Forest Lake, Minn. — A Minnesota nonprofit is aiming to break down mental health barriers and foster vital conversations among frontline public safety workers.
“I don’t want anyone to feel like they’re stuck,” said Russ Hanes, Founder and Executive Director of the Invisible Wounds Project.
Hanes, a former police officer, 911 dispatcher, and corrections officer, knows this struggle firsthand.
“I spent 17 years in those roles and reached my lowest point,” Hanes recounted. “Struggling with PTSD and suicidal thoughts, I couldn’t find help because I wasn’t a veteran.”
This personal experience led Hanes to establish the Invisible Wounds Project in 2018. The nonprofit serves Minnesota’s military personnel, first responders, frontline medical staff, dispatchers, and others. Its mission is to destigmatize mental health issues — the invisible wounds — and provide necessary support.
The recent death of Minneapolis officer Jamal Mitchell has heavily impacted the community.
“In the past two weeks, we’ve lost five people to suicide who served in these roles but weren’t veterans,” Hanes said, pointing to the stripes on his shirt. “Officer Jamal Mitchell’s death two weeks ago is widely known. However, it’s less known that a critical care nurse who treated him at HCMC, and had also tended to victims of the Burnsville shooting, died by suicide after her shift.”
Stories like these drive Hanes to continue his work, connecting first responders with peers facing similar struggles, reassuring them they are not alone, and offering life-saving resources. This mission is now being realized in Forest Lake with the establishment of a groundbreaking facility: a first responder support center.
“This center is designed to be a haven where people can connect, access therapeutic services, and find a sense of community,” Hanes explained. “Here, they will know they are not alone in their experiences.”
Scheduled to open in July, the center will offer various activities, including art, woodworking, yoga, and educational programs, all aimed at fostering hope.
Hanes is optimistic about the center’s potential impact but emphasizes the need for community support to sustain its operations.
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