DFW Scanner Donates

In 2019, John Burgdorf, owner of DFW Scanner (a  social media-based news blog dedicated to informing North Texans of local and community emergencies and public safety incidents) and his brother Luke, a firefighter for Arlington Fire Department (Texas), started DFW Scanner Donates, a nonprofit arm of DFW Scanner, to better serve first responders in North Texas with bottled water and sports drinks. The brothers quickly found a need to help supply Fire Responder Agencies in North Texas with bottled water and sports drinks to stay healthy and hydrated on the job that don't otherwise have the funding for it.

DFW Scanner Donates began a partnership with North Texas Jeep Club and LoKos Jeep Club (Dallas/Fort Worth) during the winter storm of 2021. The Jeep Clubs provided rides for nurses and healthcare workers getting them to the hospitals where they worked. This partnership went so well John and Luke inquired if their members would like to help distribute bottled water, sports drinks and snacks (most of which are donated by Sprouts, Sysco and Target) to first responder agencies during the summer of 2023.  Both organizations jumped at the opportunity and will be working together again this year.

Firefighters, police officers, and paramedics respond to intense and challenging emergencies every shift. These incidents often weigh heavily on the mind of each first responder. There is a growing demand for mental health support for first responders. Tragically, suicide rates among first responders are growing.  As an organization that supports daily, the DFW Scanner Donates board felt it was time to expand the support of first responders to include their mental health.

After nearly a year of research and coordination, in November 2023 DFW Scanner Donates officially launched the DFW First Responders Support Network. This network was formed in coordination  with a team of local mental health professionals, who will provide support to the Metrocrest and DFW area first responders and their families through outreach and connection to mental health providers and resources. The creation of this network comes at a time when first responder suicides and off-duty struggles are at unprecedented levels.

The DFW First Responders Support Network is set to serve serveral purposes: connecting our vetted and cultrally competent mental health providers with first responders, coordinating peer support groups across the region, and providing an avenue for all responders and their families to have access to a wide range of existing services across the Metrocrest and DFW area.

"We are always looking for ways to support the first responders who serve us," said John Burgdorf, ower of DFW Scanner and President of DFW Scanner Donates. "What they see on shift stays with them. We want to connect them with services to help them work through the trauma they witness on a daily basis."