Champions of Change Blog

Utilizing Interactive Technology to Teach Our Children about Public Health

Posted by Darlene Foote on January 19, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

Since the nation’s shift in focus to safety and emergency preparedness, Cobb & Douglas Public Health (CDPH) Center for Emergency Preparedness and Response (ER&R) took ownership of making sure all citizens, even the youngest ones, are aware and prepared for emergencies. Under the leadership of Emergency Preparedness and Response Director Pam Blackwell, we targeted our most impressionable residents-- the children. This was no small task by any stretch of the imagination, but we knew that our team was ready, willing, and capable. We wanted to make sure that our children understood how to prepare, respond, and protect themselves in any situation.

What did we do? Emergency Preparedness and Response Trainer and Development Specialist, Kelly Mullins and I developed a concept to utilize the CDPH building at the Cobb Safety Village to communicate Strategic National Stockpile/Emergency Preparedness and Response messages to elementary students, through the use of the state-of-the-art, interactive modules. We requested and received grant funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to begin work. Our objective was to create a fun and educational experience that delivered a very serious topic to children in a way that they would not scare them, but rather prepare them on their level.

What was the result? We developed six interactive training modules housed in the CDPH building at the Cobb County Safety Village that consist of highly interactive, state-of-the-art technology. It leads children through hands-on activities that include proper hand washing techniques, tips on preparing for emergencies, fighting flu viruses, destroying anthrax by “splatting” Annie Anthrax on the walls and floors, and dancing to the Kidz Shuffle Bop to emphasize the importance of physical activity.

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Using Media Strategies to Boost Public Preparedness

Posted by Tod Pritchard on January 19, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

It is the honor of a lifetime to be called a ‘Champion of Change’. My mission as Emergency Preparedness Coordinator at Wisconsin Emergency Management is simple: to educate and empower people to prepare for and respond to emergencies and disasters. The critical information I spread across our state ultimately saves lives. We call our effort “ReadyWisconsin”. I tell people how to get ready for emergencies in many different ways.

First, I produce media campaigns designed to highlight specific actions people can take to prepare for trouble. For example, last April we created a :30 public service announcement featuring a couple from Park Falls, Wisconsin. Their lives were saved by having an emergency weather radio while camping. The weather radio warned Larry and Rita Krznarich that a tornado was headed for their camp site. They warned others of the impending storm. Everyone took cover just as the twister hit. Larry is convinced that without that weather radio, he and Rita along with other campers would be dead. Not only did that PSA air across the state, we partnered with a major retailer and a major radio manufacturer along with TV stations across Wisconsin to promote the use of emergency weather radios in every home.

In another campaign we asked NASCAR champion and Wisconsin native Matt Kenseth to team up with ReadyWisconsin to encourage everyone to have an emergency winter survival kit in their vehicle. We gave away emergency kits on our website (http://readywisconsin.wi.gov) as part of our “ReadyWisconsin Trivia Challenge”.

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Denver Is Only as Strong as Its People and Communities

Posted by Carolyn Bluhm on January 19, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

As the Community Relations Specialist for the City and County of Denver, Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (OEMHS), Carolyn H Bluhm is responsible Denver’s Community Emergency Response Training (Denver CERT)and the Emergency Preparedness Programs. The purpose of OEMHS’ Community Preparedness Programis to harness the power of every individual and organizations through education, training, and volunteer service to make our communities safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to the threats of terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all kinds.

The mission of Denver’s OEMHSOutreach and Education programs is to enhance our community’s preparedness by:
1. Providing emergency mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery training to individuals to assist their family, neighbors and fellow individuals in a disaster/emergency situation until first response personnel become available.
2. Providing outreach and education programs to the individuals and organizations of Denver to prepare for a disaster/emergency situations when they find themselves in a disaster/emergency event.
3. Proving training to individuals that will enable them to assist emergency volunteer organizations in preparedness, responce and recovery situations and/or community service activities.
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Making Real Changes One Family at a Time

Posted by Venus Majeski on January 19, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

It is with great delight that I accept the Champions of Change Award, on behalf of the Alianza Emergency Preparedness Project Plus and the extraordinary families, who by their participation and support have made the program a great success.

Alianza Emergency Preparedness Project Plus (AEPPplus) is designed to address the disaster readiness of persons with access and functional needs living in a culturally diverse, majority Hispanic/Latino community (Perth Amboy, NJ). AEPPplus brings individuals, not only to the table, but to leadership positions in disaster readiness. The overarching goals of AEPPplus are to integrate all individuals into their community’s overall disaster readiness preparations; shift attitudes and change systems to assure a truly responsive and embracing community.

What sets the program apart is its unique one-to-one approach which makes possible the creation of an in-depth, highly personalized “Self Directed Emergency Preparedness Plan”. With a truly person-first design, AEPPplus brings individuals, not only to the table, but to leadership positions in disaster readiness.

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Critical Literacy Development in Children of African Descent

Posted by Gevonee Ford on January 12, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

Some of the members of our community who intimately know Gevonee’s work thought it would be appropriate for us to write a community blog because Gevonee embodies the spirit of our entire community. Gevonee has been a champion in Minnesota due to his advocacy for our children’s literacy development and is at the forefront of progressive education.

In the early 1990’s, our community had an initiative called the Cultural Beginnings Project, which Gevonee directed and which engaged in inquiry about the early childhood development of Black children. We were a collaborative partnership between parents, childcare workers, youth, government agency representatives, and community elders. Through our inquiry we began to understand the importance of African culture and identity development in our children as they were being prepared to venture out into the world. Out of our work in Cultural Beginnings there began to emerge a community vision of the cultural education our children would need to not only be successful, but also to be community minded as they grew. Gevonee emerged as a guardian of this vision; someone who would consistently remind our community of what we wanted for our children

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Actively Serving Neighborhoods in Need

Posted by David Brown on January 12, 2012 at 2:00 PM EDT

I can’t remember a time in my career that I haven’t mentored someone or have been mentored.

Now, 30 years later, I’m still looking for those we’ve lost.

When I was a teenager, I was involved in a botched drive-by -- simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It scared me right off the mean streets of Philly and into the world of writing where I found my gift for the craft.

Writing led to journalism. Journalism led to advertising. Advertising led me to start my own ad agency. Ownership led to the broader responsibility of making an impact in the community where it all began in the first place.

Within the first twelve months of opening my first agency, we hired interns from my old neighborhood. When starting my second agency, we launched a program called, “The Big Pitch” that exposed inner city high school students to careers in advertising. A competition was held where kids learned advertising principles to create campaigns that addressed issues in their communities. After only two years, the program enrolled hundreds of students and inspired a few creative geniuses along the way -- the ad agency also picked up a few prestigious awards for the trophy shelf. And even now, I’m proud to serve as a VP with United Healthcare – one of the biggest health insurance companies in the country – where we take care of millions of people every day so they can, in turn, take care of what matters most to them in their individual lives.

I've always thought that if you were making a profit but not making a difference, you weren’t making progress. So being part of organizations that follow this credo – whether they’re national giants like United or small but mighty -- companies built by my own hands has been at the foundation of my personal pursuit of happiness.

Now, I’m here in the White House being honored as a “Champion of Change” as our country prepares to observe the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. Since it was established, I’ve commemorated the day by performing a service project somewhere – anywhere in a neighborhood of need.

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