Disaster Recovery = Flexible Response + A Plan Of Action
Pinellas County, Florida
This month working with The Humane Society of Pinellas (HSP) we demonstrated that a big part of creating the smoothest and quickest path to recovery from the damage endured by Hurricane Irma was about our immediate response both with the communications department and with our grant writing plan.
Right before the storm, the Executive Director of HSP, Stacey Efaw and I had a phone conversation. Because I live in Pennsylvania, 1,500 miles north of the HSP facility, I made sure that Stacey knew I was ready to pen any request that we needed in case the wind, rain or flood waters ravaged HSP. Being so far away meant my wifi and electricity were not at risk, and I was ready to go at any moment.
As it turned out, HSP did receive some significant damage. Two essential rooms, the dog kennels for pups with behavioral challenges and the cat isolation room were hardest hit. Stacey and her staff collected photos, quickly sent them to me and briefly described the situation. I crafted five grants and got them all submitted within 36 hours of our initial connection. Now, just one and a half weeks later, the checks are starting to come in and the construction workers have been hired. To date we have raised over $36,000 in grant funds for disaster relief.
HSP got through this storm and we’ll all be better and stronger for it. Our take away from this experience? To prepare, mobilize, plan, communicate, archive and then let your grant writer spin her magic! Alas, we suspect the puppies, kittens and bunnies will be forever grateful, and we have the cuddles to prove it.
If you are in need of a grant writer because you received damage from any of the storms, contact me at 727-410-3874 and we can talk about your grant options.
Don’t stay trapped on that floating tire, you do have options!
-grace alfiero
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