Our unit remained active throughout the past year. Here are some of the highlights.

The year began with an Emergency Dispensing Site drill, continued with health fairs and seminars, and included a dozen members in the first statewide MRC support of the Boston Marathon.

Members supported numerous public events. These included Westford's Apple Blossom Festival, Chelmsford's Independence Day celebration, and Billerica's Yankee Doodle Homecoming Weekend. Our unit also made great strides towards NIMS Compliance. We offered ICS-100 in classroom format twice on our Training Day, and presented NIMS-700 two weeks later. Because both courses are also available online, many members completed this training through the FEMA web site.

UMV MRC volunteers partnered with affiliates in Emergency Management and ham radio operations at the Apple Blossom Parade.	Joe Guarnera taught ICS-100 on Training Day, and NIMS-700 the next month, in classroom format.

New Member Orientations provided volunteers with the basics of MRC operations and deployment concepts, as well as the chance to get better acquainted. Members continued to build their skills in our second First Aid class, which again was filled to capacity.

Staff members were on hand for the introduction of a NERAC emergency shelter that was purchased in the fall by regional public health agencies. Both the director and coordinator then participated in hands-on training to set up and take down the facility.

Public health agencies and response partners assembled to learn about the new NERAC shelter.

Members were enthusiastic about our first Training Day. They also helped with flu clinics, and served at emergency shelters through an ice storm deployment.

Both staff members delivered poster presentations at the national MRC conference in Portland, Oregon in April. Sandy Collins, UMV MRC Director, piloted a New Leader's Workshop at the Surgeon General's office, and delivered this training at the Region I (New England) MRC conference in Portsmouth, RI. Nancy Burns, UMV MRC Coordinator, also attended the conference.

	UMV MRC members Joanne Martel (left), Sandy Collins (middle), and Nancy Burns (right) gathered with members of the Capitol City MRC (CT), Region I Coordinator Jennifer Frenette (behind Collins), Admiral Milner and staff in Portsmouth, NH.

The staff remains active in national MRC work groups. Collins participates in the Special Needs Shelters initiative. Burns is on the MRC/NACCHO Capacity Building task force.

Representatives from the national OCVMRC, NACCHO, and MRC unit leaders from across the U.S. met to review capacity building initiatives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We look back on a productive year, and appreciate our members even more as we head into 2009!