Working from home. The History of Home PC's

Kapro.

My first portable pc\laptop in the 1980's. 

My IEEE days. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_of_Electrical_and_Electronics_Engineers).  

Before IAEM even thought of a certification.  I was there even in their beginning.  Business as usual then, business as usual now with a diversity & inclusion flavor as bait.

Before RadioShack TRS-80, before Apple, before Microsoft, before Facebook, memories of my hacking days.

I submitted a lot of college papers with the dot matrix printer.

CDS

You Must Take Advantage When Social Distancing is Lifted. There is still an opportunity to take charge in your communities.

The Black Emergency Managers Association International was created with the mission & vision for the inclusion of the Black, LatinX, and African Descent communities as a major element of our association.  Not just an association of homeland security & emergency management professional, but of our ‘whole community’ because of our unique heritage, culture, and resiliency.

Created to address the issues of the disparity then, and now in the present COVID-19 crisis, and beyond.  Created to increase the awareness, education & training, job opportunities, and networking of not only members within the profession in each of the critical infrastructure sectors, but our members (individuals, nonprofit, faith-based, private sector, etc.) in the community.  To engage the ‘whole community’ from the ex-offender to the homeless, and vulnerable population.

The FEMA advisory listed below ends with “FEMA Mission.  To help people before, during and after disasters“.  This is only one part of our mission.  Our community members, our whole community members must now take an even more active lead role in helping yourself and others in your community not only before, during, and after disasters occur, but to protect you, your family, and community to be more proactive to address climate change impacts LOCALLY.

All disasters and emergencies are local.  Your local township, city, county, and State officials are the key to your success and failure before, during, and after a disaster occurs.  You must be aware, educated, and trained locally to address local issues and problems.  Only you know your local community.  The crisis, or what we call Operation COVID-19 is only the beginning of changes to come.

You must take advantage when social distancing is lifted, to come out the gate ten lengths ahead of others in the race to obtain the hands on training in groups in your communities.  You must take advantage to cooperate, collaborate, communicate, coordinate, engage in your community, and partner (C5&P).  The data has been collected over the years.  It’s only a matter of who’s reading and interpreting the data.  We have read and interpreted it for our narrative within BEMA International for our communities in our space of expertise.  Our actions as a collective are the actions of interpreting the data to resolve issues in our communities. 

You must now take charge, and take action.

You can go at it alone, or you can stand-up and take charge knowing that BEMA International stands with you.  Stands with you to advise, monitor & evaluate and point you in the direction, for what you need to be sustainable and a force of action in your community.  To stand with you to provide you with the knowledge, skills, and ability for funding, policy change, and actions from your fellow members in BEMA International.

You have to stand-up and say “I’m a BEMA International member”.  Say it with pride that we represent credibility, transparency, and a collective braintrust matched by no one else.

You are a member of the Black Emergency Managers Association International. 

Be safe, be prepared.

Sincerely,

Charles Sharp

Charles D. Sharp

Cornell University Climate Fellow

Chairman Emeritus\CEO

Black Emergency Managers Association 

    International 

1231-B Good Hope Road.  S.E.

Washington, D.C.  20020

Office:   202-618-9097 

bEMA International

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today.  We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. 

In this unfolding conundrum of life and history there is such a thing as being too late.  Procrastination is still the thief of time.  Life often leaves us standing bare, naked and dejected with a lost opportunity.  This may well be mankind’s last chance to choose between chaos or community.”   Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., ‘Where Are We Going From Here:  Chaos or Community’.

Cooperation, Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Community engagement, and  Partnering (C5&P)            

A 501 (c) 3 organization.

From: FEMA Private Sector [] Sent: Friday, April 10, 2020 8:11 PM To: BEMA@BlackEmergManagersAssociation.org Subject: FEMA Advisory: HHS Letter to Hospital Administrators FEMA ADVISORY – April 10, 2020                                                                          Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic HHS Letter to Hospital Administrators To follow-up on his letter from March 29, 2020, Secretary Azar just sent the attached letter and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) to hospital administrators across the country. Today’s letter underscores the importance of data-sharing and highlights that hospitals are key partners with the Federal Government as we work to ensure that the Whole of America response to COVID-19. The data requested included daily reports on testing, capacity, supplies, utilization, and patient flows to facilitate the ongoing public health response. The letter also recognizes that many non-Federal entities may already be requesting this information from hospitals; therefore, the federal government has done its best to minimize the burden of sharing this data and to reduce further duplication of effort. The FAQ attachment to the letter details the federal government’s data needs, explains the division of reporting responsibility between hospitals and states, and provides clear, flexible options for the timely delivery of this critical information. Our objective is to allow states and hospitals either to leverage existing data reporting capabilities or, where those capabilities are insufficient, to provide guidance in how to build on them. These FAQs will be updated if additional data delivery methods become available. It remains critical that all requested information listed in the FAQ is provided daily to the federal government to facilitate planning, monitoring, and resource allocation in response to COVID-19. Contact Us If you have any questions, please contact FEMA Office of External Affairs, Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs Division: Congressional Affairs at (202) 646-4500 or at FEMA-Congressional-Affairs@fema.dhs.gov Intergovernmental Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-IGA@fema.dhs.gov Tribal Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-Tribal@fema.dhs.gov Private Sector Engagement at (202) 646-3444 or at nbeoc@max.gov. Follow Us Follow FEMA on social media at: FEMA online, on Twitter @FEMA or @FEMAEspanol, on FEMA Facebook page or FEMA Espanol page and at FEMA YouTube channel. Also, follow Administrator Pete Gaynor on Twitter @FEMA_Pete. FEMA Mission To help people before, during and after disasters.    HHS Ltr to Hospital Admins & FAQs.pdf FEMA_Advisory_HHS_SecretaryLettertoHospitalAdministrators_FINAL_20200410.pdf

House Committee on Homeland Security. Thompson, DeFazio, Payne, Titus Urge Trump to Eliminate Cost Share for States Under Coronavirus Disaster Declarations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thompson, DeFazio, Payne, Titus Urge Trump to Eliminate Cost Share for States Under Coronavirus Disaster Declarations

March 24, 2020 (WASHINGTON) – Today, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, Rep. Peter A. DeFazio (D-OR), Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. (D-NJ), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery, and Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management, sent a letter to President Trump urging him to, during the coronavirus pandemic, eliminate the 25 percent cost share that states typically are required to bear under emergency and major disaster declarations. “Given the unprecedented nature of this pandemic, SLTT [state, local, tribal and territorial] governments will not be able to shoulder the 25 percent cost share under the PA [Public Assistance] program,” the Members wrote. “We urge you to increase the Federal support and eliminate the non-Federal cost entirely. Such a cost share adjustment will enable SLTT partners to dedicate essential resources to outbreak response efforts.  An increase in the Federal cost share is warranted given the magnitude of the threat facing the nation…” Link to letter #  #  # Media contact: (Homeland Security) Adam Comis  (Transportation and Infrastructure) Sandy Bayley

House Committee on Homeland Security. Thompson, Rose Write DHS on Reports of Extremists Seeking to Exploit Coronavirus Pandemic

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thompson, Rose Write DHS on Reports of Extremists Seeking to Exploit Coronavirus Pandemic

March 24, 2020 (WASHINGTON) – Today, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, and Rep. Max Rose (D-NY), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism, sent a letter to Elizabeth Neumann, Assistant Secretary for Threat Prevention and Security Policy, at the Department of Homeland Security regarding the Federal government’s efforts to counter potential homeland security threats from violent extremists who may seek to take advantage of the current coronavirus health crisis. Recent reports have highlighted how white supremacist extremists across the world are discussing ways to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to advance violent ends and spread chaos. “As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to upend American life in new and unpredictable ways, we seek an understanding of how DHS is preparing for and mitigating potential homeland security threats from bad actors, such as violent extremists in the United States and abroad, who may seek to exploit vulnerabilities stemming from this metastasizing crisis,” wrote the Members. “To that end, we would like to know how the Office of Threat Prevention and Security Policy is coordinating DHS prevention efforts to account for the evolving threat landscape under the specter of COVID-19.” Link to letter #  #  # Media contact: (Thompson) Adam Comis at 202-225-9978 (Rose) Jonas Edwards-Jenks at 202-225-3371

Non-Traditional Authorities in COVID-19 Response. March 25, 2020

NEMA Webinar Series Presents: Non-Traditional Authorities in COVID-19 Response

Join us for a webinar on Mar 25, 2020 at 2:15 PM EDT.

REGISTER NOW!!

We are in unprecedented times which will require all of public safety to think outside the box to protect communities and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. National Emergencies Act (NEA), the Defense Production Act (DPA) and the Section 1135 waiver authority for the Social Security Act (SSA) offer new tools to help with this monumental response. This webinar provides context to these non-traditional emergency authorities and explores how states can effectively utilize them in their responses to the outbreak. Panelists for the webinar are Mary Catherine Ott, NGA; Paul Rosenzweig, CHDS; Eileen Decker, CHDS; Sarah Somers, National Health Law Program; Bill Carwile, CHDS and David Fukutomi, CHDS. The panel will be moderated by Glen Woodbury, Director, Center for Homeland Defense and Security. ***PLEASE NOTE: Some may experience a delay in joining the webinar so we urge participants to plan to join 10 minutes early in case it takes extra time. We   don't want you to miss a minute of this important discussion. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. View System Requirements

Register here:   https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8597468851455378189