Standing in the Pain
A Reflection from Providers on the Killing of Alex Pretti
We are aching.
We are angry.
We are overwhelmed—and yet, day after day, we keep showing up.
This weekend the world watched in shock and grief as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse who cared for our nation’s veterans, was shot and killed by federal agents during an immigration enforcement action in Minneapolis.
Alex was a caregiver.
A healer.
A colleague.
A neighbor.
His family remembers him as a kindhearted soul who deeply loved his work, his friends, his patients, and the community he served. Videos circulating online show him attempting to help others and recording law enforcement activity before he was forced to the ground and shot.
He was not a criminal.
He was not a threat.
He was a human being.
As clinicians, counselors, social workers, nurses, advanced providers, physicians, and allied health professionals—people who sit with grief, trauma, and loss as part of our work—we recognize the weight of this moment.
This is not just news.
This is personal.
We are living through a time where violence is normalized, language is weaponized, families are torn apart, and the mechanisms of state power are deployed in ways that erode trust and safety. We see it in our clients. We feel it in our bodies. We hold it in our hearts.
We stand in solidarity with all oppressed communities and particularly with those who are suffering the loss and ongoing consequences of senseless, violent, and hate-driven state actions. We witness the trauma that follows such events—through spikes in anxiety, grief, destabilization, and existential dread in the people we serve. And we carry this grief ourselves.
To our community—helpers and cared-for alike—please hear this:
You do not have to carry this alone.
You do not have to be stoic or invulnerable.
You are allowed to cry.
You are allowed to feel.
You are allowed to take space.
This moment calls for care, connection, and compassion—both for those directly affected and for those who are struggling to make sense of it from a distance.
Support & Crisis Resources
Please do not sit alone with this. Help is available.
If you are feeling overwhelmed, unsafe, or in crisis—or if you are supporting someone who is—these resources are available 24/7.
National Support
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call or text 988 (24/7, free, confidential)Crisis Text Line
Text PA to 741741 to message with a trained crisis counselorVeterans Crisis Line
Call 988, then press 1, or text 838255SAMHSA National Helpline (mental health & substance use support)
1-800-662-HELP (4357)
Pennsylvania County & Regional Crisis Lines
Lancaster County
Lancaster County Behavioral Health Crisis Line: 717-394-2631
Lebanon County
Lebanon County Crisis Intervention: 717-274-3363
York County
York County Crisis Services: 717-851-5320
Dauphin County (Harrisburg area)
Dauphin County Crisis Intervention: 717-232-7511
Berks County (Reading area)
Berks County Crisis Intervention: 610-379-2007
Philadelphia & Southeastern PA
Mental Health Partnerships HelpLine: 1-800-688-4226
Additional Support
PA 211 — Dial 211 or text your ZIP code to 898-211
(Connects you to local resources for mental health, housing, food, and emergency support)
Community Support Through Soul Shine
If you wish to form or join a support group and need a facilitator or space to gather:
Bird Kressler, MA, MS, MHP
📞 717-202-7270
📧 soulshinecareteam@gmail.com
You are not weak for needing support.
You are not alone in this grief or anger.
Please reach out. Please stay connected. Please be safe.
