ABSTRACT
Understand the benefits and challenges associated with volunteers • working during disaster recovery Specify the conditions that influence volunteerism • Identify the types of voluntary organizations operating in disaster • Explain how to develop voluntary capacity prior to a disaster event • Recognize the ways that volunteers and voluntary organizations • contribute to disaster recovery Outline the challenges associated with volunteer participation • Spell out strategies for addressing the challenges of volunteer • participation Summarize effective dimensions of a volunteer management pro-• gram during the disaster recovery period Identify organizations and organizational forms through which vol-• unteers flow Point out connections between federal partners and voluntary • organizations
Introduction Most people, seeing horrific images on television, volunteer during the immediate response period . Yet, search and rescue ends within days, shelters usually close fairly quickly, and media attention wanes . However, as previous chapters have demonstrated, debris removal and rebuilding can take years . Thus, the extended recovery period represents the time when most volunteer efforts are needed . Volunteers can help with many of these initiatives, from rebuilding neighborhoods to planting trees and cleaning up public areas like parks and schools . Volunteers bring in seemingly boundless energy to gut, demolish, frame, roof, sheetrock, paint, repair, and help communities recover (see Photo 14 .1) . Recovery would not be possible without volunteers and voluntary organizations . Local leaders must harness that initial response-time energy and retain people’s interest and commitment for the long haul .
