Page 22 - Flathead Beacon // 12.16.15

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DECEMBER 16, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
COVER CHAPLAIN
working and said most of his job is to comfort people in a time of need. He said in some instances he doesn’t even speak, just quickly lets people know that he’s available should they need him.
Sgt. Doug Overman, a 16-year vet- eran of the Kalispell Police Department, said Buckner is a great resource at hectic scenes.
“It takes a lot of pressure o of us so that we can do our job,” he said.
Buckner said one of the hardest parts of the job is delivering a death noti ca- tion. Although there has never been an instance where he wanted to quit his job, there are calls he wishes he never had to go on.
“It’s tough knowing that you’re about to introduce this person to the worst day of their life,” he said of informing peo- ple that a loved one has died. “No one can change the circumstance in that moment, but we do everything we can to comfort someone.”
Realizing the value of the chaplain ser- vices, Kalispell Police and Fire and the Sheri ’s O ce worked together to create the Braveheart Chaplain Ministry. Buck- ner, who left his pastoral job, became the departments’ full-time chaplain and the executive director of the nonpro t in 2010. Buckner also helps organize the volunteer chaplains who work on-call.
As the full-time chaplain, Buckner has
From left: Kalispell Police Sgt. Doug Overman, o cer Joel Bartholomew, detective Andy Haag and chaplain Drew Buckner discuss the role of Braveheart Chaplain Ministry. GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
o cers to build those relationships. Joel Bartholomew, who has worked at the police department for more than three years, said he frequently relies on Buckner to talk about what he’s seen in the line of duty; “It’s just good to talk things out.” The same goes for Overman. “It’s good to have someone who knows the job and someone you trust,” he said.
“Drew is an excellent resource.”
When asked how he deals with his own emotions, Buckner said he relies on a piece of advice he received from an old re ghter: to remember that the tragedy you are responding to isn’t your own. While he has seen more crime scenes than he would like to, over time the mem- ories fade and he focuses on his job of
helping others.
Overman said Buckner’s work is price-
less in the heat of the moment.
“Drew is able to tend to the human
components of an incident which enables us to deal with the mechanical parts of it,” he said.
At the scene of a crash or re, Buck- ner provides a calm voice amid crisis. He o ers help to countless people every year, even if it’s only for a few minutes.
“I’m in people’s lives for very brief moments but they are always intense moments,” he said. “It’s almost like emo- tional triage.”
jfranz@ atheadbeacon.com
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a small o ce inside the Kalispell Fire Department and that makes him avail- able to police and re ghters. Although going to car wrecks and res is the pub- lic perception of the chaplaincy, Buckner spends much of his time working with rst responders and helping them cope with some of the more traumatic things they see.
“You get past the gear and the guns and
you realize that all of these people are still human,” he said. “They have the same emotions as all of us... I’m still a pastor, it’s just that my whole congregation is in uniform now.”
Buckner said police o cers are often the toughest of his congregation to get to know, but over time he’s built an unques- tionable level of trust. To do that, he often goes on ride-alongs and trains with