Washington, DC -- In a signing ceremony today, C. Suzanne Mencer, Executive Director of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of State and Local Government Coordination & Preparedness (SLGCP), announced a key partnership between Citizen Corps and Operation HOPE, Inc. to promote financial and economic education for disaster planning and recovery.

"With this partnership in place, we can increase awareness of the importance of financial planning and bring resources to bear during disaster recovery," said Mencer.

Immediately following the signing ceremony, Operation HOPE unveiled the Emergency Financial First Aid Kit (EFFAK) to help users identify and organize key financial records. The EFFAK will be used to educate the public on financial emergency preparedness and recovery. The EFFAK will be available on the Operation HOPE website and the websites of corporate sponsors. To download a copy of the EFFAK, please see the Operation HOPE website at www.operationhope.org. A Spanish version of the EFFAK is also being prepared for a future release.

Citizen Corps is the Department of Homeland Security's nationwide grass-roots effort that actively involves Americans in making communities safer, stronger and better prepared for all emergencies. Operation HOPE is America's first nonprofit social investment bank and a national provider of financial literacy and economic empowerment programs. For more information about Citizen Corps, visit www.citizencorps.gov.

Through ongoing collaborations and long-term partnerships with leading government, private sector, and community interests, Operation HOPE works to bring self-sufficiency and a sustained spirit of revitalization to America's inner-city communities. In partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and a network of private and community partners, Operation HOPE's HOPE Coalition America has provided free financial counseling and casework services to more than 1,000 Americans affected by natural disasters and national emergencies in 125 cities in 35 states.

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