By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
Decatur City Council has shown interest in an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to provide wellness benefits to its employees.
The matter was raised at the Oct. 3 council meeting by Police Chief Kevin Gerber (photo), who talked about such benefits for his department and in so doing prompted a discussion about offering them to all city employees.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says EAP can provide assessment, short-term counseling, referral, management consultation, and coaching services to employees.
Gerber requested the use of funds from the Betty Walters Estate to purchase workout equipment for the police station, noting that physical fitness goes a long way toward boosting mental health.
He also asked Walters funds to provide $500 for each member of the department, including staff, to be used toward special services such as working with an agency like Crosswinds Counseling of Fort Wayne, having a will prepared, etc..
Council approved an expenditure of $16,790 of Walters money to purchase workout equipment for the station, and other funds to be used for the special services.
Mayor Dan Rickord said Gerber has been interested in providing such services to his department since he became chief the first of the year, and remarked that he and Gerber have talked about such matters for several months.
Gerber’s request spurred further discussion about extending EAP to all city employees, which Gerber agreed was a good idea. “A lot of cities have it,” the mayor said. “The benefits could be monumental.”
Council members seemed supportive of offering such services to all city workers and it was decided that more details would be looked into, including the city’s insurance program.
NOTE: Betty J. Walters, a longtime Decatur resident, died in August of 2021 at the age of 91. In her estate, she left funds to be used by the police and fire departments here. A non-reverting fund to hold the money was set up for each department.