When Disaster Strikes: Free webinar Sept. 23

When Disaster Strikes:  Free webinar Sept. 23 helps congregations, other community organizations prepare

How prepared is your congregation or organization to respond effectively and with confidence when disaster strikes, whether it’s following a devastating tornado like Joplin, Mo.; a school shooting like Newtown, Conn.; a superstorm like Katrina or Sandy, or an individual member’s house fire?

September is National Preparedness Month, and this free, one-hour webinar – Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014, from 2-3 p.m. (U.S. Eastern) – will help equip you with practical ways your congregation or organization can prepare for disaster – and get ready to help your community recover, too!

Space is limited, so please register early!  Go to https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/563387946  Don’t miss this special opportunity to learn from the coeditors of the valuable new “how-to” guide “Help and Hope: Disaster Preparedness and Response Tools for Congregations.”

For more information about the book, visit www.cwsglobal.org/helpandhopebook.

Amy Gopp, Director of Member Relations and Pastoral Care at Church World Service, and Brandon Gilvin, Associate Director of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)’s Week of Compassion, will share lessons from real-life experience to help congregations and other community organizations to expect the unexpected and respond in ways that help and not hinder survivors’ relief and recovery.

Topics to be covered include:

– “Systems and Supplies: Some Lists and Tasks for Preparing Your Congregation for a Disaster”

– “Knowing When to Stay and When to Go: A Guide to Volunteering”

– “The Long-Term Recovery Process and Your Faith Community”

– “The Importance of Spiritual and Emotional Care”

The webinar will include ample time for questions and answers.

Free Seminar for Disaster Response Volunteers!

AmeriCorps VISTA Projects Announced in NJ

Are you a young person with a bachelor’s degree and a heart for service?  Consider applying for a year of service in NJ doing disaster response work.

The New Jersey Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (NJVOAD) has announced that along with NJ 2-1-1, they have received funding to support and hire 10 AmeriCorps Volunteers In Service to America  (VISTA).  VISTA is a full-time, national service program for individuals interested in developing lasting solutions to the problems of poverty in the US.  Each VISTA member makes a year-long, full-time commitment to serve on a specific project at a non-profit organization.  In return for their service, AmeriCorps VISTA members receive a modest living allowance (between $11797 and $15994 based upon county poverty guidelines), health benefits, and the option of receiving an education award or post-service stipend after completing a full year of service.  Approximately 6,500 VISTAs are placed each year in more than 1,200 projects in low-income communities around the country.

Goals for the project include improved coordination and effectiveness of Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts and activities across the state of New Jersey and improved preparedness of New Jersey communities to weather the next disaster.  These goals will be accomplished by deploying 10 VISTA members to work in affected communities to build and implement communication strategies and plans whereby best practices can be shared throughout the state.  VISTA members will work to expand and strengthen the capacity of Long Term Recovery Groups (LTRGs) in one of three key areas: volunteer coordination; fundraising and grant research; or marketing, public relations and communications coordination.

The positions and locations appear below.  Most positions require a vehicle or access to reliable transportation.  The required experience is:

• Bachelor’s degree or at least three years of related volunteer or work experience;
• Excellent communication skills (both verbal and written);
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to engage community partners;
• Attention to detail and ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously;
• Good time management skills with the ability to meet deadlines;
• Self-motivated with the ability to work independently to achieve program goals;
• Excellent teamwork capabilities with the ability to relate to people from a variety of cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.

If you are interested in this work or know of anyone who may be interested, please have them contact the program supervisor, Kelly Higgs at khiggs@nj211.org for a full description and more information.

• Fundraising & Grant Researcher (2 assignments: Atlantic City, Southern Regional): work with the LTRG to develop methods and means of fundraising, promotion and communication.

• Marketing, Public Relations & Communications Coordinator (3 assignments: Bergen County, Monmouth County, Ocean County): work with the LTRG marketing, public relations and/or communications committees to promote and publicize the LTR group efforts, accomplishments and events.

• Volunteer Coordinator (2 assignments: Middlesex County, Southern Regional): work with LTRG volunteer and construction committees.

• Regional Support and Development Coordinator (2 assignments: northern region, southern region): work to establish or strengthen VOADs/COADs (Voluntary / Community Organizations Active in Disaster) which build community partnerships to collaborate on disaster preparedness efforts.

• Recovery and Resiliency Team Leader (1 assignment: statewide):  provide support and assistance to VISTA members and LTR groups throughout NJ to ensure program success.

Coastal Community Resilience Training Program Announced

The National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC), a member of the DHS/ FEMA’s National Domestic Preparedness Consortium (NDPC) has been scheduled to deliver four deliveries of their training program titled Coastal Community Resilience (AWR 228) in New Jersey during January. There is NO COST to attend.

This four hour awareness level course will provide participants with an understanding of the concept of resilience as it applies to coastal communities with a focus on resilience as a unifying framework for community-based planning, preparedness, response and recovery. The course will emphasize target capabilities to enhance preparedness and response to natural disasters, including chronic, as well as extreme events affecting coastal communities. It will demonstrate how to integrate risk-based, community-based, and collaborative strategies into plans and programs. The goal of the course is to enhance the participant’s ability to support preparedness and response efforts by developing and sustaining resilient coastal communities.

This course is targeted for a broad cross section of professionals involved in emergency management, fire services, coastal zone managers, planners, developers, and municipal services.

Course Module Topics:

• Resilience Concepts
• Understanding Risks from Natural Disasters
• Building Resilience
• Going Forward

Course Dates, Locations and Registration Codes 8:30am – 12:30pm

• 1/23/2014 – West Long Branch, NJ (Code: 30687) PDF flyer
• 1/24/2014 – Newark, NJ (Code: 94672) PDF flyer
• 1/27/2014 – Tuckerton, NJ (Code: 12793) PDF flyer
• 1/28/2014 – Port Norris, NJ (Code: 09251) PDF flyer

To Register Visit https://ndptc.hawaii.edu/training and use the code above for the selected date. For questions, please contact Lisa Auermuller at 609-812-0649 ext 204 or auermull@marine.rutgers.edu NJ Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness Training Bureau OHSPtraining@ohsp.state.nj.us 609-584-4000 ext 6