Et cetera : AmeriCorps NCCC-FEMA Corps Class 21 Team Leader Spotlight: Mike Daniel

By: Sarah Williams

Mike Daniel, from Rockwell, North Carolina is the team leader for Hickory 1in AmeriCorps NCCC- FEMA Corps Class 21. He arrived in Vinton on July 9 to start his 11-month service working with a team of people between the ages of 18 and 24. Hickory 1 is made up of seven people from across the country and they will serve together around the United States..

When asked why he decided to serve in the NCCC program, Mike says, “My last term of service with AmeriCorps was a very fulfilling experience, and wanted to commit to another year with this program.”

Before Mike became a NCCC – FEMA Corps service member he was doing another AmeriCorps/Energy Corps term of service in Butte, Montana.

Hickory 1 is assigned to perform Disaster Survivor Assistance (DSA) related tasks in Wayne, Macomb, and Oakland counties, Michigan. These tasks are necessary in these areas as they are recovering from flooding that occurred on August 11, 2014. This is the team’s first opportunity to put into practice the skills they learned in their FEMA Qualification System (FQS) training. The team has been placed at various Registration Intake Centers (RICs) and their role is to: register affected survivors for federal assistance as well as refer them to whole community partners such as the Small Business Administration (SBA) for the possibility of further financial assistance. Members are also working on application inquiries and updates such as: phone numbers, addresses, electric transfer fund, etc.

Some fun facts about Mike:

Q: What is your favorite TV show? How I met your mother

Q: What is one place you would really like to visit? Colorado

Q: If you could have a superpower what would it be? The ability teleport

Q: Who do you most admire? My mother, she taught me how to be a gentlemen.

Q: What is your favorite quote? “The minimum is not standard”- Carson Daniel

Q: What is the most challenging/exciting thing you’ve ever done? Moving away from my family the very first time.