FIREWIRE Magazine Fall 2014 | Page 28

OES training and sharing their skills with other Disaster Corps volunteers. The networking was also a way for our members to learn more about what the other county volunteer programs are learning. By: Cheryl Nagy Disaster Corps Volunteers Trained and Ready to Serve OES MISSION STATEMENT “Through leadership and guidance, strengthen countywide emergency management capabilities to ensure the protection of life and property before, during and after disasters.” In June 2010 the San Bernardino County Operational Area was one of five California counties awarded funding to hire a volunteer coordinator to provide assistance to a new state volunteer program called the California Disaster Corps. Each volunteer coordinator was charged with providing training, working with local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and serving in the local government emergency operations center (EOC). The partnering counties include Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego and San Francisco. into the state’s emergency management system. Governor Brown continues to support the Disaster Corps as it moves forward throughout the state. The Disaster Corps initiative has been built collaboratively from the ground up through public-private partnerships and with a wide range of subject matter experts, including representatives from all levels of government, local emergency managers, state agency volunteer coordinators and leaders in non-governmental volunteer programs. The California Disaster Corps is a first-in-the-nation effort