Saving Lives with AED

Frank Storch, with the help of others such as Dr. Elimelech Goldstein, launched a program ten years ago which has the potential to save many lives; the AED program. With support from Project Ezra and the Chesed Fund of Baltimore, these pioneers have been installing automated external defibrillators in synagogues and other places where people gather.

Frank Storch said at a fundraiser for the program that,

“Thousands of lives each year would be saved if more defibrillators were placed throughout the country. We, as the Jewish nation, value life tremendously. The Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Program shows achdus, unity, and our commitment to help all Jewish people, regardless of their affiliations,” said Frank Storch, who oversees the Chesed Fund Ltd.

Dr. Goldstein explained a bit about how the program first started back in 2003. Back then he was teaching CPR at local synagogues and schools as a volunteer for project Ezra. The group he worked with had talked about getting AEDs, but they were extremely expensive. But in 2003 the price on a certain model came down to only $1,000, which changed everything.

“We called a meeting together at Suburban Orthodox [Congregation Toras Chaim] for basically every synagogue and Jewish school in the state. We had a pretty full room and we offered the program to everyone. There were not a whole lot of people who turned it down,” recalled Dr. Goldstein.

Within just a few months 14 AEDs were installed in the Balitimore area. Now there are 70 such devices throughout Baltimore, and at least two lives have already been saved.

Frank Storch Discusses School Safety

For Frank Storch the tragic events which took place in December 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut, were a wake-up call to do something about the safety of children within their schools. Taking the position that no one should any longer take for granted that our children are safe within the walls of their schools, Frank Storch began to write a clear, concise and easy to use guide to creating the most secure school possible for children. Within just a few months “Keep Your School Safe” was ready for distribution.

“My prayer for our community is that we will all do our part to protect ourselves.  It might be a small step like placing a buzzer system at the front doors of our schools or gathering important personnel information in one place in the front office or installing video cameras by each entrance.  The main thing is that we are working to improve the status quo,” Storch said.

Improving Safety in Your School with Frank Storch

The Jewish Federations of North America and the Anti-Defamation League agree that Frank Storch’s guidebook, Keep Your School Safe, is an excellent resource for schools and other institutions that want to improve in-house security.

Elise Jarvis, the associate director of law enforcement, outreach and communal security for the Anti-Defamation League praised Storch’s booklet and believes it will become an essential resource for promoting safety.

We think it’s a useful resource and a welcome complement to our materials,” said Ms. Jarvis. The ADL also publishes guidebooks for improving safety.

At the Jewish Federations of North America, in their Secure Community Network, praise was also heaped on Storch’s work.

“(This booklet is) yet another  excellent tool to equip our community leaders and those of you whom are responsible for securing our children, with the knowledge to better understand the risks, threats and vulnerabilities we all face and be empowered, to effect change, and to implement a true culture of security within our schools and institutions.”

Frank Storch: Working Towards Safer Schools

After news of the horrifying massacre which took place at the Sandy Hook Elementary School became known, Frank Storch immediately began to write the 44-page guidebook to school safety, “Keep Your School Safe.” Twenty-six people were murdered in that event, perpetrated by a lone gunman. Among the dead were 20 children, in most cases as young as 5 or 6 years old. The impact of that slaughter was enormous, and it propelled Frank Storch to take action. Spending hundreds of hours in preparation, finally the guidebook to school safety was releases, sent to thousands of Jewish schools across the country and available for free on-line. It is Frank Storch’s goal, and his dream, that no such tragedy such as what happened in Newtown, Connecticut, will ever happen again.

Frank Storch: Addressing the Safety Issue in Our Schools

It is hard to think of an issue more prominent and crucial in today’s world than safety and security. That is why Frank Storch’s guide to school safety, “Keep Your School Safe” is such a valuable and useful publication. The guidebook is available on-line, downloadable and completely free. Here are some tips taken from Frank Storch’s publication, Keep Your School Safe.

•    Is there anything unique to the school’s geographical location or building infrastructure that needs to be addressed specifically with regard to security?

•    Is daily traffic in and out of school grounds monitored by guards, cameras and/or video surveillance?

•    Has the school considered using a guard station/booth with a uniformed guard present during school hours?

Take some time, look over the guidebook, and get your school to a high level of safety.

Safety and Security are Frank Storch’s Specialties

Basic safety and security is not something to take for granted, and surely Frank Storch does not. As the author of Keep Your School Safe Frank Storch is dedicated to helping communities achieve and maintain the maximum level of safety which is possible. Here are a few tips to help lift the level of security at your school. Assuming that your school has done a security assessment, then-
 

·        Did the security assessment highlight items that need to be addressed immediately? Have they been addressed?

·        Did the security assessment include procedural or operational recommendations? Have they been implemented?

·        Has the school considered joining other schools in hiring a single security consulting company to develop unified and standardized safety and security protocols for cost-effectiveness and efficiency purposes?

Implementing the above recommendations will surely Keep Your School Safe.

Advice from Frank Storch to Help Keep Your School Safe

Within the pages of Frank Storch’s new handbook, “Keep Your School Safe,” are many ideas and strategies which can be implemented in relative ease. Here are several suggestions from Frank to keep your school safe.

• Are all the school’s safety and security protocols kept up to date?
• Do security professionals conduct regular, periodic assessments of the school’s safety and security protocols?
• When was the last time such an assessment was completed? If it was too long ago, conduct a new assessment.

These suggestions and much more can be found within the pages of the downloadable guidebook, Keep Your School Safe.