BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. — Zachary Cobb doesn’t always know who will be on the other side of a phone call when it rings, but the dispatcher for the Blue Springs, Missouri, Police Department knew a recent call was serious as soon as he answered it.
“You have a very short amount of time to try to establish trust,” Cobb said.
The caller told Cobb their friend was a member of the LGBTQIA+ community and was planning to die by suicide that night.
Cobb was able to call the friend and speak directly with them.
“When we talk to people, there’s no judgment,” Cobb said. “Everybody goes through things. Everybody needs help sometimes. One of the first things I wanted to do was say don’t feel bad for feeling bad.”
Cobb was able to keep the person calm, listen to them, and show respect, all while dispatching an officer to their location.
The officer arrived and took the person to receive mental health treatment.
“When someone is talking about their life and life experiences, you believe them," Cobb said. "If they say this is why I’m having this tough time, you believe them and you try to do whatever you can to get them some help. Something like using someone’s correct pronouns, that’s just respect.”
This month, the Blue Springs Police Department recognized Cobb with a supervisor’s award.
“He helped them through the hardest moment in their life," said Sgt. Ben McRae, Cobb's supervisor. "He kept them on this planet. If it wasn’t for Zach that night, they definitely wouldn’t be here."
Cobb gives credit to the team of dispatchers who supported him during the roughly 30-minute call. Cobb isn’t sure how the person he spoke to that night is doing, but hopes for the best.
Dialing 988 will connect you to the suicide and crisis lifeline.
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