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DENTON – Caroline County’s first ever Citizen Preparedness Training course wrapped up this past April, with 17 total participants completing the 10-week course. Despite being the first of its kind, the program gained federal and state level attention.
"It became a lot bigger than we initially expected it to be," said the Caroline County Health Department’s Deputy Health Officer, Kristin Dietz.
The training was offered for free to willing participants, thanks to a grant from the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response. Throughout the course, participants completed training in emergency preparedness, disaster response, CPR, AED use, fire extinguisher safety, emergency communications, severe weather awareness, de-escalation techniques, Narcan administration, and other life-saving skills. These specialized classes took place each Tuesday evening from February 17 to April 21, 2026.
Most of the graduates were either already a part of or joined Caroline County's Maryland Responds Corps (MRC) unit. "Every jurisdiction has what they call an MRC unit, a Maryland Response Unit," Dietz explained. These volunteer units consist of trained individuals who can be called upon to support emergency operations, whether responding to natural disasters, staffing shelters, assisting at community events, or providing additional manpower during large-scale emergencies. Before the course, Caroline County's MRC unit consisted of seven members. All seven participated in the Citizen Preparedness training, and eight new volunteers joined after completing the training.
Dietz said MRC volunteers have proven invaluable in previous emergencies, including staffing COVID-19 vaccination centers. Now, the newly trained graduates have also been entered into the statewide MRC system. "If they wish to, they could go anywhere in the state if the unit is called up in order to assist," she said.
Those requests for assistance can come in many forms. "It could just be a regular public event. It could be in a situation, or even an emergency, such as we're opening a shelter because the weather's gotten bad," Dietz said, "Whether it's a hurricane, snow storm, or even with the intense heat we've had.”
In those situations, local officials can request additional volunteers through the state's MRC network. "So it just gives us another resource tool," Dietz said.
She noted that having trained volunteers already familiar with emergency operations provides a significant advantage over relying solely on untrained community members. "Having a core group of individuals that understand the way the Department of Emergency Management and the Health Department works" is critical during an emergency, she said. Graduates now understand emergency terminology, organizational structure, and response procedures, allowing them to step into support roles with minimal direction.
The success of the program can also be measured by the amount of local, state, and federal officials that wished to visit and offer their perspective.
"We caught the eye of the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for ASPR, Mr. John Knox," Dietz said. Representatives from the federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response visited to observe the training, along with the director of Maryland's Office of Preparedness and Response, state leaders for the Maryland Responds Corps, and the Secretary of the Maryland Department of Emergency Management. The National Weather Service even popped in.
Numerous local partners also contributed throughout the course, including de-escalation and situational awareness expert Phil Whitelock, the Caroline County Sheriff's Office, and Caroline County Emergency Medical Services, who partnered with the Health Department to put on the training. Dietz noted that retired paramedic Nancy Weishaupt even returned to assist with instruction after retiring just that morning.
Graduates of the inaugural Citizen Preparedness Training program include Karine Ireland, Stacy Darling, Brandi Heckard, Sophia Marron, M. Luisa Carlisle, Heather Grove, Ronald "Billy" Ireland, Cory Grove, Anderia Harper, Karen Wegener, Jacquelin Acree, Sharon Stagg, Randolph "Randy" Moore, Arthur "Mitch" Jones, William "Doug" Jones, and Joey Hubbard.
The Health Department and Emergency Medical Services plans to offer the Citizen Preparedness Training course again in February 2027.
