Few things bring more joy than an ice cream truck. The nostalgic music signals something sweet is nearby, and it’s the positive energy retired firefighter Douglas Satterfield is spreading to his Stockton, California, community.
Satterfield, a father of three who served as a first responder (with roles as an engineer, firefighter and paramedic), was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in 2021 after suffering a mental breakdown. Now, he’s making it his mission to help other first responders struggling with their mental health through funds raised with his Fire & Ice Cream truck.
“I know the struggle,” he told CBS Sacramento. “And first responders, they deserve the best, man. They put it all out there and they don’t deserve to lose it in the end.”
His PTSD diagnosis
Satterfield was at first unaware he was struggling with PTSD.
“I had no idea. I was living life. I was still enjoying the job, enjoying the calls, and our family was doing what I thought was great,” he told CBS Sacramento. “I mean, we were surviving and no arguments or anything, but there’s just an underlying tension, and you just live at such a high level in life in this career. You’re always in a fight. You’re never in flight and that’s 24-7. So, it’s exhausting, but I just didn’t know what was going on with me.”
He added that his behavior was becoming “very destructive,” and “I was having a mental break because I was totally out of control.”
But a volunteer organization called West Coast Post-Trauma Retreat (WCPR), part of the First Responder Support Network (FRSN) finally helped him.
Mental health retreat for first responders
The six-day WCPR retreat changed the trajectory of his life. Satterfield attended WCPR where he was able to unpack a heavy “backpack” of stresses and problems that came with being a first responder.
“The West Coast Post Trauma Retreat (WCPR) helped me reclaim my life,” he wrote on Instagram. “Now, I want to help other first responders reach that same help—without waiting months for approval.”
Satterfield added that if you or someone you know could benefit, you can contact WCPR at (415) 721‑9789. WCPR is also currently being offered in five states: California, Washington, Oregon, Kansas, and Indiana, per the organization’s website.
The start of the Fire & Ice Cream truck
Satterfield was inspired to start his ice cream business to help other first responders get the mental health support they need.
The Fire & Ice Cream truck is “not your typical one”— it is a “a retired mail truck transformed to look like a fire engine, called Fire & Ice Cream,” he wrote on Instagram.
He saw there was a missing piece of nostalgia in his community, and found the truck on Facebook Marketplace.
“Recalling the way our kids chased the evening ice cream truck inspired me,” he added. “That nostalgic magic reminded me of my own childhood but made me realize Tuolumne County didn’t have anything like it. So here we are.”
He plans to donate all ice cream earnings to WCPR.
