Managing Spontaneous Community Volunteers in Disasters (PDF)

About the Author:

As Founder and Executive Director of World Cares Center, Lisa Orloff has taken her experiences as a spontaneous unaffiliated volunteer during the September 11 relief efforts and created an organization that addresses our nation's most valuable yet underutilized resources: everyday citizens. As a spontaneous unaffiliated volunteer, Ms. Orloff created an impromptu supply chain running from the Jacob Javits Center to triage units around Ground Zero using available resources, a map from the telephone book, and her personal cell phone. To fill the unmet need of necessary supplies, Ms. Orloff managed over 300 other spontaneous unaffiliated volunteers and supported official responders working in collaboration with the NYPD, the Army National Guard, and a host of other agencies. She emerged as a liaison between community volunteers and government agencies, most notably FEMA and OEM, working together on community-focused long-term recovery initiatives.

Taking from her 9/11 experiences and subsequent all-hazards responses, Ms. Orloff remains committed to supporting national initiatives that enhance community-led response and recovery efforts in areas preparing for or recovering from disasters. Ms. Orloff continues to work with an ever growing team of cirriculum steering committee members, seasoned facilitators, and emergency managers to develop and deliver community-based programs that bridge the gaps in education, communication, and collaboration.

Ms. Orloff serves as a subject matter expert working with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration on the development of the ReadyResponders Network. Ms.Orloff continues to gauge the needs of the community on how to effect cross- sector communication, and develop an information sharing network for Emergency Managers, NGO's, CBO's and community members to communicate in preparedness, response and recov