From left, Carpinteria City Councilman Wade Nomura, Kristie Plourd, Community West Bank CEO Martin Plourd, and ShelterBox USA President Kerri Murray at the annual “An Evening to Experience ShelterBox” in Summerland. 
ShelterBoxes have different contents depending on the type of relief needed. 
Attendees dish up food provided by Sharky’s. 
ShelterBoxes have provided relief to nearly every corner of the world. 
Sofia Schuster provides musical entertainment during the ShelterBox event. 
ShelterBox contributor and Depeche Mode lead singer Martin Gore with wife Kerrilee Kaski. 
Carpinteria City Councilman and Rotary Club of Carpinteria member Wade Nomura with Kerri Murray, president of ShelterBox USA. 
Rotary Club members share their enthusiasm during the ShelterBox event. 
Eric Schalla, Carpinteria resident and local ShelterBox representative, demonstrates some of the components of the ShelterBox kit. 
Another version of a ShelterBox shelter shows its ability to adapt for different emergency needs. 
The Construction ShelterBox contains many basic supplies to start the rebuilding process. 
Attendees of the ShelterBox event were treated to a photographic series of who and how the shelters help those in need during emergencies. 
Kaye Swanson, left, chief people officer for QAD, accepts the 2018 Community Partner Award for QAD presented by Kerri Murray, president of ShelterBox USA. 
Hannah Rael, public relations manager for ShelterBox, leads a tour of its Summerland facilities, where one of the Standard Relief tents is erected. 
A ShelterBox is shown placed in a disaster area. 
The ShelterKits contain items such as a shovel, a rope, a hammer and more. 
ShelterBox survival kits are ready to be deployed where needed. 
An example of ShelterBox housing in use.
International disaster relief organization ShelterBox USA hosted its annual “An Evening to Experience ShelterBox” last Thursday at a private residence in Summerland.
The event included interactive demonstrations with ShelterBox tents and equipment as well as remarks by ShelterBox response team members who have been deployed around the world to set up the innovative solution for housing disaster victims.
ShelterBox provides tent shelters and lifesaving supplies to people who have lost everything after a disaster. The organization currently is providing aid to those displaced by disaster or conflict in Indonesia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Syria, Iraq, the Caribbean, Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria and Somaliland.
Since 2000, ShelterBox has provided shelter, warmth and dignity following more than 300 disasters in more than 100 countries. It responds to earthquakes, volcano eruptions, floods, hurricanes, cyclones, tsunamis or conflicts by delivering boxes of essential aid and other lifesaving supplies.
ShelterBox USA is based in Sarasota, Fla., and Santa Barbara. Its U.S operation employs five people in Summerland, two remotely, and three in Florida. The international headquarters in Cornwall, England, has nearly 200 employees.
Before the event, Noozhawk visited ShelterBox USA’s Summerland facilities in space that is partially provided by QAD. ShelterBox public relations manager Hannah Rael facilitated a tour of the high-ceilinged space, where one of the Standard Relief tents was erected. In addition, bright green plastic bins that each were packed with a tent and supplies were stacked high, ready to be shipped if needed.
“The large Standard Relief tent costs about $1,000,” Rael said. “These are used in less resourced countries where there is less infrastructure in place to deal with a disaster. For example, in a refugee camp or a flood- or wind-damaged area, there may not be running water, electricity or any shelter from the elements. This disaster relief tent is designed for an extended family and includes blankets, ground mats, water storage bags, mosquito netting, cooking set, a water filtration system, emergency lighting and other tools for survival. This includes the costs to store and ship.”
A smaller Midi Tent pack also was on display that is designed for more developed areas of the world that already have shelter solutions in place, such a large evacuation facility, a school gymnasium, a convention center or a Red Cross shelter. These smaller tents were used at the main shelter used at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston during Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The purpose is to give private space for a family to stay together or to serve as medical tents or a group meeting space. They offer a privacy area for nursing babies or changing clothes.
“The typical shelter has rows and rows of cots in cavernous rooms with overhead lights on 24/7. The Midi Tent offers some privacy and psychological relief,” Rael said.
Another package is the Shelter Tool Kit, or ShelterKit, which contains items such as a shovel, tarpaulins, rope, hoe, hammer, pliers, hand saw, nails and wire.
“These tools are important for those in disaster areas where perhaps their home was not completely destroyed, but perhaps part of the roof has blown off,” Rael said. “The tarps and supplies can be used to repair the damage so the household still has shelter. These kits cost us about $100.”
ShelterBox USA was brought to the United States as a project of a Rotary Club in Lakewood Ranch, Fla. Originally, ShelterBox was founded in 2000 by Tom Henderson from the UK Rotary Club of Hellstown Lizard, Cornwall, England. The Santa Barbara ShelterBox operation has been open for more than two years.
Rotary Clubs not only supply one-third of the donations to ShelterBox, but also hundreds of Rotarians around the world serve as volunteer translators, assist in clearing aid through customs, and have strong local connections that help in organizing disaster shelter response activities. Since its founding, the organization has helped 1.3 million families. In 2017, ShelterBox provided shelter and lifesaving supplies to more than 162,000 people in 23 counties.
ShelterBoxes have been delivered by heliocopters, trucks, donkeys, camels and even on the backs of volunteers. Aid packages are pre-positioned in strategic locations around the globe, ensuring fast and efficient deployment of aid when it is needed most.
Speaking at Thursday's event were ShelterBox USA President Kerri Murray and John McGovern, ShelterBox supporter and event host. Murray presented the 2018 Community Partner Award to QAD. Kaye Swanson, chief people officer of QAD, accepted the award.
Sponsors included Yardi, BD, Código 1530 Tequila, Letter Perfect, Maps.com, Newbridge Resources LLC, Pacific Premier Bank, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, Sharky’s Woodfired Mexican Grill, Summerland Winery, Tri-Co Reprographics and others.
Click here for more information about ShelterBox, or call 941.907.6036.
— Noozhawk contributing writer Rochelle Rose can be reached at rrose@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkSociety, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.