I would like to list the names of those who participated in our Dec. 7 drill from District One of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team).
We had a fantastic turnout in spite of the threatened rain. We have 10 NERTs (Neighborhood Emergency Response Teams) in District One and some very dedicated CERT members who came out on Dec. 7 to be a part of our annual drill need to be recognized.
They are:
From NERT 10 Culver City East Side. Carol Newman. (Carol has been a long time volunteer for CERT and had served for many years on the CERT board. Many will also remember Carol in the CERT classroom. Carol will be leaving Culver City soon. She will be missed.
From NERT 11 Rancho Higuera, a big thank you to the CERT members participating in my neighborhood (I myself was at staging). You really did a thorough job. The city put a few “Not OK” signs around the community, you all found one of them and passed on the information completely and competently.
Thank you Isralite and Alex, John Saltness, our radio operator from Downtown NERT, and Lelah Peller, our CERT members participating.
But CERT member Janet Wolf deserves special kudos for passing out half of the fliers for Rancho Higuera (speaking from experience, that's a big job), and for coordinating NERT efforts the night of the drill. Thank you, Janet,for stepping up!
NERT 12 Downtown: Marty Hente and I held down the fort at the District One staging area busily coordinating radio operators for our district. We were busy non-stop. Thank you, Marty, for being so prepared with an extra antenna to receive and relay clear signals.
While Marty was busy at staging, his wife Elaine Hente ably coordinated NERT 12, walked the neighborhood and handled the radio for the area. Others who helped Elaine were, Pam Portillo, Mary Ellen Fernandez and Pat Williams. Thank you, everyone.
NERT 1, East Carlson: Joel Falter's team did a phenomenal and very organized job. I ran into some of NERT 13's CERT members passing out the OK signs the weekend before the drill and that night. Luna and Arturo Lopez, Jane Leonard and Joanne Tortorici hit the streets with the most excitement from CERT members we saw all night! Great job.
NERT 14, Blair Hills: Jon Melvin, in spite of returning from an international trip the day of the drill, he co-ordinated his area with the excellence we've come to find in everything Jon does. You really went above and beyond the call of duty this time, Jon.
And to the CERT members who helped you, Cheri and Richard Sakai, Lois Soter and Rosalie Kirsch, thank you, for bringing in the numbers, we would have had a tough time with out you. We also learned that there were many non-CERT members who demonstrated their disaster preparedness. Great job, Blair Hills, with the highest number of residents doing this.
NERT 15, Raintree, with the highest number of participants last year, this year was a command performance. Dale Leider will be stepping down as NERT coordinator. Raintree's emergency prepardness is due to Dale's efforts and superior coordination. Thank yo Dale. Your shoes will be hard to fill.
NERT 16, Tara Hills, was expertly coordinated by Bernedette Dollard with help from new member Lance Walzkey. Thank you both. Tara Hills’ numbers were in the hundreds. Last year no NERT except Raintree had numbers as high. Great job. Thank you to all who participated in this year's drill.
NERT 17, Lakeside: Thank you to Eleanore Fahey for passing out OK signs before the drill and a giant thank you to Susan Peterson for counting signs the night of the drill and being the radio operator for Lakeside.
NERT 18, Windsor Fountains: Big thank you to Ester Pobre for coordinating this year's efforts in Windsor Fountains and thank you to Caroline Eadens for helping the night of the drill.
NERT 19, Carlson Park: Congratulations for having the highest turnout of all of the NERTs and an amazing number of OK signs for a residential neighborhood you were second highest. Your team also spotted a “Not OK” sign and accurately reported that. Thank you to Stephen and Sharon Elstein, Earle Hartling, John Cantrell, Melvin Van Horne, David and Shauna Benson, Suzanna Baxendale, Sabeldi Jimenez, Alex Giza, Catherine Cropley and Gerald Rathan. Special thank you to NERT 19 ham radio operator Hans Spielman for being the eyes and ears at one of the critical care facilities the night of the drill.
Thank you everyone for a job well done. Each year we get better and better, and in spite of threatened rain and the drill being on a Friday night we had record numbers of OK signs recorded and the highest number of CERT members participating.
It is a tribute to how much you all care about Culver City.
Dr. Loni Anderson is CERT District One Manager.
