CAPS-TC supports Thurston County First Responders by supporting the public safety chaplains.

•    CAPS-TC (Chaplains Association for Public Safety – Thurston County) is a non-profit, NGO (non-governmental agency) that supports the work being done by the volunteer police and fire chaplains associated with the different Law Enforcement, Fire/EMS, 911 Dispatch and Coroner agencies throughout Thurston County.
•    CAPS-TC supports the chaplain’s ability to work across department lines, otherwise known as “mutual aid”.
•    To facilitate this mutual aid, chaplains receive specialized training, safety equipment, identifying clothing and insurance from CAPS-TC assuring consistency between chaplains from multiple agencies.  CAPS-TC’s assistance in fulfilling a chaplain request assures that every time a chaplain is requested, a trained chaplain will respond.  On-scene first responders can quickly identify these CAPS-TC trained and identified chaplains and be comfortable in assigning them to the support functions needed at the time.  CAPS-TC chaplains respond anywhere in the county any time, day or night.
•    In areas where the work of chaplains could be construed as “religious,” governmental agencies such as police, fire, dispatch, etc., cannot fund chaplains with tax dollars; that is where CAPS-TC steps in.  Chaplains volunteer their time, and CAPS-TC works to support their efforts by providing them with some financial resources and equipment that they might not otherwise receive.  It is important to CAPS-TC that out-of-pocket costs borne by the chaplains while providing service is kept as low as possible.