Dear Florida, FEMA Corps is here to help.
Well… we are in Florida! To get all the details, you’ll just have to keep reading:)
Let’s rewind to this past Thursday…
We had heard buzz around the office that POTUS was going to be paying a visit to HQ but to be honest, I wasn’t sure whether to believe it or not. I mean the president?! That is a BIG DEAL, it sounded too cool to be true. After going through multiple security screenings one after the other, I knew it was really happening! I was working in the NJIC that morning with disaster ops and the NRCC was pure chaos. Secret service and security accompanied by their dogs were everywhere. While we still had tasks to get through such as SYNC and NICCL calls, we couldn’t help but watch out the door awaiting the president’s arrival! We all had to pick a spot to stand and stay there because once the president was in the room, no one could move. I know, it was as scary and serious as it sounds. LUCKILY, I finagled my way to the best spot in the house. RIGHT BEHIND THE PRESIDENT AND IN THE CAMERA FRAME THE WHOLE TIME! It’s true, I was on CNN right there as a backup dancer for Mr. Joe Biden, the FEMA Administrator and the Secretary of homeland security! After the President shared his briefing on the current situations both in Florida and Puerto Rico (and after some press got to make a fool of themselves), he started walking up and down rows of the NRCC shaking hands and expressing so much gratitude to everyone and their hard work and dedication. Unfortunately, I was not able to shake his hand because he only went down a few rows and mine was not one of them, MY MEMBERS GOT TO SHAKE HIS HAND AND TALK TO HIM! How cool is that?! My heart was bursting watching them get that experience and I know they will never forget that day. Click the photos tab to see some pretty awesome pictures!
A few hours after the president departed from HQ, I got a call from my unit leader informing me that my team and I were being pulled from DC and getting deployed to a disaster project in Tallahassee, Florida! So, we packed our bags and started our two-day road trip to start on our response deployment alongside the planning section. Our projected tasks are to gather and analyze information, publish and distribute reports and other information, establish and maintain the planning section’s files and participate in the development of plans. With this being a disaster deployment, there is always a chance that the team will be pulled to the affected areas to go door to door doing DSA work (disaster survivor assistance). The mission of DSA is to assess and report critical and emerging disaster needs to FEMA leadership for decision making purposes and to get survivors registered for recovery aid. I look forward to sharing more about what we are doing and how we are serving the community after we get settled into our roles and I have more details!
You know what time it is!
Rose: My team and I having the opportunity to be boots on the ground sharing our passion for service work along with am an amazing and planning team to map out what recovery in Florida from Hurricane Ian is going to look like and what needs to happen to support and guide survivors through the recovery process.
Bud: Potentially being called to the heavily affected areas to conduct DSA work.
Thorn: My anxiety and stress levels this past week have been astronomical but I am thankful for the resources that I have and the supporting and loving people that I have in my life.
What is your rose bud and thorn for the past week?? I want to know! Email me or comment to share yours with me!
xo, L