Philadelphia chaplain shines a light on police suicides

When the Rev. Luis Centeno speaks to police officers in the districts around his North Philadelphia neighborhood, he offers his services as a counselor, pastor, and friend. He tells members of the force that they can talk to him if they're struggling with the pressures of the job or if they can't stop seeing mental images of a disturbing crime scene.

Increasingly, Centeno said, officers are taking him up on the offer. Maybe not in front of colleagues and buddies, but privately, some officers later seek him out - an important first step in addressing mental turmoil that without help can become unbearable.

"The officer doesn't want to say he needs help," said Centeno, a police chaplain who has worked as an inner-city missionary in Philadelphia for more than 30 years. "He's a problem-solver for the community. He's a warrior. He thinks he's not supposed to have problems. He's supposed to suck it up. But they aren't made of stone, and we don't want them suffering in silence."

When officers in need don't ask for help, said Centeno, the results can be tragic.

Five Philadelphia police officers committed suicide last year, an unusually high number that prompted Centeno to think of ways to improve awareness of post-traumatic stress and the issues surrounding police suicides.

This year, Centeno founded the Police Suicide Survivor Scholarship Fellowship, a fund aimed at providing college money to the children of officers who have killed themselves.

"When you see a line-of-duty death, there's all this support out there for the families," he said. "There's nothing in place for the relatives of an officer who ends his life. We want to bring hope to these children, let them know we haven't forgotten."

Centeno, who works with several congregations, hopes to raise $50,000. For some children, getting just $2,000 for books or a computer may make a big difference, he said.

The group's first fund-raising event, a banquet sponsored by the Fraternal Order of Police, National Police Suicide Foundation, and a host of local organizations, is scheduled for Monday at the Lenfest Center in Hunting Park.

Centeno, who works out of his Juniata Park house, grew up in Philadelphia and has been working with the Police Department for many years. When he realized the need for wider awareness of mental-health issues, he developed training sessions that teach officers to recognize signs of depression in themselves and one another.

In his mission to raise that awareness, Centeno has an ally in Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey. After a rash of fatal police shootings in recent years, Ramsey made grief counseling mandatory for officers in the affected districts, as well as for his deputies. He formed a partnership with the University of Pennsylvania's behavioral health services.

"Policing, unfortunately, still has this macho culture," he said. "You see a lot of things, but you learn not to express yourself emotionally. As a result, the divorce rate is high, the rate of alcoholism is high, and the suicide rate is high."

According to the police-related suicide-prevention organization Badge of Life, officers are at a higher risk of suicide than the general population. In 2010, that rate was measured at 17 suicides per 100,000 people, as compared with the general population's rate of 11 per 100,000 people. Psychologists estimate that many more suffer from post-traumatic stress.

Officers who are in pain or worried about someone else should never hesitate to speak to a counselor, friend, or member of the clergy, Ramsey said.

"We want people to have long, healthy careers," he said. "Death in the line of duty can come in many forms."

Anyone looking for more information may call Centeno at 267-307-6756.