Tim Mikulski

Preparing for Disaster (Podcast)

Posted by Tim Mikulski, May 20, 2011 1 comment


Tim Mikulski

Robert L. Lynch

Spring has brought a number of devastating natural disasters to our nation—from hundreds of tornadoes across the South in late April to the current flooding of the Mississippi Delta. Americans for the Arts board and staff ask that you keep your effected colleagues in your thoughts.

In our newest podcast, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts Robert L. Lynch addresses these disasters and steps you can take to prepare your organization and community.

You can help your colleagues today by supporting the Red Cross, but you can also help your community by taking what steps you can to prepare for crises that could affect your organization.

Two useful websites offer you both advice and guidance on crisis and disasters that may arise: ArtsReady and CERF+.

If you have tips or advice for handling a crisis or would like to share your thoughts with those affected by recent events, please post them below.

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1 responses for Preparing for Disaster (Podcast)

Comments

May 25, 2011 at 10:17 pm

Artists are needed at Red Cross Shelters. I stumbled into this gig bringing healing and some diversion at 5 Red Cross Shelters around Cincinnati when the Ohio river flooded to historic levels in 1997. I was a clown with Ringling Bros. Circus. Two of us had driven ahead of the train for some advance PR and when the train got here there was no where to perform because the arena was underwater. The train headed on to Baltimore but a fellow clown Harry Moeller and I stayed behind and performed for people who had lost everything. We took the kids off to a corner of the gym or over to the school library and let their parents pick up the pieces, express emotions and just relax. There were few if any activities for the kids to do... Imagine 50+ kids in a gym filled with cots upset parents and no structure for three days straight.

Robert perhaps Americans for the Arts- Red Cross- Society for the Arts In Healthcare could create a resource guide or a framework to bring artists in to disaster areas to provide a moment of humanity to those who are lost. The work I did at the Red Cross Shelters changed the direction of my career in the Arts.

Artists what could you do to serve the people in crisis and their helpers?

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