At a recent meeting of the Boulder Business Development Group, members provided the Firefighter Brian Shea of the Boulder City Fire Department with dozens of stuffed animals for the department’s Trauma Teddy program.
What is the Trauma Teddy Program? The department saw a need to communicate primarily with young children during traumatic circumstances. The department selected teddy bears because like most people, the bears have two arms and two legs. “Sometimes it’s just easier to show paramedics where you hurt on a teddy bear than try to put the words together when you are scared, still learning a new language, or just learning to speak at all,” according to Fire Department staff. The bears are also occasionally provided to teens, adults and seniors who may be victims of — or witnesses to — serious emergencies.
The bears also comfort patients of all ages who may be under severe emotional and physical distress. Supplies of the bears are kept on all Fire Department apparatuses, as they respond to a variety of situations in our community.
The Fire Department accepts new, unused teddy bears from the community year round at the Fire Station, located next to Auto Specialists, at 1101 Elm Street. If you have questions about the program, please contact Firefighter Shea at (702) 293-9228, during normal business hours.
