SCA Secretary, Kelly Szymulewski, joins the team at JM Environmental.

Congratulations to 50/50 Raffle winner, Richard Young, of Altec Construction, inc. at the August meeting.

Kathy Woodward joins Pinnacle Emergency Management.

Abe Lee, of AAA Plus Construction & Restoration looks on, with Bob Lund, of Sams & Associates in the background.

A very animated Gary Deitrich had numerous heart-wrenching stories to share in his outline of the Safely OutTM program.

August 9 SCA luncheon
By Bryan Harrison

Following the of the devastation left by hurricane Katrina, and the still horribly inadequate response, people in the Sacramento area are taking their own similar risk to heart. Rated as the number one most likely metropolitan area in the country at risk for major flood damage, according to a study on the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA) web site, Sacramento cannot afford to sit back and hope for FEMA, insurance companies, or anyone else outside the area to come to the rescue in such a time of need.

Fortunately, there are some good and highly qualified people in the local area poised to make a difference in preparing for such potential disaster. At the May meeting, the SCA featured Mr. Leo Grover, of Pinnacle Emergency Management, who addressed the issue of local planning for potential flood issues. The August luncheon speaker was Mr. Gary Deitrich, of Citizen Voice, and co-founder of the newly unveiled Safely Out™ evacuation program.

Mr. Deitrich gave a thorough and at times heart-wrenching overview of how the program was developed, largely out of frustrations in dealing with trying to help the rescue efforts in New Orleans. He walked the group through the process, illustrating the simplicity with which this program works; and spoke of the opportunity and success in implementing the program with free kits in the aftermath of the Angora Fire in Lake Tahoe. He and his associates also had some kits onhand at the back of the room.

Safely Out™ is a kit of items mostly designed to improve communications in time of need. As families are displaced from their homes, and especially elderly people left to often fend for themselves, the Safely Out doorhanger, the mainstay of the kit, has two sides: "Safely Out" in green; and "Need Help" in red on the backside.

The SAFELY OUT™ Kits are the foundation of the project. "Anyone who may have difficulty safely evacuating should have one (of these kits)," states the Citizen Voice web site. "They enable easy access to critical emergency information along with a leave-behind alert system that allows the person to call for help and then notifies relatives and first responders where that person has been evacuated to."

In addition to the SAFELY OUT™ Kits, Citizen Voice offers a Speaker's Bureau, providing education and training for the entire community on the SAFELY OUT™ project, as well as their Community Outreach Effort, with the goal of "raising public awareness and creating support from government officials, community leaders, first responders, the business community, service providers, caregivers and the public at large." Lastly, they provide 24/7 online resources.

An SCA thank you to Mr. Charles Cassani, of Steamatic, who brought this effort to the attention of the association. Steamatic made a financial contribution to Citizen Voice at the August meeting, in support of their humanitarian endeavor.

Thanks to ALL Our
August Meeting Door Prize Contributors

Steamatic presented Gary Deitrich with a donation check following his presentation at the August SCA meeting.

hKathy Woodward, now of Pinnacle Emergency Mgmt, and Barbara Prosch, of El Dorado Restoration, smile for us, as Kelly Denison, of Benchmark Medical Consultants, welcomes Dawn Dawson, of CSAA to the August luncheon.

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Theresa Brown, with ServPro of Elk Grove/Laguna, looks on at the August SCA luncheon meeting.

Kelly Taylor, of Civil Service Employees Insurance Company, and Abe Lee, of AAA Plus Construction.

Steve Drake, of Taylor Renovation, and Keven Crabb of Blue Sky Cleaners.