Burlingame Neighborhood Network provides community help

“Even if [people] don’t need help, but they want to help, it’s a great place that we’ve been able to point volunteers ... because some people want to volunteer more locally in their neighborhood,” said Burlingame Mayor Emily Beach.

A personal protective equipment drop-off center has also been established at the Burlingame Police Department. The hope is that this will make donating easier by giving residents a local collection point. What is received there the BNN will transport to the main county collection point in Redwood City.

In its nearly 15-year existence, the BNN has grown from a small group of neighbors to a citywide collective that recently filed for nonprofit status.

“It’s been building the infrastructure for whatever emergency could happen within our community,” said Beach.

Apart from its efforts, the BNN has a time-honored menu of community offerings as well. To engage and inform the community, the network hosts quarterly meetings throughout the year. Guest speakers are invited to come and lecture on different topics pertaining to emergency safety — anything from evacuation planning to home power alternatives.

In partnership with the city, Central County Fire Department and police department, the BNN also helps put on an annual citywide emergency drill. Designed to emulate a Federal Emergency Management approach, the drill allows neighborhood participants to learn proper procedure in the event of a disaster. This year will likely incorporate social distancing into the agenda.

“That gives everybody an opportunity to learn how to organize,” said BNN Chair Holly Daley. “It also gives people a chance, not just to learn how to do it, but to practice it — a little bit of muscle memory.”

Each year the numbers continue to grow. Record participation was achieved this previous year with a turnout of more than 500 people. A year and a half ago, the BNN created more incentive by launching the Burlingame Emergency Cache Program. Funded by the city, the program presents caches with all sorts of emergency supplies and equipment, valued at around $600, to eligible block leads, who may represent up to 80 homes.

“They’re large — kind of like a Recology container,” said BNN board member Suzanne Tateosian.

A group qualifies for the supply cache if they have participated in two drills and hosted two social gatherings for their neighborhood. Thus far, 20 have been awarded.

The BNN has also recently made steps toward making sure those who may not have ready internet access are not left out of the fold. To make sure of this, neighborhood networks have been reaching out to neighbors by phone as well as by door-to-door flier distribution.

This simple system, to date, has spelled success. In one case, Tateosian said neighbors had been bringing food every couple of days to a man whose grocery access was limited. In another instance, a mask was provided to someone in the at-risk category who didn’t have one.

“We all recognize as a community ... the importance of neighbors checking in on neighbors during shelter in place, during these isolating times,” Beach said.