ABOUT
Rediscover your joy of learning and helping.
You're the type of person others turn to for help. Because you're already caring for others, you don't have time to waste on another confusing or tedious training. This is where your story and our story overlap—we knew there had to be a better way. We created Spiritual First Aid so people like you can become the helper others need you to be, without sitting through another complicated (or boring) training.
Co-Founders of Spiritual First Aid
Our Promise to You
Each of our Spiritual First Aid courses and resources are biblically-informed,
evidence-informed, and trauma-informed so you can feel confident in the care you give.
Our Story
We've distilled our global experiences in frontline spiritual and emotional care into straightforward, actionable steps you can apply to support others in your day-to-day life.
We briefly met in Haiti while helping after the 2010 earthquake. Our work there opened our eyes to the transformative impact everyday people can have on others when empowered with the right training. We stayed in touch over the years, motivated by a shared vision of humbly doing good, better.
Now we co-direct the Humanitarian Disaster Institute at Wheaton College, The Better Samaritan podcast, and several national initiatives. Our experiences and research have reinforced how important humility is to being an effective helper, which is why humility is at the core of Spiritual First Aid and the BLESS CPR framework.
Through Spiritual First Aid, we share what we've learned from responding to everything from daily life challenges to global crises, through practical training and actionable tools, so you're better equipped to care for everyday mental health challenges, spiritual struggles, and trauma.
We've streamlined spiritual and emotional care into a practical step-by-step framework, enabling you to invest your time caring for others instead of worrying about the care you've given. We hope you'll join us on our journey to humbly keep learning to do good, better.
Get to Know Our Team
Jamie Aten, Ph.D.
Co-Founder of Spiritual First Aid
Trauma Psychologist
JAMIE ATEN, PH.D., is the Co-Founder of Spiritual First Aid. He is also the Founder and Co-Director of the Humanitarian Disaster Institute, Blanchard Chair of Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership, and Co-Coordinator of the Trauma Certificate Program at Wheaton College. He is both a Hurricane Katrina and a late-stage early-onset cancer survivor. He has responded to and researched disasters and mass traumas around the globe. He has published nine authored and edited books and over 150 scholarly publications. His research has been supported by over $12 million in awarded grants. He is frequently cited, interviewed, and published in outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, CNN, Fox News, BBC News, Psychology Today, Religion News Service, Moody Radio, and Christianity Today. In 2016, Jamie was awarded the FEMA Community Preparedness Champion Award at the White House. He also received the Early Career Award and Applied Psychology of Religion and Spirituality Award from the America Psychological Association’s Society for the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality. He is co-host of award-winning The Better Samaritan podcast.
Kent Annan, M.Div.
Co-Founder of Spiritual First Aid
Humanitarian Ministry Leader
KENT ANNAN, M.DIV., is the Co-Founder of Spiritual First Aid. He is also the Co-Director of the Humanitarian Disaster Institute and Director of Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership at Wheaton College. His humanitarian work has included living in England, France, Albania, Kosovo, and Haiti. Kent is a senior consultant for Development Associates International, which trains Christian leaders around the world. In addition, he co-founded the nonprofit Haiti Partners. He previously served on the board of directors of Equitas Group, which focused on child trafficking issues in Haiti and Southeast Asia. Kent writes for publications such as The Washington Post and Christianity Today. He is the author of four books, including Slow Kingdom Coming: Practices for Doing Justice, Loving Mercy, and Walking Humbly in the World. He is co-host of the award-winning The Better Samaritan podcast.
Who We Are and What Drives Us
Our mission is to turn research into innovative peer support training and tools that make it easier for everyday Christian helpers, churches, and organizations to turn their compassion into effective care for everything from mild stress to mass trauma.
Our vision is to close the mental health care gap by sparking and equipping a movement of everyday helpers, churches, organizations, and networks to share God’s love through compassionate care so no one has to struggle alone.
Our core values, grounded in our Christian faith and guiding our work, are humility, innovation, and collaboration.
Our work begins with Jamie and Kent’s pioneering research on faith and mental health through our partnership with Wheaton College’s Humanitarian Disaster Institute. Our Spiritual First Aid team then uses design thinking methods to translate these findings into user-friendly, scalable solutions for fighting the mental health crisis.
