Who We Are
911 At Ease International (911AEI) was founded to address a growing need: provide first responders and their immediate families with access to free, professional, and confidential mental health support. We understand the emotional toll of a career spent responding to others in crisis—and we’re here to ensure those who serve don’t have to suffer in silence.
Our services include trauma-informed counseling, therapeutic music intervention, and critical incident response. All care is delivered by qualified clinicians who understand the unique culture, challenges, and lifestyle of first responder communities.
Whether you’re struggling with work-related stress, post-traumatic symptoms, or the impact on your personal life, 911AEI exists to help you find support—without cost, judgment, or red tape.
Our Mission
911 At Ease International (911AEI) exists to support first responders and their immediate families, so they can be at their best to serve their community. 911AEI is committed to keeping our first responders strong.
Our Core Values
Confidentiality
Every interaction is private and never shared with employers or agencies.
Accessibility
We provide support at no cost, without insurance requirements or red tape.
Trauma-Informed
Our clinicians understand the unique experiences of first responders—because effective support must start with empathy.
Respect
We honor the service and sacrifice of every individual and meet them without judgment.
What We Do
911 At Ease International provides a network of trauma-informed, confidential, and no-cost support services tailored to first responders and their immediate families. We are here to meet individuals where they are—offering help that is local, culturally competent, and grounded in real understanding.
Counseling Services
Licensed clinicians provide trauma-informed mental health care, tailored to the unique needs of first responders and their immediate families.
Therapeutic Music Intervention
911 Project Harmony offers a new unique way to process trauma, celebrate resilience, and foster a deeper understanding between first responders and the communities they protect.
Critical Incident Response
Immediate psychological support during and after high-impact incidents, with rapid access to care and follow-up resources.
Family Support
Immediate family members of first responders receive access to counseling, resources, and education to foster resilience at home.
OUR IMPACT
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Leadership & Team
The 911 At Ease International Board of Directors is a diverse group of recognized community leaders who commit their time, energy, talents and resources towards the promotion of our mission.
Mike McGrew
CEO & Executive Director
John Johnson
Director
Jason Eldred
Director
Warner McGrew
Chairman
Ian Filippini
Director
James Stretchberry
Director
Taryn McGrew
Director
Our History
911 At Ease International (911AEI) was founded in 2014 by retired Santa Barbara Police Sergeant Mike McGrew and philanthropist Michael Armand Hammer to meet a critical need: confidential, stigma-free mental health care for first responders and their families.
What began as a local program under the Santa Barbara Police Foundation quickly grew. Drawing on his 31-year law enforcement career, including work in homicide, child abuse, and major crimes, McGrew saw the emotional toll of the job and the lack of trusted mental health resources. The At Ease program offered a simple and effective solution: fast, free, and confidential counseling without red tape or fear of career consequences.
Originally focused on law enforcement, the program expanded quickly through word of mouth. First responders shared how At Ease helped them heal, reconnect with their families, and return to duty with renewed strength. In 2020, 911AEI became an independent nonprofit organization, expanding services to firefighters, paramedics, dispatchers, and other frontline personnel across the country.
The organization is led by those who have served. Mike McGrew now serves as CEO, joined by his father, Warner McGrew, a retired Fire Chief with decades of experience in public safety and federal disaster response.
Today, 911AEI is a national leader in providing non-traditional mental health access. First responders and their families receive care that is culturally competent, confidential, and provided at no cost.
Michael A. Hammer
Co-Founder and Chairman
“When difficult times and circumstances affect our lives and our neighborhoods through traumatic critical incidents, personal threats or natural disasters, the spirit of our first responders never wavers and sometimes they don’t know if they will make it home. Supporting At Ease gets us to think past ourselves and begin to help the people who risk their lives for us every day.”
Mike McGrew
CEO & Executive Director
“As a veteran law enforcement officer, I know first-hand that first responders deal with traumas and issues that the general public should never have to deal with. The work we have been able to do with our first responders has been life-changing and we are getting requests from all over the nation and world to bring the At Ease program to new communities.”