The Crisis Corps Office emailed over 2400 returned Peace Corps Volunteers to gauge their interest in volunteering for the recovery efforts. Over 400 responses were received from that initial email. The first group of Crisis Corps Volunteers are traveling to the FEMA staging area in Orlando, Florida where they will receive training and their assignments. It is anticipated that Peace Corps will send additional groups daily over the next several weeks. After training in Orlando with FEMA, the Crisis Corps Volunteers will be deployed to the affected areas around the Gulf Coast to assist victims with their applications for federal aid. If returned Peace Corps Volunteers are interested in becoming Crisis Corps Volunteers for this effort, they are asked to contact the Peace Corps' office in Washington, D.C. at 202.692.2250.
Peace Corps hopes to provide 400 Crisis Corps Volunteers to Assist in Hurricane Katrina Relief Effort
Peace Corps hopes to provide 400 Crisis Corps Volunteers to Assist in Hurricane Katrina Relief Effort
Caption: Myriona Bentley, 13, displaced from New Orleans, sits with her possessions on the curb of the Riverside Centroplex Red Cross Shelter in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Bentley left the shelter and hopes to get to a relative's home in New York City. US troops were turning New Orleans into a virtual ghost town, evacuating survivors of Hurricane Katrina and planning the largest refugee operations ever seen in the United States.(AFP/Paul J. Richards)
Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez accepted a mission assignment from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide Crisis Corps Volunteers to support the emergency relief efforts in the Gulf Coast region.
While the Peace Corps is an international volunteer organization, the Peace Corps spirit of giving has no borders. As many Americans are suffering tremendous hardship right here at home, it was imperative for Peace Corps to respond and provide support to the relief efforts.
Crisis Corps Volunteers are returned Peace Corps Volunteers who work on short term projects, utilizing the skills they learned during their Peace Corps service and in post service careers.
The Crisis Corps Office emailed over 2400 returned Peace Corps Volunteers to gauge their interest in volunteering for the recovery efforts. Over 400 responses were received from that initial email.
FEMA has requested that 25 Crisis Corps Volunteers per day be assigned to assist relief efforts in the various hurricane-ravaged areas. Peace Corps is looking to provide up to 400 Volunteers total.
The first group of Crisis Corps Volunteers are traveling to the FEMA staging area in Orlando, Florida, today, where they will receive training and their assignments. It is anticipated that Peace Corps will send additional groups daily over the next several weeks.
After training in Orlando with FEMA, the Crisis Corps Volunteers will be deployed to the affected areas around the Gulf Coast to assist victims with their applications for federal aid.
If returned Peace Corps Volunteers are interested in becoming Crisis Corps Volunteers for this effort, they are asked to contact the Peace Corps' office in Washington, D.C. at 202.692.2250.
To find out more about the Peace Corps' Crisis Corps program, please visit the Crisis Corps section of the Peace Corps web site.
