This is a great cause! I am working with Mom Bloggers for Social Good to help spread the word about the horrible disaster that happened last year. Being a mom of two and grandmother of one this really hits home for me.
In May 2013, tornadoes tore apart Oklahoma homes, schools, child care
centers and killed 48 people--including 19 children. The quick-thinking
reactions, advance planning and deep commitment of these champions for
children kept the toll on kids from being even worse. Save the Children
salutes them.
Save the Children’s Oklahoma tornadoes response
Save the
Children mounted an immediate response in Oklahoma, and our long-term
recovery work continues today. In all, we’ve reached more than 18,000
people – more than half of them children. We set up child-friendly
spaces in shelters where children could play and start to recover,
helped children attend summer camps to find a happy routine amidst the
post-tornado chaos, helped restore and open 35 child care centers that
were damaged or destroyed – and brought our Journey of Hope program into
the schools. This emotional recovery program lets children discuss
their emotions in a supportive group setting and learn critical coping
skills. Finally, we are conducting our “Get Ready Get Safe” workshops
and trainings in schools and child centers to boost emergency
preparedness and help children see that preparedness can help them feel
safe not scared. Our full progress report is linked on the landing page
and available HERE.
There is even a Mascot that visited Oklahoma and helped out! As Save the Children’s new ambassador for its “Get Ready Get Safe”
initiative, Lassie visited Moore, Okla., to help show children
preparedness can make them feel safe, not scared. Photo by Brett
Deering/Getty Images
I know this wonderful worker helped out many. I have seen and experienced first hand how the love of a dog can help one heal!
Nancy Goodrich’s strong commitment to emergency preparedness at her
Moore, Okla., child-care center protected dozens of children from harm
during last year’s tornadoes. Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images
Save the Children also responding to recent tornadoes in Mississippi
In late April,
117 tornadoes tore through the Midwest and the south. At least 37
people died, including 14 In Mississippi alone. Save the Children is
responding in Tupelo and Louisville, where low-income housing projects
and a number of child care centers were totally destroyed or severely
damaged – leaving many already disadvantaged children extremely
vulnerable.
Destiny’s Day
Care in Louisville is one of the destroyed centers we have helped
reopen. When the tornado came, two caregivers and two little sisters
were in the center. The caregivers huddled with the children – 9 months
and 4 years old – in the bathtub and tried to shield them with their
bodies. But then the tornado barreled through the center and lifted the
bathtub into the air and smashing it down. One caregiver, Marcus, felt
himself being sucked across the debris by the tornado and then it
stopped. He saw his colleague and the 4-year-old appeared to be okay,
but the 9-month old was missing. Although a brick had smashed Marcus’s
head, leaving a hole in his skull, he knew he had to find the baby.
Then he heard her weak whimper and he knew she was alive under the
debris. He prayed for her to make another sound and when she did, he
was able to find her and pull her out. He carried her half a mile
through destruction to find someone who could drive them to the
hospital. His heroic actions got the baby – Za’toriah, the urgent care
she needed. Today, she is healing from a head wound and has a broken
leg. But she is back in day care! Save the Children is helping restock
the new temporary location with all the items Za’toriah and 35 other
children need to help them continue learning in a safe, nurturing
environment.
There is so much that this wonderful organization does. As with any organization they can use the support of all of us. Watch the video below which is a dramatic story of rescue and
resilience at one Moore, OK child care center. Child care centers often
don’t qualify for any official recovery assistance, even though they
are vital to children, families and communities in the wake of a
disaster.
Here are a couple of checklist that will help to prepare for a disaster.
Parent Checklist
Child Care Checklist
This is something that affects all of us in one way or another. Below you will find some links to their sites and other resources. Click on them and see how they are helping and how you can help also.
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