# 1643
Last summer the HHS (Department of Health and Human Services), led by Secretary Michael Leavitt, embarked on a plan to encourage citizen's groups around the nation to help their communities prepare for a pandemic.
Recognizing that the job was simply too big for government to handle, they called in community leaders from all across the nation to a Pandemic Leadership Summit in Washington D.C.
Along with this summit, the HHS sponsored a 5-week long blog featuring writers such as Michael O. Leavitt, Admiral John Agwunobi, Georges C. Benjamin, M.D., Greg Dworkin, MD, Pierre Omidyar, Rebecca Patton, Irwin Redlener, Albert Ruesga, Sister Patricia Talone, Nedra Weinreich, and your humble blogger, Michael Coston.
This blog produced dozens of essays and more than 1000 comments from readers. It makes for terrific reading, and is archived online.
The point of this leadership summit, and of the pandemic toolkits generated from it (released last November), was to encourage citizens to get their communities ready for a pandemic.
Since last summer a number of citizens groups have formed around the country to spread pandemic awareness and teach people how to prepare for a variety of disasters, including a pandemic.
These citizens groups are all volunteer, with members paying the expenses out of their own pockets.
This week I'll be highlighting several of these groups. Please take the time to visit their websites, and consider what you can do in your community to raise awareness and increase preparedness.
While a pandemic may not happen this year, or even next (then again, it might), in my lifetime (starting in 1954), the Federal Government of the United States has declared 1730 disasters on American Soil.
Hurricanes, Floods, Earthquakes, Tornados, Wildfires, Chemical spills or explosions, and even Terrorist attacks can uproot entire communities.
If you are prepared for a pandemic, you are prepared for just about any disaster.
Last summer the Federal Government asked for help.
Today, ordinary citizens are responding in a big way.
