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Call local police department (non-emergency phone number) and ask for the Neighborhood Watch officer. Sometimes this officer is also called the Community Services officer.
My Neighborhood Watch officer informed me that I am already in an area that has a neighborhood watch and gave me the person's name. I will call her tonight to see when the last meeting was and the status of the group.
The officer will give me information tomorrow about starting a Neighborhood Watch so that I can post that information here.
Contact Neighborhood Watch Captain and schedule a meeting. I called the person that the Neighborhood Watch officer told me was the organizer (Captain) for our street.
We discussed the need for a meeting since there has not been one for awhile. I told this person that I wanted to make a 10 minute presentation about a potential H5N1 pandemic. She said "Great". This will let me "break the ice" about H5N1. She is going to call a couple of neighbors to see who will volunteer their home for the meeting. We scheduled it for September pending the availability of the home for the meeting.
Of course, everyone will know that I am a "prepper" after this meeting. But it is the only way to form a community for mutual assistance.
Tomorrow I meet with the Neighborhood Watch police officer to obtain information about starting a new group.
What documents do you think I should take with me to hand out at the meeting?
This is my dilemma..
I have wanted to start a dialog with my neighbors. A couple are casual "friends", some are acquaintances and many are complete strangers. I live in a typical middle class neighborhood with all races and ages represented. Newark is a small city centered around a mid-sized public University.
I would love to help my neighbors become aware of the possibly of a pandemic. My knowledge of the situation and huge amount of information complied over the last 1+ years equips me to be a valuable source for my community. Unfortunately I have had lukewarm to null response from various school district officials, PTA leadership, university professors from the ag dept., state health officials, emergency officials, et al in my community. I did manage to establish a relationship with a local new reporter and was interviewed for a H5N1 spread last year. Not much has been published since. I feel that our state/city/community is totally unprepared beyond having some plans on paper. Planning and information has not reached the citizenry. I might as well be living in Unfortunately Village, Indonesia!
After many frustrating months, I literally gave up the effort to raise awareness, help plan and enlist help. I became concerned for my family and decided to hunker down and keep my mouth shut. If others are unwilling to listen or to take the responsibility of educating themselves on the potential threat AND they know that I am prepped THEN while trying to protect my children by prepping, I'm also putting them at risk by attempting to help others.
I am willing to try again. Maybe the bottom up approach will work more effectively than going to leaders and "officials". As I said, I would love to help my community. Any suggestions and/or methodology that works would be appreciated.
"In the beginning of change, the patriot is a scarce man (or womanhttps://flutrackers.com/forum/core/i...ilies/wink.png), and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for it then costs nothing to be a patriot."- Mark TwainReason obeys itself; and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it. -Thomas Paine
Niko - i have had the exact same experience in my town.
I also designed a yahoo group website for my town..... localized the news. Made it about the town and how we would be affected.
Ziltch response. Did direct mailings to all the houses on my street and all adjacent streets about it. Ziltch.
I am curious how F1 will do with her approach. It is a little later in the game and more people are aware of it... but until the MSM picks it up again, there may be one big uphill to climb.
Goju, Thank you for sharing your experience. Isn't it stunning at times to know that our "virtual" friends understand us better than our real world friends when it comes to H5N1 concerns? If you are anything like me, once you became aware of this threat and "got it", it permeates your life - frankly it has changed mine - the way I spend my time, what I consider important versus trivial, my appreciation for life, family, children and love. There is lots going on on in the world - some horrible & frightening - but nothing trumps H5N1.
Thanks for listening...uh, I mean reading
(I considered a PM to Goju, but thought others might benefit from my openness.:o )
"In the beginning of change, the patriot is a scarce man (or womanhttps://flutrackers.com/forum/core/i...ilies/wink.png), and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for it then costs nothing to be a patriot."- Mark TwainReason obeys itself; and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it. -Thomas Paine
Content suggestions
Play it straight, refer to the plans promoted by authorities.
The following material would probably take an hour to cover. Pick your best 10 minutes
Risk Communications tells us to select max of 3 points
1. Pandemic influenza is a potential risk to you because.....(10 facts, ..)
2. We need to prepare as a neghborhood because ....... (overwhelming demands on feds and state)
3. Here is what we need to do ....(use the checklist)
Begin with 10 things everyone needs to know about H5N1 influenza
CDC’s pandemic preparedness efforts include ongoing surveillance of human and animal influenza viruses, risk assessments of influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
CDC’s pandemic preparedness efforts include ongoing surveillance of human and animal influenza viruses, risk assessments of influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
Once a pandemic starts, you can be sure that your friends and neighbors will be searching frantically for help and information. Perhaps it would be beneficial to plan for such a scenario. Maybe bird flu savvy individuals, such as members of this forum, can devise a strategy for quick dissemination of information, just after MSM tells everyone that a pandemic has started. Until that time, people's eyes will glaze over when you talk about the impact of a pandemic.
Of course, the biggest problem is that it takes time to develop a prep list and to acquire all the items. Being ready to provide information when people are finally desperate for information may be the best we can do.
Encourage fulfillment of the National Incident Management
System – NIMS internet training http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/index.shtm,
Minimum - NIMS Course 100 and 700; 200, 800 and others available for expanded training.
C R
Niko. Nice to meet you. I have family who live not too far from your neighborhood. It is good knowing someone is working to get info out in that area. It can be extremely frustrating wanting to provide info/ but feeling that wall. What I have reconciled myself to- having to find ways to pass smaller pieces of info. Figuring out, also, what pieces will be received by whom. Also, having info that will help people understand how a pandemic may effect them in alot of different ways. I am re-reading John Barry's book- and in many ways we parallel what occurred in 1918- in regards to dissemination of information. So, any info we can get out is a good thing. Should the CFR drop to the 1918 rate, that still means alot of people will be needing info-even at the last minute.
Today the Neighborhood Watch officer was assigned to a project so we did not meet to discuss how to start a watch program. We are talking again tomorrow.
Thanks for all of the suggestions.
One item that I will hand out at the meeting, in addition to the printed material, are business sized cards that are magnetic. I am going to buy the magnets and business cards at a office supply store. People can stick these to the refrigerator for later reference.
I will have several items on these cards:
Neighborhood Watch Captain Phone Number
Local Emergency Agency Phone Number
Florida State Pandemic Web Site
Pandemicflu.gov Site
FluTrackers Site
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