VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — U.S. disaster and relief response could become stronger after a $1 million grant to Virginia Beach-based Operation Blessing from Lilly Endowment, Inc. This funding is part of the endowment fund’s Hope After the Storm initiative, designed to increase response time and effectiveness after disasters.
The grant could significantly increase Operation Blessing’s ability to respond quickly to disaster-affected communities nationwide. The organization hopes to use this support to build a network of “sending churches” equipped to send trained volunteers to disaster-impacted areas, according to Chris Roslan, spokesperson for Operation Blessing.
During the next three years, Operation Blessing plans to establish five rapid response hubs across the country, enabling their teams to deploy within 12 hours of any major disaster, according to the organization. They are hoping to expand their active volunteer base to 5,000 people within a network of 300 sending churches…