To help survivors of recent disasters donate to the Governor's Emergency Relief Fund
Alabama Governor's Office of Volunteer Services
INCREASING THE ETHIC OF SERVICE AND VOLUNTEERISM ACROSS ALABAMA
October 6-7, 2021
Jefferson and Shelby Counties
Severe Weather and Flood Event
Disaster Assistance:
FEMA Individual Assistance Registration:
Individuals affected by the October 6-7, 2021 Severe Weather and Flood Event in Jefferson and Shelby Counties can contact FEMA online at DisasterAssistance.gov, download the FEMA app and register on a smartphone or tablet, or call:
1-800-621-FEMA
TTY 1-800-462-7585
711/Video Relay 800-621-3362
Link to Information and Resources:
Disaster Legal Services:
FREE LEGAL ASSISTANCE AVAILABLE - Disaster Legal Services (DLS) is a community support program that is made available when a major declaration includes an Individual Assistance (IA) designation. Low-income individuals facing legal issues as a result of the severe weather and flooding may call 334-517-2250 or 1-800-354-6154 and ask for the Disaster Legal Assistance Line or ext. 2250 between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday.
Other Assistance:
2-1-1 is a free, easy to remember number to dial for information about health and human service organizations in your community. Are you facing difficult times and don’t know where to turn? Are you looking for help with everyday needs? Do you want to volunteer? By dialing 2-1-1, information is much easier to find. Dial 2-1-1 or text or call 1-888-421-1266 from anywhere in Alabama, or visit http://www.211connectsalabama.org/
If you are an organization providing resources, please call 2-1-1 or call 1-888-421-1266.
Disaster Volunteer Opportunities:
Below is a listing of current volunteer needs. Please contact the organizations directly if you are interested in volunteering. Also note that recovery from a disaster often takes a very long time and volunteers will be needed in the weeks, months, and even years ahead.
Jefferson/Shelby County VOAD
VOAD-Voluntary Orgs Active in Disasters | Jefferson County EMA (jeffcoema.org)
https://www.justserve.org/jsvoad
Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) is a coalition of non-profit and faith-based, public and private organizations and agencies that respond to disasters by bringing all available resources together to assist those impacted by disasters. VOADs provide a forum promoting cooperation, communication, coordination and collaboration that fosters a more effective delivery of services to disaster affected communities.
Jefferson/Shelby County VOAD
VOAD-Voluntary Orgs Active in Disasters | Jefferson County EMA (jeffcoema.org)
Alabama Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (ALVOAD)
To support those who respond to disasters consider one of the following Alabama Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (ALVOAD) member agencies:
Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief
Baldwin County VOAD
Calhoun County VOAD
Civil Air Patrol Alabama Wing
Coffee County ROCC/VOAD
Compassion Coalition of Tuscaloosa County
Covington County VOAD
Cullman County VOAD
Elmore County VOAD
Etowah County VOAD
Family Guidance Center of Alabama
Good Shepherd UMC
Hope Animal Assisted Crisis Response
Jefferson/Shelby County VOAD
Legal Services of Alabama
Madison County VOAD
Marshall County Commission
Mobile County VOAD
Morgan County VOAD
North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church
Operation Blessing International
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
The Alabama-West Florida Conference United Methodist Church
Tuscaloosa VOAD
United Way of East Central Alabama/1st Call for Help
United Way of Northwest Alabama
United Way of Selma & Dallas County
United Way of Southwest Alabama
Walker County VOAD
Helpful tips for Donating:
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Cash is best! –This allows relief organizations to purchase exactly what items are needed to assist in the response and recovery efforts. Funds will also provide direct victim assistance.
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Confirm the Need Before Collecting – Donors should be wary of anyone who claims that “everything is needed.” Many groups have been disappointed that their efforts and the goods they collected were not appreciated. A community hit by disaster, however, does not have the time, manpower or money to sort and dispose of unneeded donations. Get precise information and confirm the need before collecting any donated goods.
Helpful tips for Volunteering:
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Call 2-1-1 to register to volunteer
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Affiliate with existing non-profit organizations before coming to the disaster area. Immediately following a disaster, a community can become easily overwhelmed by the amount of generous people who want to help. Contacting and affiliating with an established organization will help to ensure that you are appropriately trained to respond in the most effective way.
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Be safe: Do not self-deploy until a need has been identified and the local community impacted has requested support. Wait until it is safe to travel to volunteer sites and opportunities have been identified. Once assigned a position, make sure you have been given an assignment and are wearing proper safety gear for the task.
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Be patient: Recovery lasts a lot longer than the media attention. There will be volunteer needs for many months, often years, after the disaster - especially when the community enters the long-term recovery period.