AHEPA
District 3
Disaster Response Plan
The purpose of this plan is to be able to respond to any emergency request from The National
Headquarters or from local authorities.
The level of response is limited to money, relief items (i.e. FoodClothing) and man power.
To accomplish the appropriate response action the Chapter has to be prepared in advance to
move into action.
Step 1
It is imperative that each Chapter establish an emergency relief fund that is separate and
distinct from any existing specialized fund (i.e. building, charity, operating, special projects,
etc.). This fund should have a minimum balance of $1,000.00 at all times with an ultimate
goal of at least $5,000. It appears historically that we are called on every 4-5 years for a
disaster response (i.e., 911, Katrina, the fires in Greece). To develop this fund a small
Chapter with little resources should start with a plan to produce at least $250.00 per year
for 4 years by having a special event that will produce at least that amount of money. A
large Chapter with resources should create an account (interest bearing) and fund it.
Step 2
The Chapter should have a member and community notification system that would alert
the Chapter members of the AHEPA’s intention to provide an emergency response. That
can be through e-mail or phone tree depending on the nature and magnitude of the needed
response.
Infrastructure
Each Chapter should establish an emergency response officer that would be the primary
contact to activate this response. The Emergency response officer (ERO) can be any
member in good standing in the Chapter should be a volunteer and appointed by the
President.
DUTIES: The Emergency response officer will establish, implement, and test their specific
emergency communication system. It is recommended that this system be tested by using
it to notify members of illness or death to keep the system vital.
Description of typical response –
Event occurs (National) –
Contact is made to the Supreme Governors
Supreme Governor contacts District Governor
District 3 Governor Contacts District Lodge Members
District 3 Lodge Members contact the Emergency Response Officer (ERO) in each
Chapter they are responsible for.
ERO contacts Chapter Officers first and then membership
Depending on the nature of the event and the requested response the Chapter Treasurer
Shouldbe ready to commit the minimum $1,000.00 immediately upon request.
Additional, response will be determined at the National level and communications will flow
through the established Emergency channel.
Event occurs (local) Requesting District Assistance –
The Affected Chapter contacts their District Lodge Officer –
The District Officer responsible contacts the District Governor
District Governor contacts the District Lodge Officers’ to act on the Chapter’s request
Depending on the assistance requested the appropriate action will be taken.
Rationale
Currently there is no organized response system in place to allow for a coordinated timely
response to a request for assistance.
Many times there is a time element associated with a disaster. We the AHEPA should be able
to effectively and efficiently respond to any event affecting our local or global community.
As a National organization we need the ability to respond with a single voice and action.
A plan also, eliminates the redundancy of effort within the organization of who does what.
This reduces thee-mail traffic, duplicate requests, and allows for real time knowledge of
Chapter activities. With this plan and each chapter having implemented this plan a
response to the disaster in Greece would have played out as follows.
HQ receives a request from the Greek Ambassador
Supreme President and Chairman of the Board are notified
Determination is made to support the effort
The required response is determined and committed to
The Supreme Governor is contacted with the request
The Supreme Governor contacts the District Governors he is responsible for
District 3 Governor notifies the District Lodge Officers
The District Lodge Officers contact the ERO
The ERO contacts his Chapter Officers and has the Treasurer send the $1000 to National
The Chapter is now on standby for further response information from their District Lodge
Representatives
Rationale
Under this scenario National now has approximately $400,000 to support the appropriate
response which in this case would be to help offset the costs of providing emergency supplies
(primarily food and temporary shelter) for the deposits on livestock and trees that will be
needed to be replaced.. This also, gives the Ahepan’s on the ground the ability act quickly
at the local level.
After the initial response the call for additional support is made for clothing and personal
hygiene items.
The request follows the new protocol and each Chapter informs their Lodge representative as
to their ability to respond. We now have the information to relay to National who has to plan
to transport the collected items to Greece.
The next phase would be to determine the effort that it will take to keep the communities in
Greece in tact till restoration is complete. Once that determination is made portions of the
Disaster fund would be utilized on an annual basis as information on the ground is verified.
If a second disaster occurs The AHEPA would be able to offer a similar response with no
major impact on the organization.