To start a unit in your area, you need to contact your nearest state or local emergency management agency and ask them if they have a chaplaincy incorporated to its office. If they don’t, then you can offer the services to the office and provide a proposal to help the EMA system in your area in a voluntary basis. You need to be a full member first in our organization to make a proposal and have in hand all credentials and certifications available and updated for that purpose.

If in your area there is no EMA system available and your church is so far or community from the nearest EMA system, then you can start a unit in your church or community with a local pastor or the help of the mayor of the town. Remember always is a EMA system close to your area that work among the local government and agencies in disaster relief like tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding, earthquakes and natural and manmade disasters.  Contact your area city hall for more information.

Once you have the green light to start a unit in your area you need to recruit more candidates without conflict of interest with other chaplaincies in your area, you can work together with other organizations with no problem if you know how to work in teams, specially in difficult times.

Recruitment need to be selective service mode, as in the armed forces. All candidates need to be qualified and emotionally, spiritually and moral prepared for special situations. A unit consist of a minimum of 25 persons and minimum age of 21 years, trained and experienced in all kinds of events.

That’s why we recruit only qualified candidates for this job. In Puerto Rico EMA system we have a local custom that said:” WE COMING TO THIS EXCENARIO TO RESCUE, NOT TO BE RESCUED”  Remember be all you can do for God and country.