first responder and family mental health and well-being.

Matty is a retired firefighter paramedic with 22 years of service. His journey into the realm of mental health advocacy began a decade into his career when he began facing personal battles with anxiety, stress, and depression, which ultimately led to a diagnosis of PTSD. These experiences fueled his passion to help others in the first responder community. Matty speaks publicly and works with first responders directly to help address critical issues including PTSD recovery, addiction, mental health, and the importance of support within the first responder community. .

Liz is a dedicated professional with a deep commitment to supporting first responders and their families. Particularly spouses, who face the unique challenges associated with this high stress profession. As a mother, and the spouse of a retired first responder, Liz brings a personal understanding to her work, along with a passion to help others navigate the challenges of life in a first responder family. Liz currently serves as the office manager for the Anaheim firefighters association where she oversees day to day operations and organizes fundraising efforts that directly benefit the associations initiatives and support programs.

Matty and Liz share their story with raw, open, honesty. They talk about real issues like addiction and suicide, they discuss the pain they have experienced as individuals, together as a couple, how they overcame the challenges they faced, how they came back together as a couple, and the work they are doing to help other first responder families navigate their own challenges.

Retired Police Chief Neil Gang joins us on the podcast.

Chief Gang is a nationally recognized Law Enforcement Leader with over 36 years of service, he has a reputation for innovative leadership, transformational change, and a deep commitment to organizational wellness.

Chief Gang discusses his career in law enforcement, he openly shares about losing a friend and fellow officer early on in his career to suicide. In the wake of that loss, he pledged to one day improve the conditions for police officers reporting and seeking help for stress related injuries. Years later as the Chief of Pinole Police Department in California, Neil created the Asher model, a 7 point approach to creating a culture of wellness.

Chief Gang speaks to the benefits of improved wellness within a first response organization. He speaks to the conditions as they were when his friend Asher Rosinsky died by suicide. He speaks to the importance of first responders being able to request help and access services confidentially, He speaks to leaders, encouraging them to facilitate change within their own organizations.

Carrie Mathews joins us on the podcast.

Carrie is a retired police officer from from the Chicago Police Department, and comes from a family of service in law enforcement. Mental health has always been a focus of Carries. However, when her father - a retired officer himself - died by suicide, Carrie became an outspoken advocate for mental health in first response, and has become known for bringing attention to "the other side of suicide".

In this episode Carrie shares what it was like growing up in a law enforcement family, the pride, the challenges, and the influence her father had on her life. She talks about the experience of becoming a cop herself, her career with Chicago PD, and the devastating impact that losing her father had on Carrie and her family. She shares about her grief, the complexity of those emotions, how she moved forward, and converted her pain into purpose by advocating for first responder mental wellness.