Pierce Jennings, a Yorktown High School Senior, has become the first teen active duty member of the Arlington Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). This achievement involved completion of a 26-hour CERT training course sponsored by the county’s Citizen Corps, Office of Emergency Management and the Fire Department during the fall of 2013 and the recent completion of two on-line Federal Emergency Management/Department of Homeland Security Incident Command courses.
Jennings will also be awarded the Eagle Scout rank this fall by the Boy Scouts of America. Pierce’s parents, Steve and Mary, and his sister Stephanie, are all active CERT members in their community.
The all-volunteer CERT program trains individuals to help save and sustain lives in the event of disasters where emergency response personnel are unable to respond, are delayed in their response or request assistance from trained citizens. To date, more than 650 Arlingtonians have completed the training.