COUNTY RESPONSE CONSORTIUMS
United Way is expanding its disaster preparedness, resiliency, and resource coordination efforts throughout its six-county region with the goal of providing local partnerships with a stronger platform for activating quickly and effectively at the local level.
The County Response Consortiums for Calhoun and Kalamazoo counties, previously housed at Gryphon Place, have transitioned to United Way, which in January 2026 established a similar consortium in the greater Lansing area. Gryphon Place and 211 remain key partners.
The consortiums are local iterations of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD). Member agencies regularly meet together to coordinate cooperative responses to local crises, and to share information and resources throughout each stage of the disaster cycle. Our County Response Consortiums seek to mitigate risks associated with critical incidents by improving interagency communication at the local level and streamlining disaster recovery efforts in order to avoid redundant and inadequate service provision across our communities.
CALHOUN COUNTY
RESPONSE CONSORTIUM
MISSION: To improve the emergency response capacities and capabilities of local human services agencies through strategic, proactive collaboration.
ABOUT: The Calhoun County Response Consortium (CCRC) was formally founded as the Battle Creek Response Consortium in February 2013 following the experiences from the straight-line winds of May 2011. It was clear to all responding nonprofit & governmental organizations that a greater degree of pre-event coordination and collaboration was needed to ensure more effective, efficient community responses to emergencies, crises, or disasters. Since then, in alignment with the Calhoun County Office of Emergency Management & City of Battle Creek Emergency Management, the CCRC has worked to establish a framework to help guide nonprofit response to critical incidents at a local level.
KALAMAZOO COUNTY
RESPONSE CONSORTIUM
MISSION: To collaborate and coordinate efficient, effective access to resources for vulnerable populations affected by emergency or disaster.
The Kalamazoo County Response Consortium (KCRC) is a collaboration of nonprofits, government agencies and local businesses that work to ensure efficient and effective response to the greater Kalamazoo community in times of emergency, crisis, or disaster. The KCRC began following the local flooding of February 2018 and meets regularly to discuss lessons learned and to improve individual and collective capabilities and capacities. Since then, in alignment with the Kalamazoo County Office of Emergency Management (OEM), Kalamazoo City Emergency Management & Emergency Operations Center (EOC), the KCRC has worked to establish a framework to help guide nonprofit response to critical incidents at a local level.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
DISASTER RELIEF FUND
United Way is committed to investing in critical basic needs services. This includes raising and deploying funds effectively during times of community crisis. The United Way Disaster Relief Fund proactively supports response and recovery during times of crisis - natural or human-made - that affect individuals and families below the ALICE (Asset-Limited, Income-Constrained, Employed) threshold in the region.
QUESTIONS?
Please contact Renwick Ballew at r.ballew@uwscmi.org