Et cetera : AmeriCorps Spruce 1 reaches out in Chicago

The AmeriCorps NCCC FEMA Corps team Spruce One from the North Central Region in Vinton, Iowa is working in downtown Chicago, Illinois alongside FEMA in the Region V administrative offices. The FEMA Region V serves the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin, as well as the 34 federally recognized tribes located in the region, to ensure that as a nation everyone works together to build, sustain and improve the country’s capabilities for disaster preparedness, protection, response, recovery and mitigation.

Each member of Spruce One is working on different projects to assist the Region V External Affairs team. The work each member does helps to put disaster services and preparedness advice into the hands of communities that need it. Some of the work the team is doing includes: developing work plans for a Flood Safety and Disability Integration Campaign, designing info-graphics, producing brochures, identifying resources and partners, organizing congressional inquiries, promoting disaster preparedness through social media and video, developing a FEMA presentation for teens and executing Tribal research and outreach.

This is an exciting opportunity for everyone on the team and it lets each individual expand on his or her talents and skills. On weekends there is also the chance for the members to participate in Individual Service Projects to help make a change in Chicago neighborhoods. For example within the next two months the members on the team are working alongside community volunteers for a park clean up, community garden maintenance, river preservation, Earth Day celebrations and even volunteering at a hospital! The team is excited to positively impact the Chicago community this round before return to the Vinton campus in June for graduation.