Volunteers Are at the Core of Response and Recovery

Each year, National Volunteer Week offers an opportunity to recognize the remarkable individuals and organizations whose commitment to service strengthens our communities. From April 19-25, we celebrate the spirit of volunteerism that lies at the heart of Oregon's resilience-especially the work of Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD).

Oregon's VOAD partners represent a diverse network of nonprofit, faith-based, community, and service organizations dedicated to helping communities before, during, and after emergencies. Their work may not always be visible, but its impact is profound.

As we recognize National Volunteer Week, OEM wants to invite everyone to learn more about the role of VOAD organizations at the newly relaunched ORVOAD.org. While there, you can also explore disaster-related volunteer opportunities in your communities.

The Role of VOAD in Oregon's Emergency Management Landscape

"VOADs are essential partners in Oregon's whole-community approach to emergency management," OEM Disaster Recovery Program Manager Quinn Butler, said. "They are among the first to arrive in a disaster-stricken community and the last to leave. They provide compassion, capability and community knowledge to every emergency; providing shelter, meals, cleanup support, and long-term recovery assistance. They also help to build community trust and resilience, reducing the overall impacts of a disaster."

Many Oregon VOAD partners provide specialized capabilities that complement state and local emergency management systems, including:

• Mass care, sheltering, feeding, and supply distribution
• Emotional and spiritual care
• Debris cleanup and home repair
• Support for displaced families
• Animal services and agricultural support
• Volunteer coordination and spontaneous volunteer management
• Long-term recovery and case management

These organizations bring people, expertise, and compassion to some of Oregon's toughest moments-from wildfires and floods to winter storms and other emergencies. Their ability to mobilize quickly and fill critical gaps allows state and local partners to direct resources where they are needed most.

In addition to the response efforts provided by the American Red Cross following the Rowena Fire in June 2025, which left at least 60 homes destroyed, a group of volunteers with the Northwest Baptist Disaster Relief offered recovery help early on. Nearly two dozen volunteers worked close to 1,000 hours-valued at about $35,000-providing personal property recovery. This service allows residents whose homes were destroyed to carefully recover significant belongings from the debris, including heirlooms and memorabilia. Volunteers helped recover more than $8,000 in identified items, though the sentimental value and the comfort it brought to the community is priceless.

Most recently, Team Rubicon, a veteran-led organization, deployed dozens of volunteers from across the globe to Rowena to remove hazardous trees inhibiting rebuilding efforts. Local businesses and VOAD partners supported the operation. The volunteers' work helped bring disaster-impacted residents together to share stories, connect to resources, and recognize both the progress made and the work still ahead.

The efforts of Team Rubicon and the VOAD partners highlight the ongoing and wide-ranging of disaster support these organizations provide. Often, VOADs are the first to arrive after a disaster and the last to leave.

A Partnership Built on Trust and Collaboration

During disasters, Oregon's VOAD partners work closely with the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM), county emergency managers, Tribal governments and community leaders. VOAD partners participate in planning efforts, trainings, exercises and coordinated response activities that strengthen readiness statewide.

This collaborative ecosystem means that when a disaster strikes, Oregon communities benefit from both professional emergency responders and the immense capacity of volunteer-driven organizations. Together, they help ensure that support reaches survivors faster and more efficiently.

OEM is strengthening its partnership with VOADs by including them in the statewide exercise, Getting Through Lahar'd Times 2026 (October 12-16), and inviting nonprofit partners and the community members they serve to participate as well.

Past disasters have revealed clear gaps in recovery, and communities themselves are often best positioned to identify their own needs, priorities, and barriers in the recovery process. This exercise aims to address such gaps, by inviting communities to share lived experience, identify needs and barriers, and help shape simulated inputs to be used during the exercise.

Other opportunities, including observing the simulated recovery processes, providing feedback by identifying what worked well and what didn't, and supporting the development of an After-Action Report to guide real recovery improvements. If you or your organization would like to participate in this aspect of the statewide exercise, view the full information sheet or reach out to OEM Chief Resilience Officer Natasha Fox at 503-983-5845, [email protected] for more details.

Honoring Oregon's Volunteers

For OEM, National Volunteer Week is a moment to acknowledge the thousands of volunteers who give their time, energy and skills to VOADs.

"We are so grateful for the volunteers who give their time and talent to help Oregon communities through their hardest days," Butler said. "Their service demonstrates the best of what it means to show up for one another. Whether they are preparing meals, staffing shelters, rebuilding homes, removing hazardous trees, placing sandbags or offering comfort in a moment of crisis, volunteers make recovery possible."

This week let's take a moment to celebrate those who make our state safer and more connected. Their dedication helps to build a ready and resilient Oregon.