Bloomington Police Wellness Director Bridges Community, Officer Support
The Bloomington Police Department has established a full-time wellness director position to support officer health and strengthen community relations, according to a recent department interview.
Amos J. Olivarez serves as the department's wellness director, focusing on five key areas of officer support: mental, emotional, physical, personal and professional wellness. Olivarez transitioned from community volunteer to the full-time role after initially serving on the police chief interview panel and helping establish the department's mission, vision and core values.
My job is really in thirds," Olivarez said during the interview. "The first third is to be present with our officers. The second third is to sit on command staff and to really be a voice of accountability, like, do we actually do the things that we say we're going to do? And the final third is to do public relations, to work within our community to bridge that gap of disparity between our community and the law enforcement.
The wellness program addresses what Olivarez described as "mind, heart, body, skill and home" - encompassing comprehensive support for officers' well-being. He spends significant time with officers in patrol cars and throughout the community, observing their daily work and challenges.
Olivarez, who lives in East Bloomington and has children in the Bloomington School District, emphasized the importance of community support for police work. He works with the school district and various community organizations as part of his outreach efforts to strengthen police-community relationships.
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Full analysis
This meeting features an interview with Amos J. Olivarez, the Wellness Director for the Bloomington Police Department. The discussion covers his role in supporting officer wellness across five key areas: mental, emotional, physical, personal, and professional wellness. Olivarez explains his journey from community volunteer to full-time wellness director and describes his three-part job responsibilities: being present with officers, serving on command staff for accountability, and conducting public relations to bridge community-police gaps.
Source document
[0:00] - We need to prove that
what we have on our wall
[0:03] all throughout the
department is actually true.
[0:06] My name is Amos J. Olivarez
and I'm the wellness director
[0:09] for the Bloomington Police Department.
[0:11] - [Damon] Well, after we developed
our mission vision values
[0:13] with the assistance of
the community, we wanted
[0:16] to basically have a system in place
[0:18] to hold our own agency accountable
[0:20] to those mission, vision, and values.
[0:22] - [Amos] My connection to
the police department started
[0:24] when I was on an interview
panel for Chief of Police.
[0:27] After his hire, I was
on the missions, vision,
[0:29] core values team, so we helped
kind of establish all that.
[0:32] I did that from the community standpoint.
[0:33] And then after that I kind
of started to just volunteer
[0:36] and jump in where I can
[0:38] and help support the department
in different kind of ways.
[0:41] - [Damon] And then we made
this a full-time position
[0:42] because we very quickly
understood the importance
[0:45] of having that position.
[0:46] - Additionally, I believe
he is 100% committed
[0:51] and passionate about the work.
[0:53] - [Amos] My job is really in thirds.
[0:54] The first third is to be
present with our officers.
[0:57] The second third is to
sit on command staff
[0:59] and to really be a
voice of accountability,
[1:01] like, do we actually do the things
[1:03] that we say we're going to do?
[1:04] And the final third is
to do public relations,
[1:07] to work within our community
to bridge that gap of disparity
[1:10] between our community
and the law enforcement,
[1:12] working with our school district
and different organizations
[1:15] within the community.
[1:16] - [Booker] For me, I
look at officer wellness.
[1:18] One for those that have families,
[1:19] that you're the best
person you can be at home
[1:21] with your significant other,
your spouse and your family.
[1:25] And then two, that you are also
the best partner you can be.
[1:28] - [Amos] When we think of wellness,
[1:29] what we've kind of narrowed it down to
[1:30] at the police department
here is mental wellness,
[1:33] emotional wellness, physical
wellness, personal wellness,
[1:36] and professional wellness.
[1:37] So really mind, heart,
body, skill and home.
[1:42] Those are really the five things
[1:43] that we're concentrating on,
[1:44] and when we hit all five of those things
[1:45] and we feel like our officers
are gonna be healthy,
[1:48] and healthy officers do really good work
[1:50] in the community.
[1:51] - [Booker] As a leader, if
you wouldn't feel comfortable
[1:53] utilizing your wellness
program, it's not good enough
[1:55] for your troops, right?
[1:56] We can't just continue
to do, check the box.
[1:59] Check the box gets you
check the box results.
[2:01] - [Amos] I spend a lot of time
with officers in their cars.
[2:04] I spend a lot of time out in the community
[2:05] with our officers.
[2:06] I see them do the hard work.
[2:07] I see them trying to be respectful
even when they are being
[2:10] very disrespected.
[2:12] Like, I see them going above and beyond,
[2:14] and I really appreciate that.
[2:15] I appreciate that as a
fellow colleague of theirs.
[2:19] I also appreciate that
as a community member.
[2:21] I live in East Bloomington.
[2:23] I do a lot of my work in Bloomington.
[2:25] My kids go to school in Bloomington.
[2:28] Everything in my life is like
within two or three miles,
[2:30] all within Bloomington.
[2:32] I also hope that communities would rally
[2:34] around their police departments.
[2:36] When we're out and about and
people thank police department
[2:38] for what they do, it means
so much because so much
[2:41] of what they do is unseen.
[2:42] But I hope that the ripple
effect is that we would
[2:43] kind of come together,
that we would unite,
[2:45] that we would protect one another.
[2:47] I don't see this as like, just a job.
[2:49] I truly see this as like, a calling.
[2:52] (cheerful music)
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