REACT... What do they do?
- Thread starter Tfitzmaurice89
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Pappy-Jim
Member
Let it be known that REACT Members like any one else MUST have an FCC license to talk on the amateur radio (ham radio) frequencies. One does NOT need any license to talk on CB. Ham radio frequencies are not used by REACT in any area of the country. Take the test, learn the theory of electronics!!! I'm not trying to be rude but hams don't buy expensive repeaters and associated equipment for non ham to use illegally. "NO" ham radio club is going to approve that kind of operation on any of their equipment. Your turn, I guess I beat that horse to death.
Forgive me if this POV has been expressed, and I noticed that this is an old thread, but I thought I would chime in for the heck of it:
For many years I was involved in volunteer Emergency Medical Services (EMS). In fact, I became involved in the "cadet" programmed with St. John Ambulance at the age of nine (that's right 9). I guess they were competing with Scouts, Cubs and Beavers.
As I progressed trough the organisation I saw a lot of different people that were motivitated by helping people gravitate towards their future career. Some became cops; some became firefighters; some became paramedics, and some - like me - did none of the above. In the end though, we were inculcated with a desire to help people, and the recognition that to do this ment the following:
- Get trained: without training you will kill somone: yourself or somone else
- Find what you are good at: You may be in the wrong organisation to be most effective. Maybe you should be an Auxilary Police Officer, or a Volunteer Fire Fighter, or ask yourself why you aren't doing this professionally.
I realised that I was able to develop some skills through St. John Ambulance Bregade that no 9-25 year-old would ever have the oportunity to to develop. I have lost track of the number of lives that I have impacted as a result of this, and none of it involved wearing a uniform, having flashing lights on my car, or a club that I belonged to.
Here I am 20-odd years later, recognising the intent of volunteer organisations - like REACT, but seeing the same outcome 30+ years later.
REACT will not be a valuable organisation to Emergency Services Organisations anywhere on the planet until they have control over the "REACT" brand (i.e. it means a common set of quaifications and vetting) they will be whatever the experience of the victim/benefactor is. Opinions will be unique to each person's experince, and that brush will tar the whole.
Until they get a grip on their organisation they will be of no use to anyone except themselves and they will be perceived as a bunch of "wackers", "wana-be's", "idiots", "deranged...."
Just my C$0.02
Victor
For many years I was involved in volunteer Emergency Medical Services (EMS). In fact, I became involved in the "cadet" programmed with St. John Ambulance at the age of nine (that's right 9). I guess they were competing with Scouts, Cubs and Beavers.
As I progressed trough the organisation I saw a lot of different people that were motivitated by helping people gravitate towards their future career. Some became cops; some became firefighters; some became paramedics, and some - like me - did none of the above. In the end though, we were inculcated with a desire to help people, and the recognition that to do this ment the following:
- Get trained: without training you will kill somone: yourself or somone else
- Find what you are good at: You may be in the wrong organisation to be most effective. Maybe you should be an Auxilary Police Officer, or a Volunteer Fire Fighter, or ask yourself why you aren't doing this professionally.
I realised that I was able to develop some skills through St. John Ambulance Bregade that no 9-25 year-old would ever have the oportunity to to develop. I have lost track of the number of lives that I have impacted as a result of this, and none of it involved wearing a uniform, having flashing lights on my car, or a club that I belonged to.
Here I am 20-odd years later, recognising the intent of volunteer organisations - like REACT, but seeing the same outcome 30+ years later.
REACT will not be a valuable organisation to Emergency Services Organisations anywhere on the planet until they have control over the "REACT" brand (i.e. it means a common set of quaifications and vetting) they will be whatever the experience of the victim/benefactor is. Opinions will be unique to each person's experince, and that brush will tar the whole.
Until they get a grip on their organisation they will be of no use to anyone except themselves and they will be perceived as a bunch of "wackers", "wana-be's", "idiots", "deranged...."
Just my C$0.02
Victor
Well there it is. vabiro said it like nobody else has.
That's the single best explanation I've ever read.
That's the single best explanation I've ever read.
rabidjade
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+1
When an organization is more worried about membership numbers than a united goal, they have become bloated and obsolete. The going joke is you can have 3 people, some cash, and have a charter with your own club name under the REACT title in a matter of a couple of weeks. Heck, look at the Colonel Broussard incident and all of the legitimate REACT groups who openly filed complaints against him and REACT kept his charter.
There is hope but as with anything in the same predicament they would pretty much have to purge and start over to make any progress. It would be hard to keep a club of that size and that decentralized in check with the lighting abuse, charter directions/goals, and general membership.
nsrailfan6130
Member
Our local REACT program is pretty much on the verge of non existence thanks to local law enforcement. PD's around the area will utilize Aux Police or Police Cadets for a lot of local events, emergencies, etc. Our Police Chief feels that our local group has NO redeeming value just for the fact that 96% of the unit's membership lacks in proper training and they are a constant hinderance at scene calls.
speaking as someone employed in the law enforcement field....react would probably get in the way...if you want to volunteer at events and bad weather and what not, why not join st johns ambulance and get proper certifications? You even get to drive a real ambulance...i know if someone tried to pull me over or help me like the wannabes that they make fun of on hamsexy, id go ballistic on them....
Police have auxillary for most events for security.....and i also dont get what Weather Watchers do.....is this big in the states? In canada you watch weather on the radar on the internet and news and get your snowblower ready and put your snow tires on.....i think the fancy computers and radars can do a better job than someone in a rusty old car with light bars all over it
Police have auxillary for most events for security.....and i also dont get what Weather Watchers do.....is this big in the states? In canada you watch weather on the radar on the internet and news and get your snowblower ready and put your snow tires on.....i think the fancy computers and radars can do a better job than someone in a rusty old car with light bars all over it
Don_Burke
Member
There are some things the RADARs can not pick up.sirsmiley said:.....and i also dont get what Weather Watchers do.....is this big in the states? In canada you watch weather on the radar on the internet and news and get your snowblower ready and put your snow tires on.....i think the fancy computers and radars can do a better job than someone in a rusty old car with light bars all over it
While the doppler RADARs have made some big strides, there are things they still need eyeballs for.
fireSAR
Member
also dont get what Weather Watchers do.....is this big in the states? In canada you watch weather on the radar on the internet and news and get your snowblower ready and put your snow tires on.....i think the fancy computers and radars can do a better job than someone in a rusty old car with light bars all over it
Wow! Looks like we have Canadian Royalty. I'm not a big fan of REACT, I think there time is over but! The National Weather Service still needs weather spotters, they can see where the tornado might be but they don't know if it is actually on the ground.
You might want to join an organization that trains you properly and certifies you.
Also, I have a "small lightbar" so some moron sees me on the side of the road.
for all of you whacker calling nerds it come off when not in use.
fireSAR
Member
Easy fireSAR :wink: I think it is easy for those not involved in some of the Storm Watcher programmes to not understand what is involved.
Many of the weather observation technologies like Dopler only look at the environmental factors that are conducive to an event like a tornado. Watchers are required to know when those result in a funnel cloud, or water funnel. When combined with the info that Environment Canada is able to get from instrumentation, it helps build the information used to issue warnings, advisories, or predictions.
Environment Canada advocates and relies on this info through their Storm Watcher Programme (http://www.weatheroffice.pyr.ec.gc.ca/severewxwatch/default_e.html).
Cheers
Victor
Last edited:
Please note: I have used extreme comedic restraint and did not post my original ambulance ride vs. beavers comment right here.
reedeb
Member
I have been in R.A.C.E.S. for several years also an avid CBer since 1976 as well as a fire fighter / communications for my local Fire Dept for over 22 years. I understand alot of this hate and such. But for every nut job out there, you also have many who have served valiently. During the Oklahoma City bombing React teams served with distintion, assisting Emergency personal in various ways. React teams also have helped many folks in times of distress thru the years as well. Lets NOT forget THAT point as well
As I read throught these pages I notice a few bad comments. I am shock on seeing some comments made by the members on this page. Let me point out some errors and post my comments to you all.
1.) Volunteer Fire Departments make up most of our nation's Fire services. The first City Fire Department was made up of Volunteer's, That means non was payed. The first Fire Cheif Was Benjamin Franklin. Today small towns can't aford city type so called paid departments. its not possable. So they depend on the community to work together. I my self was a Paid Firefighter and a Volunteer firefighter. There are no differnce between the two. Yes paid firefighter's get more training hours than Volunteer's do, But they get the job done. We both risk our live to save others. Our main Moto is "we fight what you fear". The comments on " we never lost a foundation" is a insult not just on the fire department but on your community as a whole. Yes som fire departments are run poorly and directed poorly, But its not just there fault. Its the communities fualt. When was the last time you went to there meeting's?? When was the last time you went to the Board of Director's Meeting's?? As a community it is up to you all to vote and choose how the department should be run. Don't sit on your butt and type on this board saying that Volunteer of any service weather it the FD,EMS, Volunteer Police department here in the US are Watabes. If you don't like how your local Fire services or Local goverment is run. Stop talking and start doing somthing about it. Volunteer Fire Service and EMS Service are more vitale than you think.
2.) R.E.A.C.T. teams that are spead around the US served a good communication service back in the days. Yes there are groups out there that act like there are police or emergency managment personal when there are in fact not. But there are a few groups out there that still serving there
communitties with the same aspect as when react was first activated. They might not use CB's and monitor channel (9) like in the old days but they provide man power for there communitty for Events like Fair days, Local Desasters, or even help in school activities. I seen it for my self what a good react team is. It not what you see on the net were they drive in wanab's police car and have all the fancy lights with stickers, or any of the fancy equipment that makes them look so unprofessional. There Chief does not let them put lights or sirens in there cars he does allow a small rotator to be used if there cars are on the roadway, but there taken off when not used. Like I said before. If you don't like how things are run.. Don't talk - Start doing. Get involed.
3.) Ham radio operator serve this country with pride. We are involed in so many ways. If it was not for a amateur radio operator you all would not the AM/FM radios that are located in your cars and homes. Nor would you have you TV sets that you all watch today or the cell phone you talk on. We also serve in our nation nation finest protection service. The ARMY, and NAVY, and the AIR FORCE. We provide communication back-up and relay messages from the soldiers to there families. We also serve the National Weather Service in providing wind speeds weather patterns along spotting for tornatos so that the weather service can warn you of the comming dangers. Also here were I'm at they provide backup 911 system and they answer the phones and communicate with the others city services. Not just doing that but they also provide communication and equipment to use if there own system went down. I do unstarnd that there are a few hams that don't practice what preach and cause some of us to look bad. But there bad apples every were.
I belive I cover most of what this post has mention if not then I do think I covered the meaning. If you don't like how thing are run then you need to get invaled and start doing and not just talking.
From:Ryan
Kc0vgj - Ham
WQAR865 - GMRS
8218 FD.ID.
1.) Volunteer Fire Departments make up most of our nation's Fire services. The first City Fire Department was made up of Volunteer's, That means non was payed. The first Fire Cheif Was Benjamin Franklin. Today small towns can't aford city type so called paid departments. its not possable. So they depend on the community to work together. I my self was a Paid Firefighter and a Volunteer firefighter. There are no differnce between the two. Yes paid firefighter's get more training hours than Volunteer's do, But they get the job done. We both risk our live to save others. Our main Moto is "we fight what you fear". The comments on " we never lost a foundation" is a insult not just on the fire department but on your community as a whole. Yes som fire departments are run poorly and directed poorly, But its not just there fault. Its the communities fualt. When was the last time you went to there meeting's?? When was the last time you went to the Board of Director's Meeting's?? As a community it is up to you all to vote and choose how the department should be run. Don't sit on your butt and type on this board saying that Volunteer of any service weather it the FD,EMS, Volunteer Police department here in the US are Watabes. If you don't like how your local Fire services or Local goverment is run. Stop talking and start doing somthing about it. Volunteer Fire Service and EMS Service are more vitale than you think.
2.) R.E.A.C.T. teams that are spead around the US served a good communication service back in the days. Yes there are groups out there that act like there are police or emergency managment personal when there are in fact not. But there are a few groups out there that still serving there
communitties with the same aspect as when react was first activated. They might not use CB's and monitor channel (9) like in the old days but they provide man power for there communitty for Events like Fair days, Local Desasters, or even help in school activities. I seen it for my self what a good react team is. It not what you see on the net were they drive in wanab's police car and have all the fancy lights with stickers, or any of the fancy equipment that makes them look so unprofessional. There Chief does not let them put lights or sirens in there cars he does allow a small rotator to be used if there cars are on the roadway, but there taken off when not used. Like I said before. If you don't like how things are run.. Don't talk - Start doing. Get involed.
3.) Ham radio operator serve this country with pride. We are involed in so many ways. If it was not for a amateur radio operator you all would not the AM/FM radios that are located in your cars and homes. Nor would you have you TV sets that you all watch today or the cell phone you talk on. We also serve in our nation nation finest protection service. The ARMY, and NAVY, and the AIR FORCE. We provide communication back-up and relay messages from the soldiers to there families. We also serve the National Weather Service in providing wind speeds weather patterns along spotting for tornatos so that the weather service can warn you of the comming dangers. Also here were I'm at they provide backup 911 system and they answer the phones and communicate with the others city services. Not just doing that but they also provide communication and equipment to use if there own system went down. I do unstarnd that there are a few hams that don't practice what preach and cause some of us to look bad. But there bad apples every were.
I belive I cover most of what this post has mention if not then I do think I covered the meaning. If you don't like how thing are run then you need to get invaled and start doing and not just talking.
From:Ryan
Kc0vgj - Ham
WQAR865 - GMRS
8218 FD.ID.
Hi,
I just stumbled on this site for Waterloo Region REACT, just west of Toronto.
http://www.wrreact.com
Boy are they ever well equipped for a self-funded organisation.
Victor
I just stumbled on this site for Waterloo Region REACT, just west of Toronto.
http://www.wrreact.com
Boy are they ever well equipped for a self-funded organisation.
Victor
I have read every post in this thread and have found this to be a very interesting topic. I have two comments.
1. Volunteer fire departments. I've lived and worked in four western states in somewhat remote and very small counties. This experience spans 35 years now. Some of these counties only had 1-3 towns in the county, many of which were 30-60 miles from each other. There is no way that these counties and towns could possibly afford full time paid departments. The money is just not there.
I now live in a county with only one incorporated municipality and 7 unincorporated towns. Each is about 20-30 miles apart. With higher costs for such things as solid waste, road maintenance, snow removal, and social services than large cities it is difficult to provide those services within the county budget. The county is able to provide four full time paid paramedic units and is struggling to provide a fifth in a remote portion of the county.
The Town of Mammoth Lakes has a lot of very high value property and the fire district only has enough money to staff one engine 24/7 and uses volunteers to staff additional engines, the fire department rescue unit, a ladder truck, and one water tender. The department now has four paid chiefs, including a training officer, operations batt chief, and a fire marshall, as well as the chief. The department is well run and the volunteers are well trained and professional. The standards for volunteer fire fighters in California is much higher than in the other states I lived and worked in, those being Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada.
Volunteer departments are an essential organization in small towns and there are many social events each year that revolve around the fire departments. It is difficult to generalize the motivations of each volunteer department member, but many are not the Lions Club or Rotary Club type and want to give something to their communities. They care about the people in their town and want to help protect the property in the town and help people in EMS situations.
2. Many of the functions that have been listed as being tasks REACT are being handled by CERT teams. The growth of the CERT program nationwide has been phenomenal, especially since 9/11. The concept was developed by the L.A. City Fire Department in 1985 and now includes thousands of teams nationwide. CERT teams have a sponsoring organization, usually a police or fire department, and those departments have considerable oversight of their CERT organization. The town police department sponsors our team and fingerprinting and background checks were required for each member before ID cards were issued. The training curriculum and qualifications are standardized nationwide by FEMA.
We have about 35 members on the team we started in January of this year. There are no whackers in the membership. We have a couple of retired paramedics, a psychologist, a dentist, and many retired and currently working business people. The use of our ID's, vests, T Shirts and other uniform items, as well as our radios are very strictly governed. The motivation of our members are nearly identical, people who want to become involved in the community who want to give to it. We are allowed to use town and county law enforcement and fire frequencies under specific conditions and radios are issued for each event and collected afterward. Many CERT teams are large enough to have specialized units within the team and some have communications units that consist mainly of amateur radio operators, however, radio communication is not the main objective of CERT teams. For me, CERT is the best community service I've been involved in in the four small towns I've lived in.
3. Not all hams are nerds. I have met and made friends as a result of ham radio. Most are very professional in their use of radios and in the rest of their lives. Many do some very high quality electronic building and maintenance. ARES and RACES organizations are highly valued in thousands of communities around the U.S. There are a lot of cynics on this website who tend to tear down every program you can think of. I would suppose that cynicism is valuable at times, but if every human was a cynic we would never accomplish anything. Everything we have ever accomplished has resulted from the actions of optimistic and dedicated people who don't concentrate on negativity, who build things rather than tear them down.
1. Volunteer fire departments. I've lived and worked in four western states in somewhat remote and very small counties. This experience spans 35 years now. Some of these counties only had 1-3 towns in the county, many of which were 30-60 miles from each other. There is no way that these counties and towns could possibly afford full time paid departments. The money is just not there.
I now live in a county with only one incorporated municipality and 7 unincorporated towns. Each is about 20-30 miles apart. With higher costs for such things as solid waste, road maintenance, snow removal, and social services than large cities it is difficult to provide those services within the county budget. The county is able to provide four full time paid paramedic units and is struggling to provide a fifth in a remote portion of the county.
The Town of Mammoth Lakes has a lot of very high value property and the fire district only has enough money to staff one engine 24/7 and uses volunteers to staff additional engines, the fire department rescue unit, a ladder truck, and one water tender. The department now has four paid chiefs, including a training officer, operations batt chief, and a fire marshall, as well as the chief. The department is well run and the volunteers are well trained and professional. The standards for volunteer fire fighters in California is much higher than in the other states I lived and worked in, those being Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada.
Volunteer departments are an essential organization in small towns and there are many social events each year that revolve around the fire departments. It is difficult to generalize the motivations of each volunteer department member, but many are not the Lions Club or Rotary Club type and want to give something to their communities. They care about the people in their town and want to help protect the property in the town and help people in EMS situations.
2. Many of the functions that have been listed as being tasks REACT are being handled by CERT teams. The growth of the CERT program nationwide has been phenomenal, especially since 9/11. The concept was developed by the L.A. City Fire Department in 1985 and now includes thousands of teams nationwide. CERT teams have a sponsoring organization, usually a police or fire department, and those departments have considerable oversight of their CERT organization. The town police department sponsors our team and fingerprinting and background checks were required for each member before ID cards were issued. The training curriculum and qualifications are standardized nationwide by FEMA.
We have about 35 members on the team we started in January of this year. There are no whackers in the membership. We have a couple of retired paramedics, a psychologist, a dentist, and many retired and currently working business people. The use of our ID's, vests, T Shirts and other uniform items, as well as our radios are very strictly governed. The motivation of our members are nearly identical, people who want to become involved in the community who want to give to it. We are allowed to use town and county law enforcement and fire frequencies under specific conditions and radios are issued for each event and collected afterward. Many CERT teams are large enough to have specialized units within the team and some have communications units that consist mainly of amateur radio operators, however, radio communication is not the main objective of CERT teams. For me, CERT is the best community service I've been involved in in the four small towns I've lived in.
3. Not all hams are nerds. I have met and made friends as a result of ham radio. Most are very professional in their use of radios and in the rest of their lives. Many do some very high quality electronic building and maintenance. ARES and RACES organizations are highly valued in thousands of communities around the U.S. There are a lot of cynics on this website who tend to tear down every program you can think of. I would suppose that cynicism is valuable at times, but if every human was a cynic we would never accomplish anything. Everything we have ever accomplished has resulted from the actions of optimistic and dedicated people who don't concentrate on negativity, who build things rather than tear them down.
rabidjade
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Some REACT teams go above and beyond the stereotype their brethren have established. As said above, CERT teams among other certified/official auxiliary programs are taking the territory that REACT groups once call their own. The REACT groups who are proactive and keep themselves useful will be around for awhile. The stereotypical whacker REACT groups will weed themselves out over time by being an annoyance to the local government or not having enough members to exist.
ronmccracken
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Thanks
Your interest in REACT has been passed to me and we welcome it. You can visit www.REACTintl.org for info on REACT and a list of Teams. Click on OH and you can then contact a nearby Team. They would welcome you to a meeting or fill you in on their role. REACT volunteers use various types of radio to serve their communities. They co-operate with police, fire and community groups for safety. I hope you decide to become one of us.
Your interest in REACT has been passed to me and we welcome it. You can visit www.REACTintl.org for info on REACT and a list of Teams. Click on OH and you can then contact a nearby Team. They would welcome you to a meeting or fill you in on their role. REACT volunteers use various types of radio to serve their communities. They co-operate with police, fire and community groups for safety. I hope you decide to become one of us.
Say what? You posted in this thread back in January.
http://www.radioreference.com/forums/showpost.php?p=694472&postcount=66
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My mama always told me that when you can't say anything nice, say nothing.
So when it comes to REACT, I choose to not say a whole lot. I know some good people who are
REACTors, but I've met more who did not project a positive image of that organization.
Not that they're alone. There was once a group of people that did volunteer search and rescue here, but it seems that their primary reason to exist was to wear surplus military clothing and officer's rank
insignia without getting arrested for impersonating a military officer. I found them to be a bunch of
wannabes who couldn't pass the even the Air Force's physical fitness test with a month to prepare for it.
They offered me an "officer's position" as their "communications officer" but I found that while I may
have no objection to jumping into a dumpster to recover something cool and valuable, I just couldn't
sink to the level necessary to accept their offer.
Elroy
So when it comes to REACT, I choose to not say a whole lot. I know some good people who are
REACTors, but I've met more who did not project a positive image of that organization.
Not that they're alone. There was once a group of people that did volunteer search and rescue here, but it seems that their primary reason to exist was to wear surplus military clothing and officer's rank
insignia without getting arrested for impersonating a military officer. I found them to be a bunch of
wannabes who couldn't pass the even the Air Force's physical fitness test with a month to prepare for it.
They offered me an "officer's position" as their "communications officer" but I found that while I may
have no objection to jumping into a dumpster to recover something cool and valuable, I just couldn't
sink to the level necessary to accept their offer.
Elroy
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