Compassion Coalition

The mission of the newly formed compassion Coalition is to inform, unite, coordinate, prepare and mobilize Tuscaloosa County's faith-based organizations to lend an empathetic hand to lives affected by disasters.

When calamity strikes, faith-based organizations often want to help, but do not exactly know what to do and whom to approach. Now there is an effective way for faith-based organizations in Tuscaloosa County to aid those who are in need during disasters or emergency responses.

Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc. (Compassion Coalition), an umbrella organization for local faith-based groups, has recently been established to aid evacuees who seek refuge in Tuscaloosa County when slowly developing disasters, such as hurricanes, occur. When other sudden catastrophes, such as tornadoes, directly impact our own community members, Compassion Coalition will also aid those who find themselves in dire need.

"The role of this newly formed organization is to provide essential and effective volunteer actions from the faith-based community to meet the needs of others in times of disaster response," says Deputy Director Don Hartley of the Tuscaloosa County Emergency Management Agency (EMA). "Compassion Coalition is an indirect service provider mobilized in times of need, but it is an essential component for our community".

"Hurricane Katrina left thousands of evacuees in need of assistance. Our community responded extremely well to those who came to us, but this recent event demonstrated that if we in the faith-based community were better organized and prepared, we could do so much more," says Compassion Coalition chair William Scroggins.

"Faith-based organizations that become part of Compassion Coalition are a vital component of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD)," said Salvation Army's Major Mark Smith. Smith chairs the newly formed association of social service agencies, who coordinate their efforts during times of crisis. "Compassion Coalition members will automatically become part of VOAD and closely work with all county social service agencies to effectively serve those who are in need. We are excited about this new means for the faith-based community to formally interact with us."

"There are two unique and distinct advantages that Compassion Coalition brings to Tuscaloosa County," Scroggins says. "First, faith-based organizations and their members can evaluate how they are best suited to offer volunteers and the skills, resources and services their members are willing to provide during times of crisis. Pre-disaster planning helps avoid duplicated efforts and ensures more people who are in need will be served. This preplanning also identifies service gaps so Tuscaloosa County EMA and Tuscaloosa County VOAD can problem-solve to close these gaps."

Scroggins continues, "Second, Compassion Coalition launched its interactive communications and mobilization website on July 15 of this year. Faith-based organizations can go on-line at www.cc-tc.org to indicate at least three of 52 needed resources, skills and services they are able to provide during emergency responses. The decision to select more than three services a faith-based group is committed to consistently provide depends on the organization's membership and resources."

Faith-based organizations are also asked to provide at least one of their three contact representatives with high-speed internet access due to the internet's ability to rapidly keep everyone informed. After enrolling, faith-based organizations can update their information from their own computers on an ongoing basis. "This eliminates the obsolescence factor inherently built into published documents containing pertinent and timely data," says Scroggins.

"We respect the uniqueness and privacy of each faith-based organization in our community," says website designer James Medlin, "and we secure the data of each enrolling faith-based organization so this information is not accessible to any other faith-based organization or the general public who use the website to learn about Compassion Coalition. However, faith-based organizations with like-minded selections will have an opportunity to network if they wish."

The Compassion Coalition is sending letters of invitation to community faith-based organizations to kick-off the initial enrollment period. However, everyone can visit the website to learn more and to enroll their faith-based organization on line. "With Tropical Storm Alberto, we were recently launched into this year's season of hurricanes and the subsequent high winds, tornadoes and flooding that accompany these natural disasters," declared Hartley. "By enrolling in Compassion Coalition now, faith-based organizations become part of a pre-disaster agreement with Tuscaloosa County EMA. This pre-planning benefits those faith-based organizations who serve as well as those who are served in times of emergency response."

There is no charge for faith-based organizations to enroll. However, there are costs involved in creating and maintaining an interactive website. Three grants have recently been awarded to Compassion Coalition that will help with these costs.

Two grants were awarded by Volunteers of America Southeast (VOASE), which is made possible through a Compassion Capital Fund Grant from the U.S. Dept. of Hea1th and Human Services. The first provides ongoing technical support during the pre-disaster preparation phase, which includes planning for those who find themselves temporarily or permanently homeless because of a disaster. The second VOASE grant provided pre-disaster funding to help cover the costs of establishing the interactive website, which serves as a pilot faith-based community model. The third grant was awarded through the Governor's Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives. This financial award was from the Singing for Change Foundation & Outback Steakhouse, and these funds are also responsible for the website's creation and required equipment to set up and manage an emergency response operation.

William Scroggins, director of Tuscaloosa Prayer Network, Inc., has served as Compassion Coalition's chair since its inception in November, 2005. Faith-based organizational members who helped shape Compassion Coalition represent a broad-spectrum of this county's faith-based organizations. Those include: Mirza A. Beg (community member), Mary Bendall (First United Methodist), Sandy Campbell (University Church of Christ), John A. Cooper (Grace Church), Jane Darden (Forest Lake United Methodist), Debra Downs (Hope's Children), Charles Lenn (First Assembly of God), Fred H. Moore, Jr. (Tuscaloosa Inter-denominational Ministerial Alliance), Pam Rogers (Tuscaloosa Life Church), Sheldon Rosenzweig (Temple Emanuel), Judith C. Sawyer (First Presbyterian), Akram Temimi (Islamic Society of Tuscaloosa), Fran Viscelli (Holy Spirit Catholic), Gary R. Wendt (Authentic Renovation Ministries), Jerry L. Wilkins (Tuscaloosa County Baptist Association), and Desheva L. Williams (Minister's Roundtable).

"Suffering of others tests our own humanity," states Mirza Beg. "We can't help but respond, whether it is man's inhumanity to man in wars or the effects of nature's fury. A coordinated selfless response can help more people more effectively. Those associated with the Compassion Coalition know that shared compassion becomes more than the sum of its parts. It enriches us individually while helping those in need."

"We have a hard-working group, but there is room for more ideas and leadership," said Scroggins. If you would like to volunteer to help Compassion Coalition, or if you would like to help support the work of this organization, visit our website at www.cc-tc.org, call 462-9916 and press 1 for William Scroggins, or write to Compassion Coalition, P.0. Box 1507 Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-1507.