The Wrong Side Of The Year  

Have you ever woken up on the wrong side of the bed?  In some ways, I feel like I woke up on the wrong side of the year.

It seems like there’s been enough tragedy packed into the first six months of 2020 to last a lifetime – and that’s saying a lot coming from a person who’s rubbed elbows with so many disasters over the last decade.  And yes, I’m painfully aware that we’re still very much at the beginning of this pandemic, that hurricane season is expected to be “above average,” and that ensuring equity for all people is very much a work in progress.

And while those things all make me sad, I’m writing today to remind you that there are still many things to celebrate.

Here at ALAN, where our mission means we’re constantly dealing with bad news, we always try to focus on the good things that happen in response, and during 2020 there have been more than we can count. We’ve included details about many of them (and links to many more) in the segment below my signature, and I hope you’ll take time to give it a read, because there’s a lot for all of us to be encouraged by – and proud of.

All of this great work continues to happen because of businesses who are willing to share their resources and expertise, sponsors who ensure that we have the necessary funding, and the many amazing volunteers who pull it all together.  We’d love to count you among them. So check out our website to learn more about getting involved.  (And if you happen to be a sponsor, in-kind donor or volunteer already, thank you!)

On behalf of all of us at ALAN, thank you for allowing us to be a part of this extraordinary community – and for serving as one of the bright spots that keep us going when times are at their toughest.

Be well,
Kathy

All About ALAN – 2020 Edition

What kinds of relief activities has ALAN been involved in during the first part of 2020?

If you’ve wondered why you haven’t heard much from us, there’s a reason.

Much of our early 2020 has been dominated by the unprecedented challenges that were created by COVID-19 – and the many requests for our assistance and leadership that we received.

We spoke about many these activities in our “Why Are We So Grateful To Our In-Kind Donors? Let Us Count The Ways” blog (which we encourage you to read), so we won’t share too much here.   But we will say this:  Even though it’s been one of the busiest springs in ALAN’s history, it’s also been one of the most gratifying, because when our non-profit partners asked for assistance, we were able to deliver time and time again thanks to our amazing logistics partners.

What else has ALAN been up to? 

In April, we launched our Supply Chain Intelligence Center.  It’s an advanced visibility dashboard that provides a real-time view of the latest disasters and their supply chain impacts via an easy-to-use map. And it’s available to all businesses, non-profits and industry organizations free of charge. If you haven’t registered to use it yet, we hope you will soon by visiting alanaid.org/map.

And in May, we opened nominations for our fourth annual Humanitarian Logistics Awards, our yearly salute to individuals and companies that have gone above and beyond to provide compassionate supply chain response.  Nominations are open until July 10, so we hope you’ll help us recognize an outstanding individual or company that has gone above and beyond by nominating them at https://www.alanaid.org/humanitarian-awards-nomination/.  (And P.S.You can even nominate yourself, so don’t be shy.)

What about hurricane season?

If a hurricane or named tropical storm hits, our first priority will be providing humanitarian logistics support to impacted areas (all while also continuing to support relief efforts for other active disasters, including COVID-19).  So bear with us if we’re not immediately flooding your inbox with updates.

That said, we’ll try to keep you well-informed via variety of channels, including periodic e-mails, blogs, social media posts, our Disaster Micro-site, and our Supply Chain Intelligence Center.  In addition, we’ll work closely with our media partners to get the word out.

Is there anything else we should know? 

For more information about how you can get your business ready for the busiest part of hurricane season, check out our newly updated STORM Advisory — and share it with your staff, colleagues or partners as you see fit.

And if you have additional pandemic or storm-related questions or concern, feel free send us a note via our website, or drop us an e-mail at [email protected].  Our lines of communication are always open, and we are always happy to hear from you.