Hundreds celebrate the life of former Santa Barbara Fire Department Captain Tony Pighetti

Up to 200 people took to the waves on a paddling excursion Sunday to celebrate the life of Tony Pighetti, the 59-year-old former city firefighter, union leader and mental health advocate for first responders who died while paddling the night of Oct. 9 . Another 400 gathered on the beach in front of Santa Barbara City College.

Although Pighetti retired five years ago – after reaching the rank of captain in charge of training – he has worked for the past five years to create a nationwide peer support advisory system to help first responders dealing with the aftershocks of the Struggling jobs, not being able to get questions. requested psychological and safety counseling for both workplace and non-workplace issues.

City of Santa Barbara Fire Chief Chris Mailes recalled that Pighetti approached him and other department leaders to talk about better mental health maintenance. “We’re supposed to be the strongest people in the room,” Mailes said. “But the job takes its toll. Gone are the days when you just go out, have a beer and drink it.”

Mailes said Pighetti was assigned the job. As a result, the City of Santa Barbara now has 10 firefighters trained in the art of peer support, as well as one person taking on the lead role.

“Without a doubt he saved lives. And he saved marriages too,” Mailes said.

When Pighetti retired in 2020, he was hired by the nonprofit Guadalupe Fire Chiefs Association to Carpinteria. Each department, Mailes says, soon had its own peer support team and key player. Thanks to vigorous fundraising and private donations, Pighetti was able to obtain a grant and retain a contracted team of trained consultants. Treatment was offered for everything from work-related acute and cumulative trauma to marital conflict and sick children at home. On a particularly sensitive call, peer support teams didn’t wait to be called, but contacted the affected individuals to proactively reach out.

Pighetti was “calm, level-headed, a gentle soul and an exceptional coach,” Mailes said.

In the last years of his life, Pighetti struggled with a number of health problems, migraines being just one of many. Still, Pighetti’s body somehow allowed him to find peace and relaxation while paddling a paddleboard that he wouldn’t have had while hiking, running, or biking.