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Sacramento, Calif.—Twenty-one AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) team leaders will hit the ground today to provide disaster relief assistance to the tsunami-devastated Territory of American Samoa. The group will be deployed on a three-week assignment to assist the American Red Cross with mass care and their shelter operations.
The NCCC team leaders, who are based in Sacramento and Denver, will primarily focus on providing food and shelter to those affected by the disaster, as well as distribute other items to meet the victims' basic needs. The team's response efforts will start in the capitol, Pago Pago, and then move to the most distressed areas across the island.
Nine additional team leaders are on stand-by for deployment and prepared to travel to the affected region within days if needed. This emergency relief assignment is a jump start to a year of service for the team leaders, who arrived at their campuses for initial team leader training just a few weeks ago. After completing their assignment, the NCCC team leaders will continue to serve in the program through July 2010. They will lead teams of 10 to 12 members on a variety of assignments during their service, including assist with domestic disaster relief projects as the need arises.
Since NCCC was established in 1994, NCCC members have responded to every major disaster that has occurred in the United States. NCCC is part of AmeriCorps, a network of national service programs created to improve the environment, enhance education, increase public safety, and assist with disaster relief and other pressing needs, and is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service. For more information or to apply to serve in AmeriCorps, visit http://www.americorps.gov.
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