Boots on the ground: Serving in Shenandoah, Iowa

Our WCC AmeriCorps members serve for 11-month terms restoring habitat for salmon and wildlife, building and enhancing trails, and assisting communities after local or national disasters. Below, a member reflects on her recent experience on a disaster response deployment to Iowa.

My name is Olivia Sohn, and I serve as an AmeriCorps member and assistant supervisor on a Washington Conservation Corps field crew based out of Issaquah. With our crew supervisor Chelsea Krimme, we complete a variety of habitat restoration and trail enhancement projects across Western Washington.

My crew and I spent most of July on a disaster response deployment to Iowa, supporting communities affected by severe flooding in Spring 2019. The timing of disaster response deployments can be unpredictable; this opportunity came right as my family was visiting me in Washington from my home state of New Jersey. Just when I thought I would be driving around the Pacific Northwest with my family, showing them where I have been living for the last year and a half, I was instead packing for a 30-day deployment.

L to R: AmeriCorps members Tyler Ambrose, Olivia Sohn, Melanie McMillan, and Joe Merrill in Shenandoah, Iowa.*

Iowa recovers from major flooding 

Iowa experienced more snowfall than usual this past winter. In March 2019, the combination of warm temperatures and heavy rainfall caused snowmelt and rainwater to run off the already-saturated soils into the Missouri River. The river swelled to more than 30 feet near the city of Council Bluffs and breached more than 40 levees in Western Iowa. In July, the WCC sent two field crews and three crew supervisors to help suppress mold, remove debris, and muck and gut homes in Mills and Fremont Counties.

Anticipation builds

My first deployment was to Florida in December 2018, responding to the aftermath of Hurricane Michael. It took time for me to adhere to the level of flexibility that deployments demand. We moved to three different living spaces in the span of two weeks, and I learned that the combination of tackling unfamiliar projects in a new state while adjusting to new living spaces was overwhelming for me. I felt nervous on the plane ride to Iowa, anticipating my second deployment. I also felt motivated to overcome the stress I felt on my last deployment and to keep our mission at the center of my thoughts.

We stayed in the beautiful town of Shenandoah — or “The Shan” as people from surrounding towns called it. Our housing facility was a spacious, amenable community center called The Armory. I would be a strike team lead, and Chelsea was Chief of Operations and Logistics. After a couple of days of classroom training on mold suppression and field training led by WCC supervisors, my crew headed to our first house.

The crew gathers for a photo after installing a tarp on a home in Florida.*

Serving as a strike team lead

In Florida, we spent most of the time installing blue tarps on homeowners’ roofs. I had no prior experience with muck and gut or mold suppression — our primary activities in Iowa — so I relied on my more experienced teammates when I had questions. Fellow WCC AmeriCorps member Sammy Craven co-led field teams and brought valuable knowledge and leadership skills. Each day, we suited up in protective Tyvek suits and respirators and served in two teams for 30-minute shifts at a time, suppressing mold in water-damaged homes. The weather was hot and humid, so it was critical to take breaks often.

Being a strike team lead when you are not the most technically experienced person on the team is a good lesson in leadership. Because I did not have all of the answers, it was important to consider the skills and knowledge of my teammates and strategically break them up into strong groups to enter the house for each shift. I think it is easy to feel flustered when you do not have all the answers, but utilizing available resources, including my teammates, the Incident Command Staff, and our crew supervisors, helped us succeed. 

Tyler Ambrose and Ryan Grate muck and gut a home in Percival, Iowa.*

Collaboration, inspiration, and motivation 

We were fortunate to serve with other AmeriCorps programs, including Habitat for Humanity and the National Civilian Conservation Corps. The Habitat for Humanity crew was very knowledgeable in construction and enthusiastic to help those in need. 

The energy of everyone around me was the most inspiring part of this deployment. The Incident Command Staff was dedicated to making the biggest impact that we could in our thirty days. Every morning and afternoon, the crews all worked together to load and unload trucks. It was exciting at the end of the day to hear about what the other crews and assessment teams accomplished. WCC staff and members took turns cooking dinner for the group. All this effort and energy made it feel like we were functioning as one large, multi-faceted team.

Moments of celebration amidst recovery

It was rewarding to interact and connect with homeowners on deployment. Disaster response brings you right into people’s homes and lives — it has an unavoidably personal nature. One day, we helped a kind woman named Sally sort through her personal items in her home after the water level came down. Deciding which items could stay and which should go was an emotional process. Sally was happy to share pictures of her son and late husband with us as we found them. One of my favorite moments was when we found a key to her safe that she thought she had lost. My fellow AmeriCorps member Tyler, Sally, and I all raised our arms into the air and cheered. Similar to the moments when we looked at pictures with Sally, it was a lighthearted, exciting moment on a difficult, emotionally tolling day.  

Tyler Ambrose and Olivia Sohn remove a dryer from Sally's home in Iowa.*

Returning home to Washington state after living with this high-energy hive mentality for weeks was difficult. It was hard to leave Iowa with so much work left unfinished. On the plane ride home, I thought back to a moment from the flight to Iowa when the pilot announced the presence of our AmeriCorps Disaster Response Team on the plane. After being a part of the disaster response deployment in Iowa, I feel very proud to have served side by side with everyone. 

By: Olivia Sohn, WCC AmeriCorps member 

*Photos contributed by Olivia Sohn

Join WCC

We are currently accepting applications for 11-month members! Learn more and apply on our website. Ecology's Washington Conservation Corps, an AmeriCorps program, provides hands-on experience, field skills, and training opportunities to young adults between 18 and 25 and military veterans. WCC consists of three subprograms: the original WCC, Veteran Conservation Corps and Puget SoundCorps. 

Boots on the ground: WCC as a stepping-stone to disaster management career

A decade ago, Nina Rubenstein was swinging a pick-mattock on a Washington Conservation Corps restoration crew. Today she serves as the emergency manager for Providence St. Joseph Health’s Oregon region. It all started with saying “yes” to some exciting – and challenging – opportunities as an AmeriCorps member.

Nina grew up in the world of land conservation. Her father’s experience in the legal arena exposed her to the environmental field, and Nina joined our WCC in 2009 to gain hands-on experience. But she was further enticed by a new angle: the prospect of disaster response deployments.

Nina served on a restoration crew during her
WCC AmeriCorps member days. Photo
contributed by Nina Rubenstein.

During her first year as a WCC AmeriCorps member, Nina deployed to Mississippi to assist communities after devastating tornadoes. The deployment call arrived just before a major stand-up comedy show she was set to open, in front of an audience that included Bill Gates. “I had five minutes to decide whether to deploy, and I weighed what I would have to miss back home,” she said. “I decided to pass up the show, and disaster response turned out to be a calling. That’s pretty cool.”

A formative first - and second - deployment

She removed debris from land where homes had once stood, and led weekly safety meetings. Survivors who owned a crawfish business hosted a full crawfish boil for members at the camp where members were staying during deployment.

“I remember it being my first immersive experience in the South,” she said. Its lasting impact made her want to continue serving on disaster responses. “I decided I would not only do a second year in the WCC, but I would deploy again at any opportunity,” she said.

That opportunity arose when 360 confirmed tornadoes tore across the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern regions of the United States in just three days. Nina and WCC’s disaster response teams arrived in northern Alabama a month later, charged with managing a volunteer resource center.

The disaster response teams also needed a logistics coordinator. Already serving as an assistant supervisor and ready for more responsibility, Nina jumped at the chance. Leading the administrative and logistical side of the deployment meant making many phone calls to match field projects with the skill level of the volunteers.

“It was really gratifying to spend time on the phone with people who felt like they had been forgotten,” she said.

Disaster response in a new setting: a classroom

The second deployment to Alabama helped solidify her calling to disaster response. “I saw that the logistical side of things could be a much broader path, and I realized ‘I want to know what path that is,’” she said.

After returning from Alabama, Nina researched options for finishing her undergraduate degree and landed on the Homeland Security Studies program at Tulane University in New Orleans. A few months later, she finished her second service term in the WCC and headed off to Tulane University.

Nina poses at Department of Homeland Security's Center
for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Ala. She has visited
the training facility for healthcare emergency management
twice for different courses. Photo contributed by Nina Rubenstein.

After a deep dive into emergency management curriculum—including an in-depth study of the effects of Hurricane Katrina—Nina moved back to the West Coast and secured an emergency management coordinator position with PeaceHealth, a hospital system based in Vancouver, Wash.

She put her experience and new degree to use, building an emergency management program for the two hospitals in southwest Washington. A year and a half later, a colleague from the hospital emergency management field contacted her about a management position at Providence Health & Services in Portland. She hopped on the phone to learn more, and a month later, started her emergency manager position.

Expanding her skills, with a nod to AmeriCorps service

Nina’s team at Providence St. Joseph Health is in charge of emergency management plans for six hospitals and more than 100 clinics and acute care centers. Typical projects include developing full-scale exercises to demonstrate preparedness, including staff training, and building a disaster equipment cache for the region she serves.

She also develops protocols regarding how hospitals manage medical and trauma surge capacity—when patients occupy all beds and services might need to be scaled up to meet the demand. To prepare for mass casualty incidents, Nina designs and leads exercises like “15 ‘till 50,” where the hospital has 15 minutes to prepare to receive 50 incoming patients.

Looking back, the days of waking up at 6 a.m. to meet her WCC restoration crew in Renton provided pivotal experience along her vocational journey.

“In school, and more so now, I found that I knew what I was talking about because I had done it. Applying for jobs and school, I could say I had two years’ work experience in this field, in a supervisory role,” she said. “That was absolutely a leg up in the job market.”

Fast forward to 2019: WCC deploys to Iowa

On July 8, 2019, 10 WCC AmeriCorps members and three crew supervisors deployed to Fremont and Mills Counties in Iowa, to support communities after devastating flooding in spring 2019. Members are spending the month assisting homeowners and operating a disaster response center. Keeping safety a top priority in summer heat, teams are taking turns hydrating and resting, and donning protective Tyvek suits to conduct mold suppression and remove water-damaged material from affected homes.

 Five of our WCC crews are designated disaster response crews, though any crew has the potential to deploy. Our Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) provides disaster services in Washington and beyond, assisting communities after fires, floods, hurricanes, tornados, oil spills, and more.

WCC AmeriCorps members remove invasive species at Camp Murray.
Photo by Taylor Belisle.

Apply to WCC today

Do you want to gain hands-on environmental experience, build your résumé, and make a difference in your community? WCC is currently recruiting for the 2019-2020 AmeriCorps service year! Learn more and apply online: www.ecology.wa.gov/wcc.

Boots on the ground: Empowering leaders through environmental service

Climate in Washington matters. Ahead of Earth Day, our Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) is sharing how our AmeriCorps members are helping prepare for the future with solutions rooted in empowerment and environmental service.

Developing educational curriculum

What might “Sammy the Salmon” write to their friend “Reggie the Bald Eagle” on a postcard? AmeriCorps Individual Placement (IP) member Kelsey Chun developed a new Eagle Watcher’s program this winter to teach fourth-grade students about the life cycles of these important creatures. She serves as a Youth and Community Engagement Coordinator with Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Kelsey uses the pen-pal storyline between the salmon and eagle to illustrate their migration journeys, and mutual dependence on the Skagit River - ancestral land of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe. Climate change affects eagles’ survival in many ways, including the bodies of water upon which they rely for fish and other food.

Kelsey serves as a Youth and Community Engagement
Coordinator for Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
through WCC's IP program. Photos from Kelsey Chun.

Many of our IP members educate adults and children about wildlife, our local landscape, and climate change. Making content accessible is a priority.

“Based on feedback from the teachers and their ideas for new content, I included information related to landforms and presented many of the key vocabulary terms in both Spanish and English,” Kelsey said. “Madison Elementary is a dual language school, and the students were excited about sharing their knowledge of words for animals and the land: la águila, el salmón, las migraciones, las montañas, los ríos.”

Collaboration in restoration projects

As a keystone species and a cornerstone of the cultural identity of Pacific Northwest Indian tribes, salmon are a big deal! From local non-profits to government entities, so many people are working to make sure salmon survive and thrive. As climate change increases water temperatures across Washington, collaborating to restore and preserve salmon habitat is even more important.

A prime example comes out of Port Hadlock, where North Olympic Salmon Coalition (NOSC) sponsors one of our restoration field crews. In December 2018, the crew added native trees and shrubs to Snow Creek-Salmon Creek Unit, a site where the two summer chum and coho-bearing streams converge to enter Discovery Bay in Jefferson County. The project is a 15-year effort to restore the riparian and nearshore habitat. Partnerships between NOSC, WCC, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Jefferson Land Trust, Jefferson County Conservation District, and others, is a huge part of the project’s success. 

“This [site] was originally planted by a WCC crew I led in 2003,” said WCC Restoration Specialist and Crew Supervisor Owen French. “Since then, projects have extended out to the estuary and bay, and miles upstream on both public and private lands.” Habitats at the site include scrub-shrub, marsh, and forested wetland, wet upland meadows, and estuary.

AmeriCorps members serving on our NOSC restoration crew
plant native trees and shrubs at Snow Creek-Salmon Creek unit.
Photo contributed by Owen French.

Members serving with our NOSC restoration crew contribute to restoration projects by planting thousands of native trees and shrubs. Through these experiences, our members gain an understanding of the importance of collaborative relationships in long-term restoration efforts.

"The relationships I have developed let me view ecological restoration as a holistic process…serving with NOSC lets me see the evolution of watershed recovery through multiple stages and seasons, talking with employees who bring their own specialties and perspectives to the table," said WCC member Jose Garrido.

Since October, the crew has planted nearly 15,000 trees for NOSC and partner organizations at sites across Clallam and Jefferson Counties!

Empowering leaders of all types

We believe successful solutions come from diverse perspectives, talents, and backgrounds. In the WCC, this means welcoming everyone to the table, or rather, welcoming everyone to the power tool, to the opportunity to try on a leadership role for size, and to spend a year of their lives improving our environment.

One leadership opportunity we offer members is the assistant supervisor role on field crews. Selected by the crew supervisor, the assistant leads their crew on select trail or restoration projects, and attends a dedicated leadership training with other assistants from crews across the state. 

Assistant Supervisor Olivia Sohn uses a metal cutter to break up large metal debris found along the
Pickering Barn Trail in Issaquah. Photo by AmeriCorps member Ryan Grate. 

Olivia Sohn, a first-year member from Renton, is the assistant supervisor on an Issaquah- based crew completing trail and restoration projects across King County. “This year I've had the opportunity to build my confidence working with power tools and leading the crew. It feels great to improve these skills while restoring stream habitat in Washington,” said Olivia.

Mentoring the next generation of environmental leaders and providing a foundation of hands-on experience is the core of WCC’s mission. We are grateful for our many alum supporting and leading solutions-oriented projects within environmental organizations across the state. We look forward to seeing the creative solutions our members will go on to implement!

Join WCC

We are currently accepting applications for 3-month member positions! Learn more and apply on our website. Ecology's Washington Conservation Corps, an AmeriCorps program, provides hands-on experience, field skills, and training opportunities to young adults between 18 and 25 and military veterans. WCC consists of three subprograms: the original WCC, Veteran Conservation Corps and Puget SoundCorps. 

Boots on the ground: WCC answers deployment calls to the Carolinas and Florida

In addition to planting native trees and shrubs along rivers and streams, and building hiking trails, our Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) members provide disaster services in Washington and across the country. Our members and supervisors have assisted communities after fires, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, oil spills, and more. So far this fall, our members have been deployed to South Carolina and Florida to assist families after devastating hurricanes. Learn more about our latest deployments below!

Last Sunday, Dec. 2, 36 AmeriCorps members and WCC staff departed for North Carolina and Florida to assist communities after Hurricanes Florence and Michael made landfall. Members will collaborate with AmeriCorps programs from around the nation to remove hazard trees, install roof tarps, muck and gut structures, and serve as command staff to help organize the overall response effort.  Learn more about current WCC community assistance and recovery activities in a recent blog.

Our AmeriCorps members install a tarp on a home in Florida.
Photo contributed by Chelsea Krimme.

Continuing response in Florida 

Our AmeriCorps members have been serving in Florida since mid-October. The first wave of AmeriCorps members helped set up response operations in Tallahassee, train additional AmeriCorps program members, and returned home to Washington Nov. 20.

Full of fresh energy, a second wave of 24 members and supervisors arrived in Florida this past weekend, ready to hit the ground running! They spent their first few days in Panama City training on how to install roof tarps, learning command staff roles, and getting ready to move into the field to assist people and communities impacted by Hurricane Michael. Primary field projects will include removing debris and hazard trees from homes, structures, and yards. They will also potentially be involved in stripping homes down to the bare studs to remove water-damaged material and prevent mold. This activity is called “mucking and gutting.”

Chelsea Krimme, a WCC crew supervisor, demonstrates
how to safely remove a hazard tree. Photo contributed
by Leo Arias.

As of Nov. 12, AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams, also called A-DRTs, had removed 383 hazard trees and installed tarps or performed temporary repairs on 31 homes or structures in Florida.

Answering a call to North Carolina  

We have 12 WCC AmeriCorps members and supervisors teaming up with Utah Conservation Corps to assist communities in North Carolina, based out of the town of Willard. While several will hold command staff positions, the other 10 will serve as strike teams, assisting survivors with muck and gut projects. They are focusing on suppressing mold in homes and serving as a “mobile strike team unit” –  assisting prioritized homes and structures located farther away that have yet to receive assistance.

Support continues in South Carolina

Our second wave of members serving in South Carolina arrived in mid-November and they have already settled into their roles as part of command staff. AmeriCorps member Daja Curtis, serving as a media officer for AmeriCorps Disaster Response Team, was deeply affected by the effects of the storm immediately upon arrival.

Before moving out into the field, AmeriCorps members
receive training on tarp installation procedures.
Photo contributed by Chelsea Krimme.

“After only being here for three days, I have been touched by the stories and amazing spirits of the survivors,” Curtis said. “The homeowners I've been in contact with have been underserved and faced many hardships, but they stay hopeful doing everything they can to start their lives over with a smile on their face.”

As of Dec. 4, A-DRTs have cleared 3,539 cubic yards of debris and conducted mold suppression on 11 South Carolina homes.

Learn more about WCC

Ecology's Washington Conservation Corps, an AmeriCorps program, provides hands-on experience, field skills, and training opportunities to young adults between 18 and 25 and military veterans. WCC consists of three subprograms: the original WCC, Veteran Conservation Corps and Puget SoundCorps. Recruitment for 11-month positions in the 2018-19 year has wrapped up, but six-month positions will open in January 2019! See photos of the types of projects WCC members support during their service in our WCC Projects Flickr set and WCC Featured Projects Story Map. Learn more on our website. 

Boots on the ground: WCC assists communities after Hurricanes Florence, Michael

In addition to planting native trees and shrubs along rivers and streams, and creating and improving hiking trails, our Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) members provide disaster services in Washington and across the country. Our crews and supervisors have assisted communities after fires, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, oil spills, and more. Join us for a closer look into our recent and ongoing deployments to South Carolina and Florida to assist communities after Hurricanes Florence and Michael made landfall.

Sixty-two AmeriCorps Disaster Response Team members gather in Bennettsville
in early November (about 60 percent of the entire team). Photo contributed
by Luke Wigle.

Starting off a new service year with disaster deployment

WCC’s 285 members kicked off a new year of AmeriCorps service on Oct. 1. And just two weeks later, 12 WCC AmeriCorps members and crew supervisors traded their shovels for deployment ID badges as they departed for South Carolina to assist communities after Hurricane Florence hit in September.

Our teams were charged with setting up operations for additional AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams (A-DRTs), and leading training sessions, such as cultural awareness, and safety, upon their arrival. Other tasks included managing volunteers and donations, and supporting call centers to record homeowners and community members’ existing projects and needs. They also headed out to the field to lead “muck and gut” efforts – stripping a home down to the studs to remove water-damaged material.

As of Nov. 17, A-DRTs had cleared 2,800 cubic yards of debris from homes and yards, and mucked and gutted 70 structures among many other accomplishments!

WCC AmeriCorps member Seth Benish and supervisor Rob Crawford team
up on the first muck and gut project. Photo contributed by Kristine Solis.

Redirected to serve in Florida

After helping establish deployment operations in South Carolina, five of our 12 WCC AmeriCorps members and a supervisor traveled to Florida to start setting up similar operations in Tallahassee. Communities there also need assistance after the devastating effects of Hurricane Michael, especially on projects like hazard tree removal and roof tarp installation.

Our teams also welcomed incoming A-DRTs from six more AmeriCorps programs from other parts of the country, and provided initial training including how to install roof tarps effectively. 

As of Nov. 12, A-DRTs also had removed 383 hazard trees and installed tarps or performed 

temporary repairs on 31 homes or structures.

WCC AmeriCorps members remove debris from
a home in Florida. Photo contributed by Paolo Rosen.

 Fresh energy in South Carolina

Members serving the initial deployment to South Carolina returned home to Washington on Nov. 15, and our members serving in Florida will return home on Nov. 20. On Friday, Nov. 16, five additional WCC AmeriCorps members departed for South Carolina to continue serving communities affected by Hurricane Florence.

Learn more about what happens leading up to and during a disaster response assignment on our latest blog. If federal authorities request and our resources allow, WCC also stands poised to help other communities in other U.S. states and territories recover from recent natural disasters.

Learn more about WCC

Ecology's Washington Conservation Corps, an AmeriCorps program, provides hands-on experience, field skills, and training opportunities to young adults between 18 and 25 and military veterans. WCC consists of three subprograms: the original WCC, Veteran Conservation Corps and Puget SoundCorps. Six-month positions will open in January 2019! See photos of the types of projects WCC members support during their service in our WCC Projects Flickr set and WCC Featured Projects Story Map. Learn more on our website. 

A WCC AmeriCorps member learns how to safely install a roof
tarp. Photo contributed by Paolo Rosen.