The American Red Cross Heartland of American Chapter, headquartered in Murfreesboro, held a Jan. 29 familiarization meeting with one of its volunteer partners, the Rutherford County Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES). The meeting was a recognition of the longstanding relationship between the two organizations on the national and local levels.
The Rutherford County ARES is an element of the national Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL), which has worked with the American Red Cross since the 1940s. The two organizations recently renewed their joint memorandum of understanding, describing the working relationship between the organizations.
Rutherford County ARES maintains an amateur radio base station at Murfreesboro’s Red Cross Chapter headquarters, as well as kits of mobile, battery powered amateur radio “Go Kits” to help communications for far-flung Red Cross operations during severe weather and disasters when other forms of communication are overloaded or damaged.
“We’ve been working with the Rutherford County ARES and ARRL for years,” said James Goodman, the mass care coordinator for the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter, and the host for the meeting. Goodman takes care of sheltering, feeding and bulk distribution for the 17 counties in the Heart of Tennessee Chapter. He takes a lead role in direct contact with clients and partner organizations.
Goodman talked about the American Red Cross disaster services and gave an account of experiences setting up emergency shelters. He discussed how the Rutherford County ARES volunteers might coordinate with the Red Cross during contingencies and disaster assessments with emergency communications.
Goodman relies on his long-time Rutherford County ARES partner, Frank Capley.
“Every time a storm system comes up, Frank says, ‘Ok we’ve got you covered, this is what we’re monitoring for you,’” Goodman said. “As things begin to happen, there are things we need to be aware of, which streets are being closed, where trees are down, or where the electricity is out. For contingencies and disasters, Frank is my early warning system. He helps me plan for how many volunteers I’ll put on standby.”
Goodman considers his Red Cross work as a continuation of the public service he provided in the Army. He’s a 100-percent disabled veteran, though the motorized wheel chair he uses has no impact on his task performance.
“It only affects the perceptions others might hold of what I can do,” he said. “The Red Cross is the place where I serve, and give back to the community, and have the comradery that I had in the Army.”
Goodman shares this view with other veterans, who he encourages to also volunteer with the Red Cross.
“The meeting with Rutherford County ARES is important because we are trying to broaden our relationship with them and the national ARRL,” Goodman said. “We want them to more fully understand our Red Cross missions and how we can do our job better, as more folks work with us and participate with us.”
Capley is the assistant emergency coordinator for Rutherford County ARES, and the communications director for the Red Cross in Rutherford County.
“We are on standby for any type of emergencies that arise in the county, and make ourselves and our members available for emergency deployment as needed,” Capley said.
Capley learned his radio communications craft in the Air Force, on the headquarters staff of one of the nation’s fiercest warriors, General Curtis LeMay, the Cold War commander of the Strategic Air Command. After retiring from the Air Force, he worked as a facilities engineer for the Hospital Corporation of America. Now, he serves as a volunteer using his organizational, technical and radio communication skills.
“The Red Cross meeting with the Rutherford County ARES brought together the team and the people who might be able to help us in the future,” Capley said. “There is always a need for more volunteers. It’s important that the general public understands what the Red Cross and the Rutherford County ARES can do for them.”
Kevin Molloy is the emergency coordinator for the Rutherford County ARES program.
“We are a group of amateur radio operators who volunteer our services during disaster situations,” he said. “It’s a public service that we can provide. We have the capability to provide communications to public organizations when other types of communications may be down. The American Red Cross has worked with ARRL’s amateur radio organizations for some time. They say it’s a valuable resource for them and they are looking forward to continuing operations with us.”
Molloy has been involved with planning for contingencies and disasters for more than 37 years as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service. He served as the national director for emergency management for a federal agency, the Indian Health Service.
“The first disaster response I was involved was in 1980,” Molloy said.
He continues to work in disaster planning to this day, as a consultant in emergency management.
“I’ve been involved in disaster preparations and work from 1980 through Hurricane Sandy,” he said.
The Rutherford County ARES work with the amateur radio frequencies and skills are important, Molloy said, because “an extended disaster, a lot of times, normal communications channels are either very busy or disrupted because of the disaster, and we offer an alternative communications process.”
“The American Red Cross and ARRL stand together to help the public and to work collectively to provide emergency services and communications capability,” Molloy said. “It is a good feeling to know you’ve helped people.”
