Join Our Team
The Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Sacramento (LECS) is always looking for, and recruiting, potential candidates to become Chaplains.
If this is a ministry that is of interest to you, please visit the Orientation & Academy page for more information.
Becoming a trauma response and crisis care Chaplain requires a serious commitment. It is not your typical volunteer or ministry position. It requires a 6-month training commitment (4-Hr per week, 12-week Academy and 12-week Field Training), followed by a 2-year service commitment which entails 48 hours of monthly service on the call out schedule.
Within the 2-year service commitment, Chaplains are able to make their own schedule. Although Chaplains will be expected to commit to 12-hours on the schedule each week, you can either schedule yourself for one 12-hour shift, or two 6-hour shifts. Again, you will make your own schedule so that if you have other commitments, such as a Monday through Friday full-time job, you would probably need to schedule yourself on nights or weekends. You are also able to take yourself “off” the schedule in case of illness or planned vacations.
Types of Chaplains
Within LECS, there are two types of chaplains – Community Chaplains and Law Enforcement Chaplains.
Community Chaplains (Burgundy shirts) are called out by first responders to attend to family members, neighbors, by-standers, classmates, and co-workers when they have been victimized, suffered serious injury, or have been traumatized by a death. They provide the following services:
- Crisis intervention at emergency scenes
- Critical incident stress management
- Search and rescue assistance in the field
- Evacuation scene support
- School crisis intervention
- Family Assistance Center Management
- Town Hall meeting coordination following a tragedy and/or disaster
- Follow-up services to families
- Referrals to community-based resources and organizations
- Spiritual guidance and prayer support – when requested
- Funeral planning and officiating
Connecting families to faith-based Organizations – when requested
Law Enforcement Chaplains (Gray shirts/Black vests) are trained to perform all of the same duties as a Community Chaplain, and depending upon their background, are required to attend the Community Chaplain Academy before applying to be considered to become a Law Enforcement Chaplain.
Law Enforcement Chaplains have additional requirements which are outlined in the Orientation & Academy section of this website. The foremost priority of Law Enforcement Chaplains is to serve sworn and non-sworn department personnel, first responders, and their families. Our trauma response and care services for first responders are kept confidential. These LE Chaplains also provide:
- Critical incident stress management
- Post-traumatic event debriefs and counseling
- Pre-marital counseling
- Wedding planning and officiating
- Home and hospital visitation
- Graduation/promotion ceremony assistance
- Funeral planning and officiating
- Line-of-Duty death funeral planning and officiating
- Spiritual guidance and prayer support – when requested
Law Enforcement Chaplains respond to call outs the same as Community Chaplains; however, additional duties include regular visits to area stationhouses and monthly ride-along’s. This helps the LE Chaplain get to know the first responders they work with and build rapport so the first responders will feel comfortable about calling them during a crisis.
We currently serve multiple law enforcement agencies, their families and first responders on Federal, State and local levels.
The Primary Objectives of the Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Sacramento (LECS) is to support first responders and their families in professional and personal crisis, serve the community in times of crisis and tragedies, and be a proactive and reactive resource for all. LECS provides “constitutional” Chaplains, therefore, our services are not classified as religious.
Here are a few additional items to consider.
All Chaplains
- Provide in-person death notifications for the county coroner’s office and follow-up care
- Provide a secular purpose by attending to the post-trauma needs on scenes
- Go anywhere they are needed – crime scenes, hospitals, homes, businesses, government facilities, and more
- Serve crime victims and those distressed by traumatic events, alongside sworn and non-sworn law enforcement personnel during an actual crisis
- Go anytime they are called – 24/7/365
- Offer practical guidance and compassionate resources
- Serve all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, culture, nationality, age, gender or sexual preference
- Provide spiritual guidance and prayer support – when requested
- Impart a calming presence and bring HOPE
Mutual Aid & Special Deployments
The Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Sacramento (LECS) is known as the “national model chaplaincy” and due to our reputation, we are often requested to respond to mutual aid deployments throughout the State of California, and even sometimes, the United States. We have responded to Sandy Hook Elementary School, the Las Vegas Mandalay Bay Hotel shooting, and the Camp Fire to name a few. We also serve each year at the California State Fair in the “lost kids” unit.
Chaplain Support Team
Within the Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Sacramento (LECS) we have some Chaplains who have semi-retired but want to remain involved with LECS. These Chaplains serve on our “Support Team” and are an integral part of our success.
Chaplain Wellness Team
Our Wellness Team constantly checks in with our deployed Chaplains, Chaplains on Leave-of-Absence, and our newest Chaplains that have recently graduated from our LECS Academy.
CLICK HERE for more information about how Chaplains are trained.