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 Home > Regional MRC Coordinators > Elizabeth H. Fitch > Region IV Newsletters > Region IV MRC Update - August 2005
Television Programs Developed for National Preparedness MonthIn The Balance, a TV series focusing on terrorism and how the threat of terrorism has affected the United States, will be aired on PBS during September. The series contains information on citizen preparedness and is being sponsored in part by The Citizen Corps. The two-part series will be aired (check local listings) September 12 and 19 at 10:00 p.m. This is a great opportunity to stimulate community interest in the MRC! For information on community outreach to promote In The Balance and National Preparedness Month, visit Fred Friendly Seminars Presents In the Balance. For more information on other potential Preparedness Month activities, see the memo from The American Red Cross and Homeland Security. Volunteer Management and Grant-Writing ResourceVolunteering is a choice about how to use one's limited personal time, and rarely will your organization be the only option available to a prospective volunteer. So sell yourself. Be clear about what you stand for, how you use your volunteers, and how that person will benefit from donating his or her time to your organization. – Lee Mizell, From the Heart: Managing and Valuing Volunteers Grants.gov Mailing ListLooking for Grants? Sign up for the Grants.gov Mailing List!Grants.gov is a centralized location for searching for Federal grant opportunities. As of November 7, all Federal agencies must post their grant opportunities online, making Federal grant opportunities more easily accessible. To sign up for notices of new grant opportunities, visit the Grants.gov Web site. You can sign up to receive all grant postings or narrow your search by agency or category of funding activity. The Grants.gov Web site also contains useful resources for grant-seekers and proposal writers. Regional Conference PollBased on your requests, a regional conference is being planned for November 2005 in Atlanta. Please visit the MRC Message Board and vote for the date you prefer! This will be a day-long event with speakers, educational sessions, and plenty of time for discussion! “The most effective volunteer recognition occurs in the day-to-day interchange between the volunteer and the organization through the staff expressing sincere appreciation and thanks for the work being done by the volunteer. This type of recognition is more powerful in part because it is much more frequent—a once-a-year dinner does not carry the same impact as 365 days of good working relationships.” – Steve McCurley and Rick Lynch, Volunteer Management Wisconsin Considering Bill for Retired Physicians and NursesWisconsin legislators have proposed a bill to allow recently retired physicians and nurses to practice without relicensing in the event of a declared emergency. Under the proposed legislation, these individuals also would be covered under state liability protection and workers’ compensation. Put Yourself in the (Potential) Volunteer’s ShoesWhat if you wanted to volunteer for an organization, but didn’t know much about it? If you’re like many people, you would do some research to find out more. But what if your research led you to a Web page about the organization that hadn’t been updated in months and said that the organization had no volunteers and no recent activity? It might dampen your enthusiasm for volunteering, right? This could be what happens when a potential volunteer goes looking for your unit. If you haven’t updated your unit profile (which includes number of volunteers and recent activities), you may have lost a potential volunteer! Many of the MRC Units in Region IV have not updated their profiles since February. The Program Office recommends that you update your profile at least quarterly so that the most recent information is available online. Please note that only the registered Unit Coordinator or Unit Director may make changes to your unit profile. If you are not registered as the Unit Coordinator/Director and should be, you will need to contact LCDR Kidd. Helpful Online ResourcesJust a reminder: There is a collection of Web sites that may be useful to MRC Unit Coordinators. The easiest way to look at these links is by topic; if you go to the archive page, click on the drop-down box next to “filter by topic” (at the top of the page), and you will see the topics available. Pick a topic, such as Risk Management/Liability, and click the “search” button, and you will see the Web resources I’ve collected under that topic, along with a brief clipping from the page and possibly a note from me about the link. Recent additions include: The Community Tool Box, The National Weather Service River Prediction Centers, Volunteer Retention and Recognition, and Community-Based Mass Prophylaxis: A Planning Guide for Public Health Preparedness. Happy surfing! Upcoming Health ObservancesAugust is National Immunization Awareness Month
September is National Preparedness Month This is a great time for your unit to work with the local community on preparedness issues. This not only improves individual and community preparedness, it provides additional visibility for your MRC Unit! See page 4 for suggested activities. “National Preparedness Month is a nationwide coordinated effort held each September to encourage Americans to take simple steps to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and schools. National Preparedness Month 2005 is being co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross.” September 20 is Take a Loved One for a Check-Up Day Regional Coordinator Contact Information
Also, don’t forget to regularly visit the National MRC Web site: sponsored by the Office of the Surgeon General National Preparedness Month—2005 Suggested Coalition Member ActivitiesA Memo From The American Red Cross and Homeland Security...This September, Homeland Security and the American Red Cross will co-sponsor National Preparedness Month 2005, a nationwide coordinated effort to encourage Americans to take steps to be better prepared for emergencies in their homes, businesses, and schools. We are inviting various public- and private-sector organizations to be part of this important effort by serving as National Preparedness Month Coalition Members. Coalition Members will help highlight the importance of emergency preparedness by hosting events and sponsoring activities to disseminate emergency preparedness messages to their customers, members, employees, stakeholders, and communities nationwide. Below are some possible activities National Preparedness Month Coalition Members could undertake during September:
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross welcome additional thoughts or ideas you have for your organization to take part in National Preparedness Month 2005. For more information, please contact Kristin Gossel or Sarah Shields at Homeland Security. Last Updated on 8/14/2006 |
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