Getting to Know the Community Preparedness, Recovery, and Resiliency Initiative

The Patterson Foundation’s Community Preparedness, Recovery, and Resiliency (CPR-R) initiative is really starting to get its footing as it continues to uncover areas of need in the disaster ecosystem. Most notably, CPR-R has chosen to focus its current efforts on strengthening Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs). Karen Windon, CPR-R initiative lead, joined Rising Resilience, a Beyond The Blog Podcast, to discuss what focusing on CERTs looks like. 

Karen shared the different pieces of the disaster ecosystem:

• Emergency Management (coordinates preparedness, response, and recovery for disasters)
• COAD (Community Organizations Active in Disaster – a network of organizations coordinating local relief efforts)
• LTRGs (Long Term Recovery Groups – community-based coalitions that coordinate resources to help individuals and families recover from disasters)
• CERTs (Community Emergency Response Teams – trained volunteers who help their communities prepare for and respond to disasters), and some others.

Turning the focus toward CERT teams helps foster widespread participation from individual community members and neighborhoods, supports more robust connective tissue among the different stakeholders, and encourages greater cross-county information sharing and connection within our four-county region. 

CPR-R started the season with a Breakfast of Disaster Champions for CERT team leaders, COAD team leaders, emergency management leadership, and LTRGs leadership. This breakfast was a collective approach to helping us identify needs, gaps, goals, and more. With a wonderfully successful turnout and valuable interactions, CPR-R set forth plans to host the Inaugural 2026 CERT Summit: Rising Resilience, Ready Together, on Thursday, January 29, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at The Ora.

This regional gathering will strengthen the CERT ecosystem across Charlotte, DeSoto, Manatee, and Sarasota counties. The day will feature plenary and breakout sessions designed to provide training, insights, and networking opportunities for those active in CERT, exploring involvement, or dedicated to building resilience within their neighborhood, workplace, or team. Additionally, we’ll be joined by former FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, who served from 2009 to 2017. We’re honored to welcome Craig to the CERT Summit in 2026, where his keynote will challenge us to think bigger about resilience, responsibility, and collaboration and inspire each of us to step up, build stronger connections, and make a measurable difference in our communities.