The mission of SHIELD616 is to protect and support first responders with all-day rifle rated ballistics gear. In that process, they also give a measure of comfort to the loved ones of first responders because when something happens on the job, there is always someone who has to be called and told something terrible has happened.
DONATE TO THE KOAA/SHIELD616 VIRTUAL TELETHON BENEFITTING BLACK FOREST FIRE AND RESCUE
Former Denver Bicycle Police Officer John Adsit was hit by a car while on patrol in 2014.
He was nearly killed.
On that fateful December day, the bad news began in waves. While Michelle Adsit, John's wife, was busy closing a real estate deal in Colorado Springs, phone calls began coming from friends telling here something had happened and she needed to go to Denver Health.
Official calls from the Denver Police Department followed and told her to go to the hospital.
"I pulled up to the hospital. It was like the eeriest thing that I felt, like there was 100, 200 police officers like surrounding the hospital. And I drive up and like this one, that, one of the officers takes my keys, and another officer and the officer that met me was a friend. Not a single officer would look me in the face, so it's like my husband, my husband is dead," Michelle said.
A week of waiting followed as John clung to life before eventually turning a corner.
Nearly three months later and following multiple surgeries, John walked out of the hospital.
Having the proper protective gear, a ballistics vest, and a special helmet helped save his life.
"He came away with a scar on the forehead from where his sunglasses had gone into his head and he did have a traumatic brain injury. Absolutely that helmet saved his life, he had the right equipment," said Michelle.
Besides her real estate career, Michelle also works with Shield 616 in their efforts to help gear up and protect first responders.
"It's easy to fall in love with the mission of Shield 616, because it brings support to all of these officers who feel unsupported and I feel like most people want to help our police officers," Michelle said. "They understand that there are people out there who are not treating them well and that they are putting their lives in danger, and so I feel like this is more of an opportunity for our community then almost it is for the officers because it gives them a chance to support the officers in a way that they don't know how."
KOAA is holding a virtual telethon on Thursday, September 10, raising funds for Black Forest Fire and Rescue to outfit all 22 members of the department with rifle rated vests and helmets.
CLICK HERE to visit our donation page, and remember every dollar counts in supporting our local first responders.
