Plans in hand

The biggest challenge for Macoupin County Public Health Department emergency preparedness coordinator David Hopper is making the public aware of who they are and what they do.

"We can never have enough volunteers, so a large part of my job is getting the word out on who we are and what our mission is," Hopper said.

The Macoupin County Citizens Corps Council, a component of the USA Freedom Corps, was created to help coordinate volunteer services to make towns safer, stronger and more prepared to respond to emergencies. The corps relies on volunteers trained to support first responders, disaster relief groups and community safety organizations in the four stages of emergency management: prevention, mitigation, response and recovery.

Hopper, 32, a 1995 Carlinville High School graduate and 2001 Blackburn College graduate, began working at the health department's AmeriCorps program about 3 1/2 years ago. Two years ago, the department initiated the Citizens Corps Council.

"Our recruitment challenge is that many people still don't know what Citizens Corps is, so don't realize the value of the program," Hopper said. "Macoupin County has a population of around 49,000, so without a large amount of trained volunteers in each community, we could have a big problem in an emergency situation."

Volunteers can be of all ages and educational backgrounds. In an emergency, plans must be in place regarding a community's shut-ins, disabled or medicine-dependent population; volunteer phone trees established; ham radio operators may volunteer to get information out if other means of communication fail; and people can volunteer to drive residents to designated shelters, among trained volunteers' other services.

Abbey Hardin, 24, a 2003 Girard High School graduate and Monmouth College graduate, just began working with Hopper at the Macoupin County Public Health Department's Maple Street Clinic in Gillespie in September as an AmeriCorps Citizens Corps volunteer.

Hardin assists with recruitment, and she helps distribute information about the programs.

Hopper and Hardin said they enjoy their work, despite the challenges.

"We have a good group of dedicated volunteers, and though we can never have enough volunteers in every community, seeing the volunteer spirit in our members is very rewarding," Hopper said.

"I find it very rewarding to do something for our communities and find others that feel the same way," Hardin said.

For information about volunteering, call Hopper at (217) 839-4111 or go to their Web site at www.mc-citizencorpscouncil.com.

maggie_borman@thetelegraph.com