President, LWR CERT

Due to the overwhelming response to our January online COVID-19 Scams event in conjunction with the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, we've added a second event on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 7 PM. The Feb. 10 event will cover the same information shared on Jan. 25, so there is no need to attend both.

This is a virtual public event -- invite your neighbors, friends and family to attend. Details and registration are available on our website www.lwrcert.org/events or RSVP below to reserve your spot and to receive login information.

Daniel Noah from the National Weather Service presented "2020: A Record Breaking Hurricane Season" to more than 75 members and prospects Jan. 13. This was our largest virtual event ever!

Dan shared NWS's reactions to the hurricanes of 2020 and provided valuable insights. Did you know that Southwest Florida is the #1 most difficult hurricane evacuation area in the US and that 9 out of 10 tropical cyclone fatalities are due to water, not wind? Or that the purpose of your hurricane kit is not to protect you during the storm but to help you survive after the storm?

Click here or on the graphic of the hurricane cone to download a .pdf of Dan's presentation.

A few of the other links shared by Dan include:

-- https://weather.gov/tampa

-- https://radar.weather.gov

-- https://weather.gov/forecastpoints

-- https://www.weather.gov/SKYWARN

Our thanks to Dan for an educational and entertaining presentation, which one of our members said was the best and most worthwhile presentation he had seen in a while!

The more than 50 members who attended the first Skills Refresher of the year on Wednesday, Jan. 21 learned several new activation procedures and refreshed their training on key activation points. Thanks to Training Manager Nigel Pilling for organizing and conducting the session.

With a Team Captain meeting, member meeting, skills refresher, and public educational session all in the month of January, our members were active and involved.

Congratulations to the 90 members who have already qualified as Tier 1 2021 Active Responders and the 21 who have qualified as Tier 2 2021 Active Responders. WOW! Awards will be distributed by Team Captains shortly.

See a name or two on the list you recognize? Want to join your friends and become a member of LWR CERT? Visit the How to Join page on our website https://lwrcert.org to learn more. Then send us your contact information via the link on website or click here. We're always looking for new volunteer members!

According to National Weather Service's Daniel Noah, the only way they could communicate with Port Charlotte officials after a major storm for several days was via ham radio.

LWR CERT is fortunate to have a team of dedicated ham radio operators who serve as our Radio Communications Committee (RCC) and our radio hubs, providing a vital link between our organization and professional responders and Manatee County Emergency Management.

The hub operators conduct quarterly hub radio tests to ensure that they will be ready to respond when the organization activates. Thank you to our current hub operators:

The RCC is seeking new members interested in learning more about ham radio. RCC members are provided with assistance in obtaining their FCC ham radio license. A ham radio, antenna, backup battery and all equipment needed to serve as a hub are also provided at no cost to hub operators. To learn more about joining the RCC, contact Jim Emanuelson.

Happy February birthday to members Rinita Acevedo, Mark Boutote, Matthew Cangemi, Paul Catalano, Larry Euston, Stephen Greene, Tom Hickey, George Kommick, Dennis McSherry, Murray Miller, Dennis Pryor, Bill Quaid, John Rocco, Mollie Saia, Mike Staley, and Arline Stein.

Congratulations to our newest two team captains: Kris Hoekman will serve as Team Captain for Team #7, and Bruce Bedford will serve as Team Captain for Team #9. Thank you to both of you for stepping up and accepting these positions.

Congratulations to Gordon Kuhn (KK4CJP) who recently passed his FCC Amateur radio General-Class License exam. Gordon is a the Technical Lead for the Radio Communications Committee and serves as Hub #7, which serves the Greenbrook area during activation.

Congratulations to Pat Knowles who recently passed the FEMA CERT Train The Trainer course and is now one of our three members qualified to serve as course manager for CERT Basic Training. In addition to serving on the Executive Committee and as our Treasurer, Pat frequently serves as an instructor for Basic Training modules and a presenter for our hurricane preparedness sessions.

Welcome to new member Frank Giannone (WO4GQ), who has stepped up to serve as a new member of the Radio Communications Committee and Radio Hub #6 serving the Summerfield area. Frank is also a leader in Manatee County ARES, which provides essential communications for Manatee County Emergency Management.

Can you believe some members graduated from Basic training a decade ago? The condition of band-aids and other first aid items in your backpack may have deteriorated, even if you are a recent graduate. Members are encouraged to review and examine the contents of their backpacks. Contact your Team Captain if any of your supplies need to be refreshed.