Henrik Ibsen, poet and playwright once said, “A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm”,  and with those words in mind, the City of San Rafael’s Emergency Volunteer Center (EVC) has been formed to serve, train,  rally and refer “spontaneous” volunteers to response teams or government agencies throughout the County in the event of a disaster.

“Spontaneous” or unaffiliated volunteers are those people wanting to help with the disaster -stricken but have no training or prior affiliation with a disaster response agency.  In the Loma Prieta earthquake, spontaneous volunteers came forward in droves. Unfortunately, in many instances, they hindered the Red Cross operation in San Francisco for two days because there was no plan to employ them. Shortly after that event, the EVC concept was developed at the State level in order to remedy this predicament.

San Rafael operates a walk-in EVC so if a disaster should occur, a spontaneous volunteer  can either visit the center or call on its phone bank.  If the need for human resources is imminent and urgent, the volunteer should come to the Center where a receptionist will explain the intake process including the latest disaster updates and provide the volunteer with intake forms to be completed.  The volunteer will then be interviewed to assess and determine the person’s strengths, interests and/or specialized experience.  After completing the interview, the volunteer will be advised of available openings and referred to an agency or relief operation.

So how can you be prepared to take the helm in the event of a disaster?  The EVC plan for San Rafael is now close to completion, but it still needs skilled and dedicated volunteers to be pre-trained for operating an EVC.  Positions such as receptionist, interviewer, data coordinator, training officer, security officer, and others are available.

For expanded job descriptions click here. For information on upcoming training dates please contact us, with your name and contact information.