By Betty Gandee
Aiden Taylor, the 16-year-old son of Justin and Shawna Taylor, represented Clay County on behalf of the Clay County CERT program with Stephen Smith, which aired live on Facebook Monday night. Aiden spoke with Mr. Smith on how CERT started and how he got involved with the local fire department to get this organization in the works. This group helps Clay County’s first responders aid the community in many different ways.
Aiden is proud of the accomplishmentsof this group so far, and believes the administrative committee sets the program apart from others with a district supervisor in each area of the community to help represent all areas of Clay County the best ways possible. He is most proud of the volunteer, education, and team divisions within this organization. Those three divisions allow local EMS/Fire Departments to reach out to this group for help in disasters and emergencies.
The goal for CERT is to host one community project per month. The biggest challenge has been organizing sponsors and donations for these projects. With additional funding they could organize and fund community projects that community members wanted to do, keeping the community more involved and interested. With additional funding CERT could also provide members with the equipment and materials they need to protect them in the event of a disaster. They could also provide first responders with masks, gloves, orany other suppliesneeded to better help them do their jobs efficiently and safely.
If you wish to make a donation, you can send funds to 81 Lincoln Lane, Wallback, 25285 to help aid in the efforts of the CERT program. CERT is always looking for partnerships to help with its collaborative efforts. Partnerships with private sector agencies, public organizations, and individuals are always welcome to help provide information, ideas, and resources to make sure they are providing all that they can to assist the community. As always, they are looking for volunteers to work with this group.
Aiden offered this bit of advice, “For anyone nervous about trying something new, failure is the greatest teacher, if you fall get up and try again. Keep doing you and eventually you will get to the point where you can see the difference you want to make in your community.”
Thank you, Aiden, for representing Clay County with class and professionalism and for all your accomplishments with the CERT program.
