When calamity strikes, we want to help but do not exactly know what to do and whom to approach. Hurricane Katrina drove this point home as thousands of hurricane evacuees sought refuge in Tuscaloosa County.
According to Don Hartley, Regional Coordinator, State of AL Emergency Management Agency, "Tuscaloosa County is no stranger to killer tornadoes and severe thunderstorms." The most recent tornado that threatened Tuscaloosa County in 2007 actually struck Enterprise, AL, with dire results.
Having a community-wide cooperative action plan can help much more when need is dire and the situation chaotic. Our collective coordinated efforts will help much more than the sum of individual parts.
Future Disaster Response Solutions
Compassion is part of our better nature. It helps us relate to our fellow beings. It blesses those who give and those who receive.
Collective, organized effort can have a profound outcome during future disasters that directly or indirectly impact Tuscaloosa County. For example, Tuscaloosa County Emergency Management Agency (TC EMA) is updating the county's emergency plans to more efficiently respond in future disasters. County social service agencies are organizing as Tuscaloosa County Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (TC VOAD) to more effectively respond in future disaster relief. Lastly, Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc., (Compassion Coalition) is organizing all county faith-based organizations and groups as the faith-based component of TC VOAD to provide a more efficient and effective response.
"Individuals and faith-based organizations already serve in their community and in social service agencies to provide for those in need," stated Mark Smith (2006 TC VOAD Chair). "Compassion Coalition simply builds on this work by offering a sustained, non-duplicative means to provide for those in need, especially during emergencies."
Any survey of faith-based organization contacts and resources becomes outdated by the time it is published. However, the interactive website created by Compassion Coalition can be immensely helpful during disaster responses because faith-based organizations and groups have continuous (24/7) access to enroll and update the resources they are commited to provide to those who find themselves in need. Also, the combined effort of county emergency management, county social service agencies and county faith-based groups and organizations provides an effective, efficient means to compassionately assist individuals and families who are in dire need because of a disaster.
Through the interactive website, your faith-based group or organization will receive disaster-related training opportunities as well as disaster-related training contained in Compassion Coalition Informer newsletters. Also, as an enrolled member, your group or organization will receive severe weather or other disaster-related alerts. When someone who is in need requires a skill, service or resource you have agreed to provide, your organization or group will be mobilized into action via the website's email server. With time and experience and through your feedback and the feedback of those you serve, continuous improvements to the website and to our disaster response efforts can be made.
Please join Compassion Coalition to complement your efforts with like-minded others. Remember: Coordinated compassion is greater and goes much farther than the sum of the small parts.
By joining Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc., you will be able to:
- Assist in your areas of interest and expertise. Under the general categories of food, clothing, shelter, transportation, etc., you can select the specific skills, services and resources your organization is willing to provide during disasters. Although you may select less, we strongly encourage you to choose at least three specific human or physical resources you can provide.
- Take advantage of training opportunities. There is a wealth of certified trainers in all areas of emergency responses. You will keep up-to-date on the dates, times and locations for training sessions through Compassion Coalition so you will have the opportunity to develop or improve skills in your organization's area of interest.
- Automatically become part of a pre-disaster agreement with TC EMA by enrolling with Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc.
- Stay updated of needs during disaster responses through Compassion Coalition. We are planning back-up methods of updating your organization during emergency responses. These include a cell phone telephone tree and a door-to-door alert campaign in times where power and communication systems are unavailable.
- Quickly respond to those needs in a sustained and non-duplicated manner. By enrolling in Compassion Coalition, you will only be mobilized when those in need require the services, skills and resources that you committed.
- Prevent volunteer burn-out while serving.
- Enjoy limited liability protection under the Good Samaritan Act.
- Appoint a representative to view and/or print a worksheet for your organization. You will need a PDF reader such as Adobe Acrobat Reader installed to view or print the worksheet.
- Complete the first page, which gathers your contact information, including your representatives' information. On the second page choose the skills, services or resources from any of the listed general categories of food, clothing, shelter, transportation, etc., that your organization wishes to contribute during disasters.
- After all your information has been gathered, enroll by entering the information using our online enrollment form. (This is the preferred method because it minimizes errors in your information and helps reduce our administrative costs.)
- If you prefer, you can choose to send the completed paper worksheet to us via mail to:
Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc.
P.O. Box 1507
Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-1507 - Please note: If you are a faith-based organization who is interested in enrolling but would like to contribute less than three skills, services, or resources, you may do so using the same method as above. However, we strongly encourage all members to contribute at least three skills, services, or resources if at all possible. In the event of a disaster, this would allow us to be more flexible and help as many people as possible.
Reviewing And Changing Your Information
If you have previously enrolled online, we recommend that you review your organization's information periodically to make sure everything is as up-to-date as possible.
- Enroll or update your contact information, your representatives or the types of skills, services or resources on-line.
- Receive information on training opportunities, alerts, and mobilizations.
- Provide feedback about your experiences.
- Learn about the back-up systems for those without internet access or for interruptions of internet, power or communication services.
How Tuscaloosa County Faith-Based Organizations Are Active in Disaster Response
To learn how your organization will be involved the event of a disaster please review this schematic. You will need a PDF reader such as Adobe Acrobat Reader installed to view or print the document.
Please join Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County, Inc., a faith-based umbrella organization to coordinate an efficient and effective response to future disasters. If you have additional questions, please contact us.
