Get a massage, help a family of a fallen public servant in need

By MELISSA MOODY
Melissa.Moody@newsandtribune.com

July 22, 2008 11:33 am

— Heather Duncan’s career as a massage therapist is rewarding, because she makes people feel better, she said. And now not only is she making her clients get back on their feet, but she is raising money to help widows of fire, police and EMS workers get back on their feet as well.
“It’s not like going to the dentist — people love me,” Duncan said. “And this is a way to give back. These people have sacrificed their lives for the community.”
Duncan is hosting the Everybody Deserves a Massage week-long benefit in Charlestown — bringing massage therapists to people in the community to raise money to help Supporting Heroes. The Louisville-based nonprofit organization provides financial, psychological and legal help to people who have lost a spouse in the line of duty.
All of the money comes from member dues — $125 a year — and fundraisers. The Jeffersonville fire and police departments have payroll deductions that go to Supporting Heroes.
Duncan had donated to emergency service organizations such as the Fraternal Order of Police before, but this time she wanted to give back something to the family members that support them.
“I called the fire chief and said, ‘Isn’t there something that just goes to the widows?’” Duncan said. “Supporting Heroes steps in and helps widows get back on their feet.”
Duncan, and three other massage therapists will be giving massages through Friday at the Charlestown Arts and Enrichment Center at no cost, except for a donation to Supporting Heroes.
“A chair massage usually runs a dollar a minute, and that’s great, but really it’s whatever people can give,” she said.
Duncan’s project is part of a nationwide effort through the Associated Bodywork and Massage Practitioners, whose members have been hosting Everybody Deserves a Massage week programs benefiting local charities for the past 14 years.
The independent practitioners choose whatever charity they want to support and the practitioners organization sends them promotional materials to help in hosting it.
Duncan chose to do the event last year at libraries throughout the county and requested a donation of canned goods that went to the North Clark Community Outreach Center. This year she chose Supporting Heroes, after getting solicited for support from emergency service providers.
Supporting Heroes has provided $500,000 for 56 families that lost a family member in the line of duty since it began in 2004. The program was initiated in the wake of Sept. 11, when so many fire, police and EMS workers were lost in the terrorist attacks, said Charlie Moon, president of the Charlestown Volunteer Fire Department and a member of the nonprofit organization.
Moon said that federal death benefits for emergency workers usually take 12 to 19 months to get to families, and Supporting Heroes provides a $3,000 check within 12 hours of a death in the line of duty. After the initial check, Supporting Heroes financially supports families until benefits start rolling in, he said.
“You get a tight net of survivors that help each other,” Moon said. “(Supporting Heroes) is starting to be a real big, catching thing with memberships from volunteer firefighters to the Kentucky and Indiana state police departments.”

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