April 29, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Myles Chamblee, Public Information Officer
Office: 256-435-0540; Cell: 256-499-8607; Email: mchamblee@calhounema.org
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CALHOUN COUNTY FORMS SAFE REOPENING SHORT TERM RECOVERY ADVISORY COUNCIL
Calhoun County, Alabama – Calhoun County has formed the Safe Reopening and Short Term Recovery Advisory Council. The mission of the Advisory Council is to promote best practices and provide access to resources for the safe reopening and short term recovery of the people and places of Calhoun County.
“The formation of this Advisory Council is a natural progression through the cycle of emergency management,” stated Michael Barton, Director of Emergency Management. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the distinct phases of emergency management include; mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. He continued, “The original Infectious Disease Task Force, led the County during the Mitigation and Preparedness Phases. The Unified Command is leading us during the Response Phase. The Advisory Council will begin to transition and take the baton to finish the race through the Recovery Phase.”
The Calhoun County Advisory Council has established three guiding priorities to focus its work on:
1) Information Sharing to enable the citizenry to be better informed and the most responsible individuals;
2) Organizational Readiness through comprehensive preparedness and mitigation activities;
3) Testing & Tracing capacity by identification and isolation of the problem in the community
Members of the Advisory Council are stakeholders from various sectors of the community such as; business owners, the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce, the Calhoun County Economic Development Council, local government, K12 education, education higher education, military/federal government, judicial system, senior adults, religious community.
Christy Hardin, co-owner of Communications Associates, located in Golden Springs, Anniston, is serving as chairperson of the Advisory Council. She stated, “If we, as a team, model the way, share the vision, enable others to act, and expect the best, we will become a stronger and more resilient community.”
The Advisory Council is already hard at work. The Council has actively identifying organizations who have best practices to share with other businesses, churches, non-profits, local government offices, and others. Those best practices are being captured on video and produced as
useful public service messages that can be shared with all sectors of the community. The Advisory Council will also provide useful resources for groups to utilize such as the local Calhoun County Pandemic Ready Program and other needed resources. Information is available at: http://www.calhounema.org/safe-reopening. In addition to providing examples of best practices and listing useful resources, the Advisory Council members can also directly connect those in similar disciplines and provide on site advice of how to implement certain best practices within their organizations.
Virtual interviews can be conducted with:
Michael Barton, EMA Director (256-312-2890)
Christy Hardin, Advisory Council Chairperson (256-634-0187)
Linda Hearn, Manager Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce
Steven Folks, City of Anniston, City Manager (256-310-0812)