By Southwester Staff On July 26, the coalition of DC Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (DC VOAD) members elected former FEMA staffer and chair of a grassroots preparedness group SW Strong! Ben Curran as the new chair. VOAD members also voted Peggy Keller of We The People Community Health Care […]
Southwest Leader Steps Up to Chair Disaster Preparedness Organization
By Southwester Staff Southwest DC community leader Ben Curran has taken on a new role as chair of the DC chapter of the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD). The previous chair, Sue Taylor served in the position for 18 years. District of Columbia Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster […]
SW Emergency Preparedness Task Force Update
On May 21, the Emergency Preparedness Task Force hosted a brown-bag talk on “Community Disaster Preparedness” in the South Common Room of River Park Mutual Homes. The guest speakers, Ms. Amanda Reidelbach, disaster relief & volunteers coordinator of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, and Ms. Kim McCall, community outreach and […]
Ben Curran Awarded Mayor’s Community Service Award
Ben Curran was awarded the Mayor’s Community Service Award for Emergency Preparedness and Public Safety during a ceremony on Dec. 2. Photos courtesy of Perry Klein. (photo caption: Ben Curran with Mayor Gray.) (photo caption: Ben Curran with his family.) (photo caption: The Mayor’s Community Service Award.)
Building Disaster Resilience for the Whole Community
Photos courtesy of Philip Baguiao Ms. Peggy Keller, the director of community preparedness and resilience in the DC Department of Health, led a spirited conversation with a small group of SW community residents on Thursday, Oct. 16 at Amidon-Bowen Elementary School. The activity was held to mark International Disaster Day, which serves […]
Resilience for Life: A Talk on Emergency Preparedness
Who remembers Aug. 23, 2011 at 1:51 pm to be exact? That’s the time and date of the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the Piedmont area of Virginia and was felt for miles in every direction, including the District of Columbia, which suffered some not-so-insignificant damage to several buildings, large and small. […]