Iowa Praise and PrepareOrganizing Our Faith Based Community

Don Hampton Conference and Award Ceremony October 19, 2015

Welcome

• Learn how to better prepare your congregation

• Learn what your role could be in your community disaster planning and response

• Learn how to use the template

• Learn more about IDHRC

Iowa Praise and Preparedness Template

•Based on the Georgia Praise and Preparedness model

•Customizable and scalable

•Identifies roles and responsibilities

•Identifies how active your congregation could be within larger response community

•Create a culture of preparedness for congregation to take home

Using Additional Tools

• Each additional tool is guidance

• Use what would beneficial to your planning

• Cut and paste, these materials are meant to be copied

• Don’t create a plan and never review or practice it

• Don’t overwhelm yourself

Continuity Planning

• Continue essential functions during disaster/emergency

• Protect your infrastructure

• Mitigate or reduce your hazards

• Provide safety

• Achieve efficient recovery

Emergency Management

• Identify your internal emergency management team

• Determine what type of training would beneficial

• Extensive training available on FEMA website

• Core team can set the goals and objectives

• Work with local response entities to see where you fit

Weather

• Determine what types of weather disasters could happen in your area

• Think in terms of evacuation, shelter in place

• Determine how long you could shelter in place, how many

• Communication plan to alert congregation

Hazardous Materials Planning

• Hazardous materials are serious business

• Determine what hazards are in the building

• Create a safety plan and stick to it

• This should be left to the professionals

Suspicious Package or Mail Planning

• Identify who receives/handles mail

• More likely to know the sender or if packages are expected

• If believed to be suspicious limit exposure to others

• Let the professionals handle it

Active Shooter Planning

• Create a culture of awareness without promoting fear

• Collaborate with law enforcement

• Educate congregation

• Test your plan

Threatening Phone Call

• Train everyone who fields calls for the congregation

• Keep the checklist near the each phone

• Try and record while on the phone

• Meet with law enforcement to review plan

House of Worship Drill

• On paper, plans may seem flawless

• Drills help determine what will work and what needs work

• Natural leaders will surface during drills

• Sit down afterwards and discuss the outcomes

• Don’t create a plan to sit on a shelf and collect dust

Questions?

• IDHRC would like to implement these plans into the faith based community

• Members will be able to train groups on planning

• Train others to support in their community

• Materials will be on the IDHRC website