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Federal AmeriCorps Agency Selected for National Disaster Award

 
WASHINGTON, May 17, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that oversees AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, was selected as the National VOAD Partner of the Year. The award, presented by National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD), recognizes the contributions CNCS programs have had in disaster response and recovery efforts throughout the country during the last year. 
NVOAD is a national coordinating body for the major community and faith-based organizations involved in disaster response. The award was presented by National VOAD CEO, Greg Forrester, at the organization's annual conference in Houston on Tuesday evening.
 In 2016, CNCS deployed more than 1,300 AmeriCorps members from AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams to seven nationally-declared disasters. AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams are CNCS's elite specialty-trained crews deployed at the request of local and federal emergency managers. The teams deployed in 2016 represented the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.
AmeriCorps members joined response efforts for the Missouri, West Virginia, Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana flooding; the Flint water crisis; Hurricane Matthew; and the East Tennessee wildfires. Their efforts led to the mucking and gutting of more than 1,400 homes. Mucking and gutting is essential to returning families and individuals back to their homes. Without these services, houses quickly become unsalvageable, contributing to the devastating loss of available, affordable housing in communities most in need. Other services include debris removal, roof tarping, sandbagging, volunteer and donations management, and the establishment of long-term recovery coalitions, which bring together local organizations to provide critical recovery resources to homeowners.
"CNCS's work in disaster response and recovery cannot be done alone. The AmeriCorps and Senior Corps members deployed become part of the communities in which they serve and stand shoulder to shoulder with their neighbors throughout the recovery process," said Kelly DeGraff, senior advisor for disaster services at the Corporation for National and Community Service. "CNCS is honored to receive this award, and proud to share it with the thousands of AmeriCorps and Senior Corps members who've responded to disasters and all the lives they've touched."