NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESS Newswire / August 13, 2025 / Written by Amy Lafferty, Senior Manager, Communications, Heart to Heart International
When disasters strike, timing is everything. The faster Heart to Heart International (HHI) can respond, the more lives we can touch. But speed and impact don't happen without training and preparation.
Thanks to the generous support of FedEx, 2024-2025 has transformed HHI's training and readiness programs. With expanded virtual courses, hands-on simulations, and role-specific learning, our staff and volunteers are more prepared than ever to meet the demands of real-world disaster response. That readiness means we're able to reach more people, faster, and with better care.
The value of this investment was clearly seen during hurricanes Helene and Milton, which devastated communities across seven states in the fall of 2024. These dual disasters tested our team and systems, but thanks to focused training, our team rose to the challenge. Volunteers who had completed advanced courses stepped into key leadership roles. One volunteer, trained in our new Power and Communications module, managed all field technology for a 15-person team. This allowed staff to focus on delivering $2.2 million in medical aid and reaching more than 400 patients with care, including administering 239 lifesaving vaccines.
This kind of capability is the new standard thanks to our evolving training strategy. In April 2025, HHI hosted its most comprehensive Emergency Medical Team (EMT) simulation yet. Volunteers and staff worked side-by-side to set up mobile clinics, coordinate logistics, and triage patients in a controlled but realistic environment. The goal? Ensure that when a disaster hits, no one is figuring things out for the first time.
Before the training, only a few volunteers rated themselves as "very prepared" to deploy. Afterward, that number more than doubled, with 100% of participants saying they felt more confident and equipped to respond. The training didn't just build skills, it built trust, strengthened relationships, and empowered people to lead.
One volunteer shared, "Acting out a deployment, from communications to patient care, really demonstrated what it's like. The amount of preparation that goes into this shows how much HHI cares. That's why I choose to be a part of it."
Through the LearnUpon Learning Management System, HHI has scaled training access even further. Now, staff and volunteers can learn anytime, anywhere, with courses in disaster medicine, logistics, cultural sensitivity, and more. Already, 91 users have completed 20 courses, with many more in development. These tools are preparing responders before they ever set foot in the field. So when the time comes, responders are ready to serve.
Every hour of training is an investment in someone else's survival. Thanks to FedEx's support, HHI is prepared to reach more people, provide better care, and show up stronger in every emergency.
Thank you, FedEx, for making this possible. Together, we're proving that with the right training, we can respond wherever we're needed most.
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SOURCE: FedEx
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:
https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/transportation/prepared-to-serve-how-fedex-funded-training-is-helping-heart-to-heart-international-1060372
