Who is the Stockton Law Enforcement Chaplaincy?
Stockton Law Enforcement Chaplaincy includes both law enforcement chaplains
and School Resource Chaplains. Law enforcement chaplains primarily serve law
enforcement employees and their families, and therefore must be licensed or
ordained clergy. School Resource Chaplains are first trained as Law Enforcement
Chaplains then are further trained to go into the public schools on a regular
basis to deal with children and staff. As Law Enforcement Chaplains our first
responsibility is to the Law Enforcement Community. As the officers request us
to do so we serve civilians who are affected by suicides, homicides, serious
accidents and other traumatic incidents, particularly including the families,
friends, neighbors and coworkers of victims. Volunteers come from a very broad
racial, sectarian, geographic, and socioeconomic cross-section of the San Joaquin County
region.
To what kinds of incidents do you respond?
We respond to a very wide variety of situations, including serious accidents,
suicides, homicides or suspicious deaths, sudden infant death, barricaded
subjects, missing persons, industrial accidents, unexpected natural deaths, death
notifications, and many others. Typically, we are contacted, and volunteers
deployed, within moments of officers' arrival on scene.
What do you actually do?
Law enforcement chaplains provide law enforcement families a trusted source of
confidence and encouragement day in and day out, in good times and in bad. Law
enforcement chaplains get to know law enforcement personnel and their families
over long periods of time by visiting station houses, going on patrol ride-alongs,
etc. Chaplains bring a calming presence to potentially volatile scenes, serve as
liaisons between survivors and public safety personnel, help contact and convene
survivors' family, friends and clergy, provide a safe environment for survivors to
express their anguish, provide survivors information on how to care for themselves
in the coming days and weeks, provide referrals to agencies offering long-term support,
and provide other practical assistance as necessary. Chaplains provide services such as
wedding and funeral officiating.
How do I get involved?
In order to become a chaplain volunteer, applicants must complete a multi-page
application and undergo a thorough background check by law enforcement. As an
important part of the application, we must receive a detailed personal evaluation
from an individual who is very familiar with the applicant. If their application
is accepted, the applicant then enters our academy, which involves a 8 hour class
once per week for 6. After the academy, trainees begin accompanying seasoned
volunteers on live calls in the field. Trainees must then accumulate over 50
qualified hours in the field, cover a variety of different types of calls, and
obtain favorable reviews from the seasoned volunteers that they accompany. To get
involved, as a Law Enforcement Chaplain or a School Resource Chaplain, click the
"contact us" tab and send us your name, address, phone number, and a brief
description of your interest.
What's the time commitment to be a volunteer?
Volunteers sign up for call based on their own schedules. Law Enforcement
Chaplains volunteers must attend a monthly training meeting for 3 hours and do a
full shift each month. As well you will be part of a team who will be on-call for
one week each month. During this week period a Chaplain can expect to spend
anywhere from zero to four or five hours actively engaged in critical incidents.
A School Resource Chaplain is involved with Law Enforcement but most of their
time is spent in the public schools.
