Chelan County Sheriff's Office receives $49,100 grant for officer wellness

WENATCHEE — The Chelan County Sheriff's Office Behavioral Health Unit (BHU) has been awarded a $49,100 grant from the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WACJTC) for the fiscal year July 2024 through June 2025, Sheriff Mike Morrison announced Monday.

The grant will fund peer support and critical incident stress management training, neurofeedback machines, PTSD workshops for law enforcement and their spouses, and continuing education materials. This marks the second consecutive year the WACJTC has awarded the Officer Wellness grant to Chelan County.

BHU Program Manager and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Ana Gonzalez has been credited with securing over $1.9 million in grants over the past two years, with $268,578 allocated to officer wellness and $1.7 million supporting the BHU's initiatives.

The BHU, a co-responder program that partners mental health professionals and case managers with law enforcement, aims to divert individuals with behavioral health challenges from the criminal justice and emergency medical systems by providing crisis response and connecting them to appropriate community resources.