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Believe 208 5K Supports Mental Health of First Responders

Hundreds of runners lined up for the 5th annual Believe 208 5K in East Hartford on Sunday.

“We do this in memory of my late husband who sadly passed away by suicide and we want to find a way to honor and remember him and sadly others we’ve lost,” said Trish Buchanan, the founder of Believe 208.

Believe 208 was started by Buchanan after her husband, Paul Buchanan, an East Hartford police officer, took his life in 2013. The number 208 was on Buchanan's badge.

"It’s hard. There are still days that it really does impact you. And we do our best and I truly believe we can take this tragedy and turn it into something good," she said.

The funds raised go to peer support programs and treatment to help care for first responders, including work with CABLE: The Connecticut Alliance to Benefit Law Enforcement.

"It provides training of the mind, fitness and resilience for law enforcement," said Kathy Flaherty, who is on the Board of Directors for CABLE.

"They’re truly only human under that badge and it isn’t a sign of weakness or anything like that," Buchanan added.

"Mental wellness is something we forget for all first responders. You have a horrific job and get damaged every day and we don't even notice," added East Hartford Police Chief Scott Sansom. 

Running this year for badge number 576 was a group of officers from Danbury.

"We all came out to Believe 208 race in support of him and all the officers in the state who have taken their own lives," said Sgt. Ethan Mable.

Suicide claimed the life of Danbury Sgt. Drew Carlson in September of 2017.

"It was shocking to all of us and as a supervisor, you’re always trying to look out for others. We all try to look out for each other and unfortunately, none of us really saw any signs with Drew. And we all wished there was something we could have done,” Sgt. Mable said.

NBC Connecticut's Heidi Voight emceed the race in memory of our first responders, like Paul and all of the others.

"He [Paul] served the community truly with his heart and soul for 24 years and sadly, really took the job to heart and struggled with depression and anxiety and tried to get help. The right type of help wasn't out there so that's another reason why we're doing this for awareness. They need to know they're not alone," Buchanan said.

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