We appreciate all the work you all do training the young men and what type of people they turn out to be.
County Judge Neal Franklin
Smith County Judge Neal Franklin and Emergency Management Coordinator Brandon Moore presenting the Smith County Community Hero Award to leaders of the ALERT Academy in Big Sandy. Courtesy photo.
Smith County officials awarded the ALERT Academy with a Smith County Community Hero Award for volunteering to help residents clean up storm damages in May.
Smith County Judge Neal Franklin and Emergency Management Coordinator Brandon Moore recently ALERT Academy leaders the Community Hero award thanking them for their service.
The International ALERT Academy, based in Big Sandy, sent a group of 30 volunteers to Smith County on May 30, to help clean up damage left by severe weather.
“We are training students, and service is an important part of that,” Captain Phillip Vanderford, the Battalion Commanding Officer at ALERT, said. “We love the opportunity to get out and serve and help our local community.”
ALERT volunteers answer the call to help search for missing persons and in disaster relief efforts. Vanderford, who started out as a student at ALERT, has now being an instructor there for 15 years. He said they volunteer nationwide but especially love helping their local community.
The ALERT group that came out on May 30 targeted helping residents who were elderly or disabled, or who might not have assistance with cleaning up their storm damage. They helped seven residents in the Bullard area, as well as in North Tyler, clean up large trees that fell on their properties.
“They’re not only helping people out but it’s also lifting people’s spirits,” County Judge Neal Franklin said at the time. “They came in to assist the community and that’s what they do at the ALERT Academy.”
Franklin told the leaders that all the volunteers he interacted with were polite and hard-working.
“We appreciate all the work you all do training the young men and what type of people they turn out to be,” he said.
The International ALERT Academy uses a military-style structure, intentional discipleship, unique experiences, and professional skills training to create an environment that facilitates the forging process, according to https://alertacademy.com.
