Business View - January 2016 21
Veteran-Led Nonprofit Team Rubicon
Deploys Following Texas Tornadoes;
Disaster Response Teams Also on the
Ground in Mississippi & Missouri
Team Rubicon, a nonprofit disaster response organi-
zation that repurposes the skills of military veterans,
has deployed to assist homeowners following the
devastating tornadoes in Texas. As a state of emer-
gency was declared across the hardest-hit counties,
Team Rubicon immediately mobilized an assessment
team and began working with local, state and nation-
al agencies to assist affected residents. A member
of the Texas state Voluntary Organizations Active in
Disasters (VOAD), Team Rubicon is supporting the
community of Glenn Heights with damage assess-
ments, debris removal and spontaneous volunteer
coordination.
“The devastation across Texas is like nothing I’ve
ever seen. More than 1,600 homes and businesses
have been destroyed and families are struggling dur-
ing the holiday season,” said Brian Liu, Team Rubicon
Texas assessment team member and local resident.
“Team Rubicon has mobilized to provide vital servic-
es to get homeowners back on their feet. As a disas-
ter responder who wants to serve my community, it
feels great to help my fellow Texans during their time
of greatest need.”
On Christmas Day, Team Rubicon also deployed a
team to Tippah County, Mississippi to assist home-
owners affected by over 20 tornadoes that touched
down across the region. The organization is also
responding in Missouri following severe weather.
Across Texas and throughout the South, Team Ru-
bicon is working with its network of partners includ-
ing Southwest Airlines which is donating round trip
tickets to transport volunteers to the disaster zones
and Home Depot which is providing vital tools and
supplies.
Since its inception following the 2010 Haiti earth-
quake, Team Rubicon has grown from eight to
nearly 35,000 volunteers and has responded to over
110 disasters including the 2015 floods in Hays and
Caldwell Counties in Texas, the Nepal earthquakes,
Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, and Hurricane
Sandy. Prior to the recent Texas disaster, Team Ru-
bicon commenced plans to establish an Emergency
Operations Center in Dallas in early 2016. In an effort
to scale up its worldwide response capabilities, the
organization has begun hiring local staff and mobiliz-
ing key partners in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Team Rubicon unites the skills and experiences of
military veterans with first responders to rapidly de-
ploy emergency response teams. The disaster re-
lief organization offers veterans the opportunity to
continue their service by helping those affected by
disasters while regaining a sense of purpose, com-
munity and identity.
For more about Team Rubicon, visit
-
conusa.org.
