was founded in September 2005 in the days immediately after Hurricane Katrina and successfully developed and deployed our PlayCare response model in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana for six months. seeks to facilitate the development of local, regional, and nationwide systems of preparation and response that can provide:
1. immediate physical safety, security and legal protection for childr
en affected by disasters;
2. attention to their ongoing and emergency needs for pediatric medical care;
3. emergency child care support to first responders and emergency personnel;
4. respite for families in distress taking care of children during the early phases of disaster recovery; and
5. response and recovery environments that utilize community-based assets and external support to promote the psychosocial resilience of children. Project K.I.D.'s PlayCare Program seeks to cultivate and equip civilian PlayCare Response Teams to engage with the emergency preparedness and response systems in their home communities to meet the needs of children in disasters. The PlayCare capability can support emergency management and other local and national relief agencies by providing emergency child care services for children of first responders and other essential personnel as well as short-term respite child care in locations where evacuees and victims congregate, such as shelters, disaster recovery centers, and other similar locations. In November 2006, Project K.I.D. received national recognition for its work in Hurricane Katrina when founder Paige Ellison-Smith was named one of five social entrepreneurs of the year by the Manhattan Institute. Today, Project K.I.D. and its growing number of community-based affiliates are providing leadership and response capabilities to improve community-based preparedness to meet the needs of children in disasters.
