MARYSVILLE – When officers Jeremy Wood and Chris Sutherland usually go to a business, they’re responding to a call for help.

Now, it’s the officers turn to call on businesses for help.

The two Marysville School Resource Officers are starting an Anti-Bullying/Harassment Campaign, going to businesses asking for donations. In less than two weeks they have raised more than half of the $15,000 needed.

Wood and Sutherland said the No. 1 issue they deal with in schools is bullying. “It’s not just face to face,” Wood said. “It’s social networking. They can’t escape it.”

He added that if an online post receives 300 likes, “The psychology behind that is huge. They (the victim) think everybody here hates me. But it’s easy to jump on the bandwagon and comment.”

Wood, who is at Marysville Getchell High School, and Sutherland, who is at Marysville-Pilchuck, attended training last winter. They went to a presentation by former professional wrestler Marc Mero and Amy Briggs, a teacher whose son committed suicide after being bullied. The officers were so inspired that they want to bring Mero and Briggs here to speak to the middle and high schools.

Mero, the ex-wrestler, was an admitted bully who was able to change his life around. So his talk addresses the aggressor, along with the victim.

Briggs said she got no help from police or schools – not even to move her son’s locker away from the bully.

“Boys will be boys,” she was told, Wood said. “We don’t want that to ever happen here.”

Wood, who has been an officer for 19 years, said he can be pretty skeptical. So for him to do something as uncomfortable as asking for money, “I believe 100 percent it’s the real deal. I would want this for my kids.”

He said bullying can take over a victim’s mind. “That’s all they think about. They’re not learning anything. They’re thinking survival,” Wood said.

Sutherland said sixth-graders to seniors have Chromebooks in school so online bullying is rampant. “They know how to close the window when the teacher comes by,” he said.

As an SRO, Wood said he has been in mediation 60 times. He said once they peel off the layers, he finds the bully is dealing with some other trauma. “They hurt inside. It’s a cry for help.”

The SROs work with the school district to hold bullies accountable by setting up contracts with them, following up with parents, issuing no contact orders at school, use of suspensions and more.

“I’m against the victim having to change their lifestyle,” Wood said.

For example, instead of a teacher walking a victim from class to class to try to make them feel safe, walk with the bully instead. That is more likely to change the behavior.

In talking to high schoolers, the officers explain to bullies that they can’t have that behavior in the workplace. They can get fired, sued or face criminal charges.

The officers said parents usually take it seriously when they are called out of work for a meeting. “That was the story you were told?” Sutherland said he often tells parents of bullies. “This is what really happened.”

He said students often act differently at home than at school. The parents “want to believe their kid, but they only hear one side.”

People who are being bullied can often be found in the nurse’s office because they aren’t feeling well. They also skip school.

“After the (M-P) shooting they would just come to school and walk around,” Sutherland said of how lost some of them were.

Some victims don’t seek help because they don’t want to confront the bully, fearing retaliation. The extreme, of course, is when they reach the point that they think their best option is suicide.

“They don’t think through stuff,” Sutherland said. “It’s heart-wrenching.”

“We can’t solve all the problems but if we all come together we can have a big impact,” said Sutherland, an officer of 15 years.

He said having Mero and Briggs here should help reduce bullying.

“It’s not a cure-all, but I think it will decrease it right off the bat,” he said.

To donate or for details, call Wood at 425-754-3624 or Sutherland at 425-754-7929.