Annual Citizen Corps Preparedness Night for June 5th

On June 5th at 7:05 PM, the Delaware Citizen Corps, co-sponsored by Wilmington and New Castle County OEM/Citizen Corps Councils, will hold our annual Citizen Corps Preparedness Night. The event is held at Frawley Stadium, home of the Wilmington Blue Rocks, who are playing the Frederick Keys. We are sharing the evening with our primary partner organizations, the Public Health Preparedness Section, the American Red Cross, and the Medical Reserve Corps. There will be preparedness displays, and fireworks following the game.

All are invited to attend for a night of family fun and preparedness.

Delaware Skills Center CERT Course

On April 28th and 29th, the Delaware Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), led by Citizen Corps staff Bob George (Program Manager) and Marny McLee (Program Coordinator), and assisted by the Wilmington EOC, presented a CERT course at the Delaware Skills Center in Wilmington. Approximately thirty nursing students attended the class. This was the fourth CERT Class taught at the center.

DE Citizen Corps Presents Awards

On April 15th, Bob George, Delaware Citizen Corps & CERT Program Manager, chaired the Quarterly State Citizen Corps Council Meeting held at the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA). Bob recognized and presented Certificates of Appreciation and Excellence to the Wilmington, New Castle County, and Sussex OEM/Citizen Corps Councils. The awards were presented for the agencies' support to community preparedness and the Citizen Corps/CERT Programs. Kent County was previously recognized for its outreach efforts.

Bob also made a special presentation to Marny McLee Sr. for his eleven years of service as the Delaware Citizen Corps & CERT Training and Outreach Coordinator.

Delaware Economics and Development Office CERT Class

On March 27th, Bob George (Citizen Corps/CERT Program Manager), Marny McLee (Citizen Corps/CERT Training and Outreach Coordinator), and Dave Young (Lead CERT Instructor) taught a CERT Workshop for the Delaware Economics and Development Office (DEDO). The workshop's focus was on Disaster Preparedness and Medical Operations, which are blocks of instruction from the full two-day CERT training course. The theme of the workshop was from the movie “Castaway” with a Hawaiian Island dress code.  Fifty members of DEDO attended the class, which was held at the Elizabeth Murphey School in Dover. Alan Levin, DEDO Director, attended the workshop. Interestingly, he took our full CERT course eight years ago, when he was Owner and President of Happy Harry’s.  He mentioned the valuable information he learned, and that he still carries his CERT Certificate with him daily.

Nellie Stokes Elementary Disaster Preparedness Presentation

On February 25th, Marny McLee, Citizen Corps Training and Outreach Coordinator, along with Stefan Smi and Ed Strouse of the Natural Hazards Sections, did a combined Disaster Preparedness Presentation at the Nellie Stokes Elementary School in Camden. Approximately forty grade school students their parents, along with school teachers attended the event.

Mr. Smi and Mr. Strouse focused their presentation on Earthquake Preparedness. Students participated in a thirty second FEMA approved Americas Prepare-A-Thon exercise, titled “Drop, Cover and Hold”.  Mr. McLee’s presentation covered All Hazards, in which he introduced and showed our Disaster Preparedness DVD which covers: “Make an Emergency Plan, Make an Emergency Kit, Evacuation and Shelter in Place Procedures.”  He gave the students, teachers and parents a 2G Lanyard/Travel Drive Combo, which was preloaded with a “Family Disaster Plan.” Participants were also given a “It’s a Disaster Booklet”, and a “Disaster Preparedness Pocket Guide” to take home and complete for their Family Disaster Plan. A copy of the DVD and a Citizen Corps Disaster Preparedness Kit was left for the school.

Upcoming Events

Delaware Citizen Corps would like to invite you to the following events. First, our Annual Citizen Corps Preparedness Night is scheduled for June 5th, 2015, at the Blue Rocks Stadium in Wilmington. The game start time is 6:30 PM. In addition to Preparedness Night, it is also a fireworks and super hero night.

Secondly, our Annual Family Emergency Preparedness Day is scheduled for September 19th, at the Delaware Agricultural Museum and Village in Dover, from 10 AM – 2PM.

The point of contact for each event is Marny McLee, available at 302-659-2243 or by e-mail at marny.mclee@state.de.us.

End of Year CERT Class

On December 12th and 13th, the Delaware Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), led by Bob George and Marny McLee, provided a training course at the Delaware Technical Community College (DTCC) in Dover. This was our end-of-year class, intended for anyone in the community and throughout the state who did not get a chance to attend with another group earlier in the year.  Thirty eight students from DMRC, AmeriCorps, Del Tech Emergency Management, DTCC criminal justice students, and people on the CERT waiting list attended.  The point of contact for the class was Jeff Peck of the Delaware Technical and Community College.