Citizen Reserve Welcomes Furry Ham

He may not be the furriest one on our team, but he is by far the most-attention loving! Making his debut at Dunwoody’s famous Lemonade Days festival, the Citizen Reserve’s newest member does love stealing the spotlight.  Although he endured without warning an average of nine hours per shift at three community events, Jasper greeted each and every loving, curious, and sometimes overzealous passerby with enthusiastic tail thumping and sloppy kisses.

This sweet and unique pup came to us unexpectedly as an Easter gift.  Members of our team and citizens that interact with him continually comment with amazement at what an incredibly docile and giving spirit he is, especially at only four and a half months old.  He takes his new job seriously and made us glow when he marched in the parade at Tucker Day two weeks ago.  Donning his C.E.R.T. vest proudly, he seemed to instinctively know the importance of leading and representing the long line of fire and rescue trucks behind him.  With all the onlookers from both sides of the street reaching for him, clapping, pointing, and smiling, he didn’t once veer off the path, fall behind, or sneak a taste of the tempting festival fare scattered on the road.

There’s something so bright and special about an animal welcomed into a loving home after being found wandering in the streets; his every action is founded in gratitude as he settles into his new life instantly, showing true example of living in the now.

CERT Member in Action - Seegar's Story

The Citizen Reserve congratulates Seegar on his self deployment. What a great accomplishment! Read on for his story...

"I engaged in my first CERT deployment on Saturday, March 28. The Decatur Air & Light truck went past my house mid-morning, meaning that something was happening in my neighborhood. I keep my CERT kit in my car, so I put on my city CAPS (Citizens Assisting Public Safety) jacket and drove a few blocks until I found the fire crews responding to a large tree down, which was blocking a residential street and pulled power lines down both at the primary site and snapped power lines (in three places) 1.5 blocks away, which were also in the street.

I assisted Decatur Fire with marking the downed lines in the alternate location, and helped clear the scene for GA Power crews to accomplish their work. Since my CAPS training includes traffic control and direction, I directed traffic around the primary site after Decatur Fire turned the scene over to the GA Power and City tree crews, and stayed on site until my services were no longer constructive.

My CERT-vested presence was apparent to the Captain who responded to take charge of the scene. The City of Decatur Emergency Management Director personally took responsibility for the scene when first responding fire crews were dismissed, and made a point of thanking me for my efforts. Thus, various Decatur fire and emergency management folks saw an isolated but constructive CERT response in action, perhaps for the first time. I made a point of finding supplemental things to help with the situation without interjecting myself into the efforts of the professionals, but would note that wearing the vest seemed to make me part of the team that responded, both with respect to the Decatur Fire and GA Power folks responding, and the numerous neighbors who came out to watch as we secured the scene and responded to the situation."

-- Seegar Swanson
Decatur Resident
DeKalb CERT - May 2008 Class

Top Five Reasons I Volunteer

"... no matter how big government gets, and no matter how many services it provides, it can never take the place of volunteers." - Ronald Reagan

It’s National Volunteer Appreciation Week. It got me thinking about why, as a (sometimes frantically) busy single mom of two, I freely give over 200 hours a year to the Fire Rescue Department. Of course, giving my time without resentment tells me straight off the bat how passionate I am about The Citizen Reserve. I have most certainly found myself in myriad volunteering situations, unable to say “no” and perpetually floundering for excuses to bow out of the commitments I had made. That’s not the case here.

I wondered if the fact that I helped form this group and define its direction keeps me so dedicated; seeing it grow and come into fruition in two short years is quite a reward in itself. I came to the conclusion that there are much bigger motivators at work.

It fulfills a passion. My dad was a police officer, firefighter, and paramedic. My brother has had multiple terms as Chief in a volunteer fire department. I didn’t know it was in my blood until about five years ago, when I got the calling. Volunteering is a way for me to answer that call while maintaining my current means of income and childcare arrangements.

I get to interact with extraordinary people. This is one of my favorite reasons. I work alongside some amazing people from such diverse backgrounds that I normally would never be exposed to with the lifestyle I lead right now. Every single member brings a gift and talent to the group, and it is so much fun getting to know people in this setting. A “Breakfast Club” of sorts... we laugh together in ways that can only come from the challenges of training hard and being faced with situations not normally dealt with in our day jobs. It also cleared one of my most nagging character defects: judging a book by its cover : )

Invaluable training opportunities. So many people have told me there is something about my gait and the way I carry myself these days that wasn’t present a few years ago. I think it’s the confidence and knowledge I’ve gained from facing some sizable fears and learning life-saving skills that helps me hold my head just a little higher. Knowing that I can care for my children, neighbors, or a bystander in a disaster or life-threatening medical situation makes me glow inside, brighter than I can express with words. I most certainly am grateful for the opportunity to give my time in exchange for this kind of real-life training.

Sense of accomplishment. Knowing that I have risen above many challenges to be a part of this incredible group gives me an extreme sense of accomplishment and encourages me to meet more obstacles head-on rather than make excuses about them. Another benefit is the opportunity to use a skill set I did not believe I had until I pushed myself. There was no one else to design logos, patches, newsletters, or brochures. Knowing just enough of the required software to be dangerous, I took a stab at it, which resulted in a creative door opening for me that otherwise never would have been approached.

Giving back. Whether you call it God, Allah, Higher Power, Source, The Universe... I am grateful to a power greater than myself for these gifts that I have, and the drive to do something with them. Giving my time and talents to a group that serves the community feels good. Really good.

How can you feed your soul through volunteering? Is there a passion burning in you? Perhaps instead of feeling like you missed the boat with your current career choice, you can find a way to volunteer in a vocation that excites you and live the best of both worlds.

DeKalb CERT Team - Are We Prepared?

Image via Wikipedia

We certainly got closer tonight, as five members of the Citizen Reserve met to refresh their CERT skills in preparation for the Regional CERT Challenge Competition this Saturday in Henry County. What an exciting opportunity for Reserve officers Elliott Fried, Hayne Palmer, Alex Lopez, Heather Roth, and Debi Taylor to represent DeKalb, network with other county CERT teams, and experience some good, clean sportsmanship in the process.

The CERT Challenge, happening on Saturday, April 4, is sponsored by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) and will start at 11:30 a.m.

The CERT program is a partnership between emergency management, response agencies, and citizen volunteers, training individuals to make the community safer and better prepared for natural and/or man-made disasters. Through the program, citizens are trained in basic emergency response skills. In the event of large-scale emergencies, CERT members provide critical support to first responders by assisting victims and organizing volunteers at
disaster sites.

During the competition, teams from eight counties will compete in such events as Fire Suppression, Disaster Medical Operations, Disaster Psychology and Triage, and Search and Rescue.

For more information on how you can attend DeKalb County's FREE CERT training course, visit www.CitizenReserve.org.