Wendy Hummell is a seasoned law enforcement officer with over 24 years of experience. She started her career in 1996 as a Special Agent with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). She retired at the rank of Detective after 21 years of service from the Wichita Police Department where she spent a majority of her career working Persons Crimes Investigations. Wendy worked homicide, gang, and sex-crimes cases. She was also a member of her department’s CISM (Critical incident Stress Management) and Defense Tactics teams. Wendy has taught multiple classes both in the Academy setting and at national conferences such as the FBI NAA (National Academy Associates), The International Conference of Police Chaplains, and the Crime Stoppers USA Conference. Wendy has taught classes on sex crimes & domestic violence investigations, gang crimes, homicide investigation, and crime stoppers.
Wendy’s area of expertise is officer health and wellness, peer support, and resiliency. She is currently the Health and Wellness Manager for the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office. Wendy is passionate about and committed to helping her fellow First Responders learn the tools of mindfulness, resiliency, as well as the importance of relationships, exercise, sleep, and nutrition to enhance their well-being and job performance. Wendy speaks to these topics from the perspective of direct experience and through the lens of a law enforcement spouse. Wendy’s belief is that all law enforcement agencies should provide resources to their employees so they can not only survive a career in law enforcement, but thrive well into retirement.
Wendy holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice. She is a certified yoga instructor and Yoga for First Responders (YFFR) Ambassador. Wendy has taught hundreds of first responders YFFR classes, resiliency, and mindfulness classes. Wendy is also a trainer for the Pause First Academy. Wendy is an adjunct faculty member with the Criminal Justice Department at Wichita State University. She has been teaching collegiate level CJ classes since 1996.
Wendy was awarded the 2018 Wichita Metro Crime Commission Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award, the 2018 Crime Stoppers USA Coordinator of the Year Award, and was a 2019 Wichitalk presenter. Wendy has several articles published with PoliceOne on the topics of trauma, wellness, and female resiliency.
Wendy and her husband launched the “Guns and Yoga” podcast last year as a platform to provide support, add value, and share wellness resources with first responders and their families. Wendy facilitates a group health coaching program, offers free yoga, retreats and more.
Building a Wellness Program from the Ground Up - Link