Jeff Ditzenberger
Wisconsin Farmer
Founder of TUGS
Jeff Ditzenberger is a Wisconsin farmer who spent nine months in jail on a felony arson charge. He was less embarrassed to admit to arson than to the fact that he had mental illness and that the arson was an attempted suicide. He decided that he was done with disappointing himself and his daughter after seeing her from behind prison security glass on her first Thanksgiving. He has had seven years of therapy to manage bipolar disorder II. Jeff advises, “It’s OK to not be OK but please don’t stay there. People need someone to talk to. Know that help is out there.” He is the founder of TUGS (Talking, Understanding, Growing, Supporting), a support group and Facebook page to help others by sharing lived experience.