Red Cross is looking for volunteers
By Lori O' Brien
Correspondent
The Pioneer Valley Red Cross has issued a call for volunteers from across the region for its emergency shelters program.
The local chapter is teaming up with fire departments throughout the Pioneer Valley to offer emergency shelter training courses in August and September, according to Brenda Brouillette, director of disaster services, Pioneer Valley Red Cross.
Brouillette explained during an interview with Reminder Publications that registrations for classes are now being accepted since the Northeast can be affected by hurricanes and floods in the fall. The deadline to register for the free training is mid-July.
The four-hour session will train volunteers on all aspects of running a Red Cross shelter. Topics range from an overview of Red Cross services to handling, feeding and sheltering a mass amount of individuals. Tasks that volunteers will become familiar with include identifying areas of services that may be needed, running a media area, and providing child care. Volunteers would be assigned jobs in the shelter that best fits one's life skills, according to Brouillette.
Brouillette added that in the event of a large scale disaster in the Pioneer Valley, volunteers would be needed to mobilize quickly to ensure they could help their neighbors in need. With a large number of Pioneer Valley residents trained in the event of a local disaster, they could be an asset for the community, she added.
Brouillette said all volunteers are subjected to a CORI reference check and must apply to be credentialed as a certified Red Cross volunteer.
"We rely on people in every town we serve," said Brouillette, adding that a "cache of civic-minded individuals makes the process of disaster assistance run smoother."
The Pioneer Valley Red Cross serves the communities of Agawam, Brimfield, Chicopee, East Longmeadow, Feeding Hills, Granby, Hampden, Holland, Holyoke, Longmeadow, Ludlow, Monson, Palmer, South Hadley, Springfield, Wales, West Springfield and Wilbraham.
For more information on the training sessions, call Brouillette at (413) 737-4306 or via email at brouilletteb@usa.redcross.org.
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