Community Organizations Active in Disaster
What does the Elkhart County COAD do?
The Elkhart County COAD convenes and coordinates a collaborative disaster response network of private, public, and nonprofit individuals and organizations to respond to disasters.
Why should we join the Elkhart County COAD?
In times of disaster you will get up to date information about resources and response and the opportunity to attend regular disaster forums, trainings, and information sessions.
What do member organizations have to do?
Member organizations and individuals are asked to 1) attend regular meetings and trainings, 2) share updates about their work to facilitate collaboration, and 3) help communicate critical information and resources back to affected communities.
Who are the ECCOAD members?
Over 30 organizations and individuals are part of our COAD including the Community Foundation of Elkhart County, City of Elkhart, local faith institutions and businesses.
What is the value of a COAD?
Communities that bring resources together through a COAD can increase the effectiveness of their response to the needs of disaster survivors, and reduce the social and economic impact of the disaster.
Who runs the Elkhart County COAD?
The COAD is governed by an executive committee and chair. The COAD fiscal agent is the Crossroads United Way and it was jointly founded by the Community Foundation of Elkhart County and the Crossroads United Way.
Does the Elkhart County COAD have funding to distribute?
No, but the COAD can hold and distribute funds during an emergency
Does the Elkhart County COAD only convene member organizations during emergencies and disasters?
It would be very difficult for coordination to occur if there was no regular communication between COAD and member organizations. Meetings and communication occur regularly enough to maintain channels and updates during non-emergency periods. During emergencies and disasters, meetings are scheduled as needed and taskforces meet even more regularly to help coordinate resources.
Does the Elkhart County COAD have control over the member organizations?
No, the COAD serves, supports, and coordinates member organizations in disaster response and recovery. Participation is voluntary.
Does the Elkhart County COAD perform public outreach?
The COAD’s role is to support members. We work through our members to coordinate messaging but COAD will do direct public outreach if it is requested from our member organizations.
