Joplin area nonprofits will soon have access to customized disaster preparation and training programs designed to help them create or supplement existing plans.
The Joplin Globe
December 18, 2013
Andra Bryan Stefanoni
Joplin area nonprofits will soon have access to customized disaster preparation and training programs designed to help them create or supplement existing plans.
The Resilient Community training is being paid for from a $248,000 national grant awarded to the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, based in Springfield. As many as 15 agencies can apply, and it will include several training sessions starting in January, as well as help developing customized plans.
The program is designed for “next responders” or “second responders” — agencies that don’t provide immediate disaster response as a main function of their work, but which would offer services needed during a recovery phase.
“If disasters are already their business, then this is not right for them,” said foundation spokeswoman Louise Knauer. “This is for agencies who would potentially be called in during a communitywide disaster situation.”
She cited churches, food distribution agencies, a library system, a YMCA, child care and animal welfare supporters as examples.
At the end of the program, participants will have the chance to apply for grants of up to $5,000 each to implement some aspect of their plan, including purchasing a generator to keep an office running during a power outage, or to purchase hardware to back up files.
Read the full article at The Joplin Globe.
