Florida nonprofits address senior suicide crisis through community-based approach

A Florida-based nonprofit is connecting community members and quickly perceived the crisis facing U.S. veterinarians is preventable.

Fire watches operate under three premises: suicide is preventable, timely contacting resources can save lives, and the community must play an active role in prevention.

“It requires the community to prevent suicide,” executive director Nick Howland told Fox News Digital.

After seeing impressive results, Fire Watch hopes to adopt its organizations across the country in a treatment-focused effort and local engagement.

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The core of fire watch strategy is the “watch stand” program established after CPR training.

During a concise 30-45-minute session, volunteers learn to identify warning signals, ask direct questions, verify veterans’ experiences, and speed up referrals to services and save hits by the acronym.

“Just like CPR doesn’t train you to be a caregiver, our training doesn’t make you a clinician,” Holland said. “It trains you to be aware of changes and alert for help.”

Executive Director Nick Howland helped launch the fire watch created in late 2019. (Fire Watch)

Each watch stand person comes with a wallet card, wristband and sticker to remind people of simple steps to self-harm, substance abuse abuse, reckless behavior or abandonment of property, and get someone to help.

The nonprofit works with the state’s senior affairs office and connects veterans to consulting services.

Fire watches have tracked a sharp drop in veteran suicides since its inception in Northeast Florida.

After 81 veteran deaths were recorded in 2019, Holland set a bold goal: to cut that number by at least 25% for three consecutive years.

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As of the latest data released on May 1, the region’s veteran suicide rate fell to 61 in 2023, 25% lower than its fourth consecutive year baseline in 2019.

Throughout the state, veteran suicide rates fell by 5%, areas in areas where fire surveillance (northeast Florida, South Florida, Tampa Bay and Eszambia counties) fell by 12%, while in other parts of Sunshine State, only 2%.

“We are building our network of community members, the community members they care about, so that veterans get the help they need, and veteran suicides are decreasing,” he said. “It’s amazing.”

A trainer shared the mission of the fire watch with a group of volunteers. As of May 2025, there were 9,074 observation stations for fire watches. (Fire Watch)

For volunteers like Ryan Haczynski, the impact of the program is profound. Haczynski found a way to remember his memory and prevent further losses after committing suicide after losing his friend of Vietnam veterans in late 2022.

“I don’t recognize these signs,” he reported. He told Fox News that his friends even asked him to be his executor weeks before his death.

Haczynski’s online search brought him to the Observatory and Ambassador training after the veterinarian’s suicide, and he has since certified others and even helped arrange proper military funerals for his friends.

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Haczynski now uses every community interaction to check veterans, verify their experiences, and point them to the Fire Watch’s free 24/7 crisis resource.

“We want to give back, we want to help, especially those who have done a lot of things [for our country] Go and serve us. ” he said.

Learn more about fire watches at thefirewatch.org.