The Yuba-Sutter Trauma Intervention Program will be better able to support victims of crime and survivors of tragedy with the help of a grant from Yuba Water Agency.
The $10,000 grant, approved today by the agency as part of the Bill Shaw Rescue Equipment and Training Grant Program, will allow the nonprofit organization to purchase necessary training and materials for its volunteers who provide direction and emotional support to victims. Each TIP volunteer receives 55 hours of training before their first response and participates in monthly training.
“It has been an honor to bring the Trauma Intervention Program to our community,” said Lou Binninger, program director. “Being present in someone’s tragedy is a sacred experience. When TIP is involved, hurting people get better care here than elsewhere in America. We are grateful for all the community volunteers and contributions to support our mission.”
The Yuba-Sutter TIP is a self-funded organization that was established in 1994 to support local law enforcement, hospital and ambulance services, and responds to all 911 requests with immediate on-scene support for victims of crime and survivors of tragedy. Since its creation, the organization has responded to more than 11,000 calls.
“These well-trained volunteers respond 24 hours a day, seven days a week to help victims of tragedy,” said Yuba Water Agency Vice-Chairman Randy Fletcher. “They are first responders in every sense of the word.”
Like all Bill Shaw grants, the agency is able to make these funds available because the first responders may be called upon to provide emergency support to the agency’s facilities and staff, or to people recreating at its lakes or on the Yuba River.
Yuba Water’s Bill Shaw Rescue Equipment and Training Grant Program, which was created in 2018, is designed for first-responder agencies in Yuba County and will cover the one-time costs of up to $10,000 per applicant annually, associated with the purchase of rescue equipment and specialized personnel training. Since its inception, the program has supported 13 agencies with $138,500 in grants.
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