Published March 6 2014
Residents now have an opportunity to help the city and their neighbors prepare for emergencies. The City of Bellevue is recruiting members for a Citizen Corps Council.
Citizen Corps is a national network of volunteers focused on preparedness, loosely coordinated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Cities form their own Citizen Corps councils. Bellevue's will advise the city's Office of Emergency Management on public education and outreach, and assist with the adaptation and promotion of the following programs here:
- Map Your Neighborhood: a state-run program designed to help citizens organize their neighborhood block.
- Community Emergency Response Teams: a series of classes that teach citizens the skills to save lives during and after a disaster.
Bellevue's Citizen Corps Council will also work in conjunction with the city's Eastside Amateur Radio Support (EARS) group, which provides auxiliary communications support to the City of Bellevue during disasters or emergencies.
The council will have 14 members, each representing one of the city's neighborhood areas. The council will meet every other month to give Emergency Management staff input on preparedness outreach. Members will be required to do a minimum of five hours of work per week. This is a great opportunity for individuals who:
- Are passionate about emergency preparedness and are looking to advance to the next level.
- Want to take a leadership role in their community.
- Want to help others sharpen their skills and/or organize their neighborhood block.
- Are looking to meet others in their neighborhood.
To request an application or recommend a candidate, please email OEMPublicEd@bellevuewa.gov or call Sophia Le at 425-452-6935. Applications are due on April 18.