Matt Bergmann met Russ Hanes, through a neighbor who worked with him as a Minneapolis Police Officer several years ago. This is how we got connected to help Russ with the LEC project Invisible Wounds Support Center in Forest Lake, MN. LEC contacted Viking Electric, Mlazgar and Davis and Associates to pitch in. With labor and other donations for LEC, our gift is equal to around $15,000 in savings on the construction of their facility.
In 2016, Russ walked away from 17 years in public safety service due to PTSD. There were no resources for someone like Russ. He searched but couldn’t find an organization that could help him. He nearly lost his family and his life. It was from these struggles, that the Invisible Wounds Project was founded.
IWP’s mission is to provide access to qualified therapy services and other support services resources to our military, first responders, frontline medical staff, corrections, dispatch, and their families related to mental health, PTSD, and suicide issues.
This month IWP will open the doors of the Invisible Wounds Project Support Center, a one-of-a-kind facility that supports their clients while providing all of their services under one roof. The center which is located in Forest Lake has a woodworking space, art/creative space, yoga/exercise studio, meeting space, recreation space, as well as therapy options for groups and individuals. They will serve thousands of individuals annually from this center. As you can imagine, a 12,000 square foot facility would not be possible without many selfless donations from the community.
Thank you all for allowing LEC to be able to give for such a meaningful cause!