9/11 fundraiser goes toward county chaplains
ANNISA KEITH | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 5 months AGO
SANDPOINT — Law enforcement personnel and members of the public are invited to attend the second annual Back the Bonner Blue rally on Sept. 11.
The event, organized by retired police officer and marine deputy Jim Kelly, is co-sponsored by the Bonner County Chaplains. Funds raised by the event will go toward supporting various law enforcement personnel and their families.
“It’s a little hard to describe what a chaplain does,” said Dave Lotze, a chaplain for the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office in an interview with the Daily Bee, “We try to meet the physical needs as well as the spiritual needs. We encourage you and walk through the darkness with you.”
Lotze is one of eight chaplains in Bonner County. The role of being a chaplain can be summed up in one word: support.
There are many different types of chaplains. They can belong to different faiths and work in different branches of public or private organizations. Put more simply, chaplains are people of faith that work within secular organizations.
The modern version of the chaplaincy began around World War I in the form of military service by providing soldiers with resources that could not be provided by the military directly; mainly by providing religious acts of service. Most commonly, chaplains offered soldiers the ability to attend church while they were in remote locations and were unable to attend church.
Chaplains today still provide support to soldiers and other personnel that the government cannot provide itself. The road to becoming a chaplain is highly unique to each individual. Even though the path to the chaplaincy is not uniform, it follows a general sequence of events.
Chaplains have to have some form of secondary education whether it’s from seminary or a university, then they must become a clergy member of whichever faith they belong to. After that, the faith-based organization will send their clergy member to a specific law enforcement agency. If accepted, the clergy member then undergoes additional training where they are taught to minister to other faiths. Finally, they are incorporated into the law enforcement agency.
“It has to be a calling,” said Lotze, “Because of the time requirements. As well as the commitment to being on those scenes and any given time of any given day, and it’s something that all agencies can benefit from.”
Chaplains work beside public officials. They don’t face combat situations, but are there to help those who do. Chaplains are not required to disclose information that people tell them, which means that they can be a safe place for law enforcement personnel to talk about the trauma they experience in the line of service.
That’s why they are co-sponsoring the Back the Bonner Blue rally. Jim Kelly, a retired police officer and marine deputy, came up with the idea for the rally in 2020. He wanted Bonner County law enforcement officials to know that they were supported by their community.
“All the proceeds go back to support the chaplain program which in turn supports law enforcement, fire, and EMS,” said Kelly.
The Bonner County Chaplains have set up a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Funds collected by the nonprofit are used to help the chaplaincy.
The Back the Bonner Blue rally is free to the public. The event will be held on Saturday, Sept. 11, from noon until 2 p.m., on S. First Avenue between the courthouse and the community center. There will be a barbecue provided by the Bonner County Chaplains.
“Let these men and women know they are loved by their community, pure and simple,” said Lotze about the rally.
To RSVP, go to the event’s Facebook page by searching “Back the Bonner Blue Rally.”
Merchandise will be available for purchase at the event.
Kelly asks those interested in participating to keep their efforts focused on Back the Blue without involving political affiliations, saying
“It’s just about showing support. We ask people not to dilute our rally with anything else.”
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