Anderson said looking for volunteers will be an ongoing goal this year. "Our purview is to continue to organize volunteerism in the city," he said.
The group will be working closely with the United Way, government advisers and the Davis School District.
Anderson said the service council got formal approval from the city council four years ago. Now, organizers have a budget and three main areas of focus.
First will be to increase volunteerism at the food bank. Anderson said there's been concern that the food bank is overloaded during the holidays but sparsely stocked the rest of the year.
"It won't just be a feast or famine once a year," Anderson said. The service council will encourage residents to contribute food and time evenly all year.
"The food bank needs sorting and stacking all year long," he said, while considering the recent successful pre-Christmas food drive. "Look at the miracle that occurs when everybody does their part," he said.
The group's second goal will be to shore up organization under the South Davis emergency and disaster preparedness plan, recharging and training neighborhood coordinators throughout the city.
Anderson said the service council will also be working to better organize area and district coordinators (mostly LDS bishops and stake presidents) so the people under them will have better direction.
According to Anderson, some neighborhood coordinators have been lost in the shuffle over the past few years, because there hasn't been enough support on the most basic level.
"We're going to take it right down to the lowest common denominator," Anderson said.
Neighborhood coordinators will be organized through the "Uniting Neighbors" program. These coordinators will have further access to training through Neighborhood Watch and CERT (Certified Emer-gency Response Training).
"We're going to re-emphasize and encourage all that goes with Uniting Neighbors."
Anderson said the training involves basic emergency medical response skills. "They ought to be aware of where they can get it if they want it," he said.
According to Anderson, the recent disaster in South Asia has reminded communities of the need for preparedness.
"Part of our city charter is to look out for the citizens of Bountiful," he said.
The group's final focus for 2005 will be to better organize and encourage tutoring in the schools. Anderson said some church and local organizations are unaware of tutoring opportunities or the need for volunteers.
The Community Service Council has only been around a few years, but Anderson believes it has already played an influential role in forwarding community efforts and in working with the city council.
"It's had a short life but a very effective life," Anderson said of his group. Still, there will be much to do this year. "We always have our work cut out," he added. Anderson said organizing volunteers takes some patience. "When you're dealing with volunteers, things take a little longer to work themselves through."
ztodd@davisclipper.com
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