Providing aid following the EF-5 tornado and severe storms
Austin, TX, May 24, 2013 – American YouthWorks’ Texas Conservation Corps sent its Emergency Response Team to Oklahoma to provide relief to communities affected by the EF-5 tornado. The crews will support the FEMA Volunteer and Donations recovery efforts and work with State Emergency Management and Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster. Texas Conservation Corps participants will support Multi Agency Resource Centers (MARCs) in four counties. According to FEMA, MARCs are a “one stop shop” which makes it easy for those who are affected by disaster to get help for a variety of needs. MARCs will also collect donations and register volunteers.
The Emergency Response Teams, which are funded through a three year AmeriCorps*Texas grant from OneStar Foundation, officially launched at the beginning of 2013. OneStar Foundation is the Governor-designated National Service Commission for Texas that administers the AmeriCorps*State grant program and connects partners and resources to build a stronger nonprofit sector in Texas. AmeriCorps is a nation-wide network of volunteers who commit to a term of service where they address community challenges. Nationally, many AmeriCorps groups have aided in disaster response.
Texas Conservation Corps has been involved in disaster response since 2005, providing relief to communities in Louisiana, Missouri and Texas following hurricanes, tornadoes, wild fires and the recent fertilizer plant explosion. For example, following the West, Texas plant explosion, the team helped homeowners affected by the explosion to get assistance to rebuild. After Hurricane Sandy, participants mobilized over 2,000 volunteers who repaired homes, aided displaced residents in meeting their basic needs, restored the shoreline and provided medical services. Additionally, the crews have been working to restore Bastrop State Park since the Central Texas Wildfires of 2011.
A homeowner in New York said this about the Texas Conservation Corps, “They have helped so many people in the area. There is no way we could have done all this work on our house without this wonderful group. Their attitude and enthusiasm is something I have never seen before. We are blessed.”
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About American Youth Works
AYW is a 501(c)(3) organization based in Austin, Texas that integrates at-risk youth and AmeriCorps members to provide education, service and jobs training. AYW operates a public charter high school, a GED program and green jobs and service corps programs. AYW also offers on-site life services to help students overcome obstacles to their education, including a parent and child development center, academic coaching and counseling. For more than thirty years, AYW has assisted thousands of local, at-risk youth and adult graduates from around the country in transforming their lives and gaining job skills through community service, education and a commitment to preserving the natural environment.
Contact: Rachel Matvy, rmatvy@americanyouthworks.org, WK: 512-744-1904, CELL: 865-540-1334