He
left home for California in mid-February and had four weeks of
orientation and training at the AmeriCorps campus in Sacramento. He is a
member of FEMA Corps Team Opal 1,
along with four others (2 women from Florida, one from eastern NC, and
one guy from upstate NY). He’s the baby of the team.
Following
that were 2 weeks of FEMA-specific training at the FEMA Region 9
headquarters in San Luis Obisbo, CA. At the conclusion, they made a
grand three-day road trip from
Southern California to Denver, passing through Las Vegas, northern
Arizona (Petrified Forest and Painted Desert), NW New Mexico, and
Colorado (thru the Rockies, with snow!).
They
arrived in Denver last Sunday and began their actual work last week;
they’re staying at an extended-stay hotel for 2 or 3 weeks while the
brand-new AmeriCorps housing
facility is being completed. Their current project is working with FEMA
Region 8 to help with planning for a potential major earthquake in
Utah. The FEMA offices are housed in a Cold-War era underground bunker,
which is very exciting! You can get an idea of
the many projects that AmeriCorps NCCC and FEMA Corps teams are working
on here:
https://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-programs/americorps-nccc/nccc-and-fema-corps-deployment-reports#Pacific%20Region%20FEMA
Each
team member works with a FEMA staff member on a specific area of
preparedness (transportation, ecological impact, etc.). Eli’s assignment
is reviewing and verifying logistical
information regarding staging areas, supplies, etc. His staff contact,
Maria, is a 20-year Air Force vet and has worked for FEMA for three
years. He’s enjoyed discussing aircraft with her, and they’re hoping
that their team can tour the Air Force Academy and
NORAD (which is not really open to the public—but they apparently have
connections).
They’ve
all had fun exploring the Denver area (e.g., going to the immense REI
store, going to the modern art museum and being thoroughly confused by
the works on display, having
lunch at a diner and striking up a random conversation with two
stagehands from the “Sesame Street Live” tour, etc.) and are looking
forward to some hiking and rock-climbing expeditions. This week they’re
attending an emergency responder conference in Denver.
Pending any disasters that will require their deployment elsewhere,
they’ll be in Denver until May 24.
