Strengthening Ohio’s Communities through
Education & Volunteerism


Issue 8
November 2005
In this Issue: (click an article)

Ohio Citizen Corps helps Hurricane Victims


Ohio Citizen Corps and its affiliated programs provided support for Hurricane Relief efforts. Here are some stories:

Ohioans want to Help!

The outpouring of Ohioans asking “How can I help?” resulted in a surge of new interest in citizen participation. Ohio’s ability to engage citizens in response was greatly enhanced as a result of the interconnected state and local infrastructure and the local networks developed through Citizen Corps. Media outlets referred interested citizens to our Web site: www.serveohio.org and our toll free number 1-888-767-OHIO. More than 700 citizens registered on the Ohio Citizen Corps/Ohio Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) database; 500 healthcare professionals, 200 general volunteers. That now brings the total number of Ohio Citizen Corps Volunteers registered in statewide database to 3,600.

Medical Reserve Corps Activated!

The National MRC partnered with the American Red Cross to provide medical support for shelter operations. Ohio Medical Reserve Corps answered the call by activating volunteers. More than 100 volunteer applications were sent to Washington D.C. and 64 Ohio Medical Reserve Corps volunteers were deployed to various locations along the Gulf Coast. This represents nearly 20% of the 400 National MRC volunteers deployed to the Gulf Region. Thankfully, relief efforts are progressing faster than anticipated and the American Red Cross mission has been successfully completed.

In addition, Ohio Medical Reserve Corps provided a list of registered medical professionals for potential deployment by Health and Human Services in the Gulf States.

Locally, many MRC units were involved with evacuees coming to Ohio. The Montgomery County MRC provided medical support to 150 evacuees.

Ohio Medical Reserve Corps would like to extend a warm thank you for those that were deployed and those that were willing to donate their time and experience in this national time of need. These catastrophic events prove the importance of having a “ready to respond” healthcare force.

Ohio Citizen Corps Responds!

Ohio Citizen Corps County Councils and Lead Volunteer Centers were busy planning and supporting evacuees that were seeking shelter in Ohio.

  • Lead Volunteer Centers, key regional resource coordinators for county Citizen Corps Councils, reported to Ohio Citizen Corps through several conference calls. These calls were initiated when it appeared that evacuees would be coming to the three largest cities in the state; Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. RSVP programs were involved and volunteers agreed to be greeters, hosts and perform other services upon request. The Citizen Corps network was at the ready. However, to no avail as the evacuees did not materialize.
  • In Lawrence county, the Lead Volunteer Center is working with the Community Action Center to assist 20 evacuees in the area. They are responding to shelter and other requests for supplies, furniture etc. School children responded to the situation by providing supplies for their new student friends.
  • The Lead Volunteer Center in Toledo/Lucas County opened a Katrina Hotline for donations and information. Inquiries about volunteer opportunities were referred to the appropriate organizations.
  • The Lead Volunteer Center in Franklin County operated a Volunteer Reception Center in cooperation with the county Board of Health. Over 100 medical professionals responded to register with the MRC.
  • In Franklin County, the Lead Volunteer Center is also working with Columbus Metropolitan Housing, The Ohio State University School of Social Work and faith-based organizations to assist 40 evacuee families/units with housing, food and furnishings.
  • In Hancock County, the Lead Volunteer Center working with the American Red Cross, collected and sent 4 truckloads of needed supplies to the affected area.
  • In Logan County, the Lead Volunteer Center working with the Red Cross, collected donations that were stored in a donated warehouse.
  • In Mahoning County, the Lead Volunteer Center worked with the County EMA Director to establish a One-Stop-Shop for coordinating resettlement efforts for 7 families in the area.
  • Ohio Citizen Corps referred 100 community volunteer responders to local Red Cross Chapters.

Growing Rapidly!
Ohio Medical Reserve Corps -
More Counties Added

Ohio Medical Reserve Corps continues to flourish. Since June, five more units have formed in the Buckeye State encompassing an additional 12 counties. OMRC now has 19 registered units serving 26 counties with 1,800 healthcare professionals.

We would like to welcome our newest units: Athens County MRC, Gallia County MRC,Hocking County MRC, Harrison County MRC and the Tristate MRC that includes the counties of Adams, Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton, Highland and Warren counties.

Contacts for New MRC Units
Athens County MRC
278 W. Union St.
Athens, OH 45701
Jeremy Phillips
(740) 592-4431
jphilli@health.athens.oh.us
Harrison County MRC
538 N. Main St. Suite G
Cadiz, OH 43907
James Touvell
(740)942-2616
jtouvell@odh.ohio.gov
Hocking County MRC
Citizen Corps Council Coordinator
Hocking County Citizen Corps
52 E Second St
Logan, OH 43138
Susan Rauber
740-385-6168
srauber@co.hocking.oh.us
 
Gallia County MRC
499 Jackson Pike,
Suite D
Gallipolis, OH 45631
Catherine Clark
740 441-2965
cclark@odh.ohio.gov
Tristate Medical Reserve Corps - Cincinnati
2100 Sherman Ave. suite 100
Cincinnati, OH 45212
Jerry Lautz
(513) 531-0267
jlautz@gchc.org
 


Look for even more expansion in the coming months as several counties have applied for registration.

You Can Make a Difference too! Join the Ohio Medical Reserve Corps

Check Out our web site at: http://www.serveohio.org/CitizenCorps/mrc/mrc.html
 

New Ohio Citizen Corps County Councils

Ohio Citizen Corps map continues to be painted blue.

We are pleased to welcome our two newest county councils: Adams County Citizen Corps Council and Wood County Citizen Corps County.

Ohio Citizen Corps now has 72 county councils with more than 3,000 volunteers.

(Click the map for a larger version)


Ohio Citizen Corps/
Ohio Medical Reserve Corps
Fall Marketing-Recruitment Campaign

Ohio Citizen Corps kicked off its fall marketing and recruitment campaign on September 11th.
The campaign is aimed at all Ohioans to become involved with Ohio Citizen Corps, but with an emphasis on healthcare professionals.

The kick off culminates months of planning, research and preparation. Focus groups were conducted to verify the validity of the Citizen Corps “key messages” for recruitment and to validate their effectiveness in recruiting Ohioans for participation in Citizen Corps programs.

Using the insight gained from the focus groups, 2 radio and 2 television commercials were produced by Mills James Productions.

The ads were distributed to every television and radio station in the state through a partnership with the Ohio Association of Broadcasters. The spots will air through the end of November.

You can help us with our recruiting efforts! If you see or hear our advertisements, please email Paul Bender at pbender@ocsc.state.oh.us and provide us the following information:

  • Station
  • City
  • Time

Thank you for your support!


   
 

The real first responders: citizens

Citizens will almost always be the first to arrive at the scene of an incident. This is one of the reasons for the creation of Citizen Corps to have better prepared citizens.

The Attacks in New York, Madrid, and London highlighted the role ordinary people play at terror scenes. The Christian Science Monitor wrote an article featuring this involvement.

Click here to read the article: http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0714/p03s01-ussc.html


Terrorism Awareness & Prevention (TAP) - Instructor Training

The Ohio Crime Prevention Association has been awarded a statewide training initiative through federal funding from the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services, entitled Terrorism Awareness and Prevention or TAP. This statewide training initiative will be used to train law enforcement officers throughout Ohio to be presenters of the Terrorism Awareness and Prevention (TAP) program at the local level.

The TAP training will consist of a four hour PowerPoint presentation. This is a State of Ohio Security Task Force Homeland Security and crime prevention initiative. The course will cover a brief overview of why and how the program was developed and why there is a need for such a program in Ohio. Training will include an overview of the resources and materials that have been included in the TAP training kit. Upon successful completion of the training, the officer will receive his/her own TAP presentation kit and a certificate identifying him/her as a TAP presenter. The officer will then be able to present the TAP program throughout his/her community.

Overview of the TAP training program:

  • The Impact: How we act, think and feel differently because of terrorism.
  • How Terrorists Operate: How terrorists prepare and implement their goals.
  • Types of Terrorism: The various forms of today’s terrorist acts.
  • Observe & Report: Reasonable ways to practice heightened awareness and report.
  • Be Ready: Effective planning tips for a potential terrorist act—or any emergency.
  • Get Involved: Beyond this program . . . Challenging you to get involved in your community.

This training is being provided at no cost to the participants or their agencies. Hours of training: AM Session will be 8 am—12 pm; PM Session will be 1 pm—5 pm. (*) beside training dates denotes AM and PM Session offered. (**) beside training dates denotes PM Session only. Otherwise, all other trainings offered are AM sessions only. Class size is limited to 35 registrants maximum for each training session.

Training Dates & Locations

Date City County
Novemeber 8 Ashtabula Ashtabula
9 Delaware Delaware
10 Miamisburg Montgomery
11* Cincinnati Hamilton
14 Mansfield Richland
15** Bay Village Cuyahoga
16 Chillicothe Ross
17 Medina Medina
18 Zanesville Muskingum
29 Findlay Hancock
30 Celina Mercer
December 5 Mansfield Richland
7 Chillicothe Ross
8 Ashtabula Ashtabula
9* Cincinnati Hamilton
9 Zanesville Muskingum
12 Medina Median
13 Athens Athens
14 Columbus Franklin

Hours of Training: AM Session will be 8 am—12 pm; PM Session will be 1 pm—5 pm.
(*) beside training dates denotes AM and PM Session offered. (**) beside training dates denotes PM Session only offered.
Otherwise, all other trainings offered are AM Sessions only.
Class size is limited to 35 registrants maximum for each training session.

REGISTRATION


Register via Mail or Fax. This form may be used to register for the TAP training. The registration deadline is 3 business days before the selected training date. A confirmation with training location information will be FAXED to you upon registration.

NAME ________________________________________________________________________________________
TITLE ________________________________________________________________________________________
AGENCY _____________________________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS _____________________________________________________________________________________
CITY _________________________________________ STATE _____________________
ZIP _______________
PHONE _________________________________________
FAX __________________________________________TRAINING

DATE__________________________________ CITY _________________________________________
SESSION ATTENDING (IF OFFERED): AM PM

OHIO CRIME PREVENTION ASSOCIATION
P. O. BOX 248, DELAWARE, OH 43015
PHONE: (740) 369-6644 FAX: (614) 386-2084
WEB: WWW.OHIOCRIMEPREVENTION.ORG



Ohio Volunteer License Plate

Only 400 more Signatures needed to help
Volunteerism in Ohio


You Can Help.....It's Easy....Sign the Petition!

The Ohio Community Service Council is coordinating an EXCITING effort to create an Ohio “VOLUNTEER” License Plate to help support volunteer activities throughout the state! As part of this effort, 1,000 signatures must be obtained from people who support the creation of this special license plate.

Proceeds generated from the sale of the license plates will be used for a variety of activities including:

  • grants to local organizations for innovative volunteer programs;
  • further development of Ohio’s Citizen Corps (citizen involvement in homeland security);
  • support for Make A Difference Day Ohio (the largest national day of service);
  • assistance with local matching funds for AmeriCorps programs - and more!

#1 Download the Signature Petition and agree to be a Petition Circulator. (click here)          
Help us obtain the 1,000 REQUIRED signatures by
November 30, 2005!


Kaity Scherbel, Ohio State University Student and Ohio Community Service Council Intern, is all smiles after Hope Taft, First Lady of Ohio, signed the Ohio VOLUNTEER License Plate Signature petition!
#2 Circulate the Signature Petition among colleagues and friends - please make extra Copies of the Signature Petition to obtain additional signatures.
#3 Return all petitions to the Ohio Community Service Council, 51 N. High Street-Suite 800, Columbus, Ohio 4321. Faxed copies will not be accepted –original signatures are required.

Every signature counts!
If you are unable to obtain multiple signatures, but are interested in showing your support- please include your information on the Signature Petition and mail it to the
Ohio Community Service Council.

Frequently Asked Questions - Click Here

Note: To be valid, all information must be complete. The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles requires a current license plate number or a social security number be included for each signature to prove authenticity.

Mail completed Signature Petition Page to: Ohio Community Service Council,
51 N. High Street-Suite 800, Columbus, OH 43215

Note: Target Date for License Plate Availability: Spring 2006


Safety Tip

"ICE" your cell Phone


Paramedics will turn to a victim's cell phone for clues to that person's identity. You can make their job much easier with a simple idea that they are trying to get everyone to adopt: ICE.

ICE stands for In Case of Emergency. If you add an entry in the contacts list in your cell phone under ICE, with the name and phone number. of the person that the emergency services should call on your behalf, you can save them a lot of time and have your loved ones contacted quickly. It only takes a few moments of your time to do.

Paramedics know what ICE means and they look for it immediately. ICE your cell phone NOW!

 


For Kids - Safety Around the Home


Code Red Rover
is the Home Safety Council's website for children that introduces them to Rover, the Home Safety Hound, and delivers interactive games and puzzles to assist children in identifying dangers in and around the home. Visit: http://www.coderedrover.org/