Creswell City Council helped organize Creswell’s very first Emergency Preparedness Fair, held on May 19 at the Cobalt Activity Center. From left are Councilor Martha McReynolds Jr.; Council President Richard Zettervall; Councilors Amy Knudsen, Judy Drago and Misty Inman; City Administrator Michelle Amberg; and Mayor Dave Stram. IMAGE PROVIDED
After nine months of preparation, and with an army of about 36 volunteers, the City of Creswell held their first-ever Emergency Preparedness Fair on May 19 at the Cobalt Activity Center. The purpose of the event was to streamline the conversation on how to be ready, should a natural disaster ever happen in Creswell.
During May’s city council work session, Mayor Dave Stram commended the Public Safety Committee (PSC), whose members birthed and organized the event, saying that it is important for the City to create a culture of awareness in our youth, and that this Fair was a great step in that direction.
PSC is chaired by Richard Zettervall in conjunction with Councilors Amy Knudsen and Judy Drago. They were charged in June 2017 to: work on a ”Year to Prepare” plan for natural disasters, which consisted of 12 topics to present to Creswell citizens; keep council appraised of emergency preparedness training opportunities; and host an Emergency Preparedness Fair. Check, check. And check.
The Fair, which garnered about 250 people in attendance, provided a platform for the conversation to get started, and to keep that conversation going. Just like the PSC’s 12-month emergency readiness campaign featuring ”Shorty the Squirrel,” Creswell’s emergency preparedness mascot (”Shorty the Squirrel” runs the first week of each month in The Chronicle) the focus was to educate young children and families on how to prepare for a variety of emergency scenarios.
The idea was to learn a lot while also having fun, PSC Chair Richard Zettervall said. He said PSC hit their target demographic at the Fair, as many participants were youth and young families, which he was pleased to see.
At the event, 330 2.5-gallon water jugs were given out for free for residents to use for water storage. There were dozens of vendors and agencies that set up displays and handed out information to educate the public on various ways to be prepared. Sanipac Sales Manager Aaron Donley and his wife, Jenny, of Creswell, dished out 250 free hotdogs from their decked-out Duck Truck.
During raffles held at the Fair, Gary Clark, of Creswell, won first prize, which was a three-day food supply from Oregon Freeze Dried Foods, and 3-year-old Lily Pumas, daughter of Kathryn Pumas, of Creswell, won second prize, which was a one-year Life Flight membership.
By all accounts, Zettervall said the first Emergency Preparedness Fair was deemed a success. The PSC will give their final report to city council at an upcoming meeting, and Zettervall said that the future of the Emergency Preparedness Fair will be discussed.
