Ready Army—Get Involved.

The Army is joining the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency in “America’s Prepareathon!” This is a nationwide, community-based campaign for action to increase emergency preparedness and community resilience. All individuals – Soldiers, Families and Civilians – play a pivotal role in our collective preparedness. We encourage everyone to pledge to prepare using the Army Ready tenets: be informed, make a plan, build a kit, and get involved.

The mission of Citizen Corps is to harness the power of every individual through education, training, and volunteer service to make communities safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to the threats of terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all kinds.

Preparing Your Community
Individuals can make a difference in their own community, but not everyone has taken-on a preparedness mindset. Research on personal preparedness indicates that individuals who believe they are prepared for disasters often are not as prepared as they think. In addition, some admit they do not plan to prepare at all.

The challenge: Maximizing awareness and encouraging participation in disaster preparedness activities to affect change at the community level.

There are organizations in your community that host community-planning meetings, provide preparedness information and volunteer opportunities to community members, and when in need, are available to respond to a disaster. Organizations such as Citizen Corps provide this support in communities nationwide.

National Preparedness Coalition
In addition to making the Pledge To Prepare, you can also join Preparedness Discussions, get involved with Preparedness Events, recieve National Announcements, connect with Preparedness Communities and find other Preparedness Resources; all in one place!

Hurricane Katrina and the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 caused many Americans to wonder how they can help prepare their communities.

Through Citizen Corps, individuals can learn about opportunities to get involved and help build capacity for first responders. With proper training and education, civilian volunteers expand the resources available to states and local communities. Many partner organizations offer public education, outreach and training for free.

Get CERT trained in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations.
Find veteran volunteer opportunities through Veterans Active in Citizens Corps.
Get trained in CPR and basic first aid and volunteer to help mass care and sheltering operations at your local American Red Cross Chapter.
Get trained and volunteer with Medical Reserve Corps to provide support during a public health emergency.
Support community safety and security by getting trained and involved in Neighborhood Watch and Volunteers in Police Service.
Find a volunteer opportunity with a Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD).
Volunteer to support local fire departments through Fire Corps.
Civil Air Patrol recruits volunteers through local squadrons that support aerospace education, cadet programs and emergency services. This air auxiliary has been supporting missions since the 1940’s.
American Radio Relay League supports the advancement of Amateur Radio Service and trains individuals interested in learning the skill of operating ham radios.
Meals on Wheels Association of America and the MOWAA volunteers provide meals and essential disaster preparedness information to over one million seniors in the U.S. each day.

For more information on any of the above programs see Citizen Corps' Partner Programs and Affiliate Programs.