Steve and K-9 Freya

My name is Steve and I am a Marine Corps veteran and a Police Officer. I grew up in Minnesota in a suburb of the Twin Cities and joined the Marine Corps out of high school as a Military Police Officer. After boot camp, I married my high school sweetheart and she moved out with me to Virginia where I was stationed as a member of the White House Military Office. It was a stressful job but afforded me many experiences and opportunities that I would never of had otherwise. After serving 5 years on active duty my wife and I moved back to MN in 2012 to be closer to family and had our first daughter while I was going to school and working towards obtaining my MN Post license to become a Police Officer.

I was eventually hired by a department in Southeast MN and have been blessed to work there for the past 5 years. Being a Police Officer is my dream job and I cannot imagine myself doing anything else. My wife and I had a second daughter shortly after buying our first house and life was perfect. In 2019, I began having medical issues and had to take a lot of sick days. After dealing with countless visits to doctors and specialists I was feeling overwhelmed and in 2021, I was diagnosed with a chronic illness. I had thought being in the Marines made me “tough” enough to handle anything on my own but I quickly realized I needed help and sought therapy.

Through hard work and the help of my support system, I was able to return to working patrol and do the job I love. I thought things were finally looking up but then I suddenly found myself involved in a critical incident with an infant death that severely impacted my mental health. I was diagnosed with depression and struggled to not only do my job but to be a good husband and father at home. I continue to have good days and bad days but there is light at the end of the tunnel and Soldier’s 6 has been a big part of that. To those of you who donate and support making this a reality, it really means so much, thank you.