Fire Watch Project Inc

The Fire Watch is Florida’s fight to end veteran suicide. We are building a life-saving network of community members and organizations trained to identify the warning signs of veterans in crisis and to direct those veterans to the help they need. To date, no city, county, or state has systemically reduced its veteran suicide rate. Modeled after CPR, our effort is the first of its kind in the country.

The Fire Watch has been in operation for 5 years and was founded in Northeast Florida in 2020 under three premises 

1) Suicide is preventable

2) We must connect Veterans to resources they need before they slip into crisis

3) The broader community can play a vital role in the effort. 

Our mission is to prevent Veteran suicide by connecting Veterans to the services they need. Veteran suicides are on the rise in Florida, and we need your help. Because of the financial support it receives, The Fire Watch is able to provide free veteran suicide prevention training to the community. More than 8,900 have already taken it and in Northeast Florida, veteran suicide went down 25% from 2019-2023, the largest reduction of any region in the state.

• Every year, every Watch Stander is referring Veterans to potentially life-saving resources.
• More Watch Standers means more referrals, and more Veterans served.
• A University of Kentucky study reported 135 people are affected by every suicide. In just three years in Northeast Florida alone, this equated to almost 14,000 people not mourning the loss of a friend, family member, or colleague.