PA-VOAD Annual Awards Dinner

The Pennsylvania Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (PA-VOAD) will hold its Awards Dinner on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at 5:00 PM in Ballroom 3. The meeting and dinner are open to all PA VOAD organization representatives and all other emergency management personnel affiliated with a local to regional VOAD element (organizations active in long-term recovery)!

Agenda

5:00 PMNetworking
6:00 PMGuest Speaker
6:30 PMDinner & Awards
7:30 PMAdjourn

Guest Speaker
Mitch Stripling

Mitch Stripling is the director of the NYC Preparedness and Recovery Institute (PRI) and the author of the new book, The Epistemology of Disasters and Social Change, and its accompanying podcast, Tough Shift. He has a long history of leadership roles in emergency management, disaster response and planning, coordination, and response to public health crises. Before joining PRI, Stripling served as the national director for Emergency Preparedness and Response at Planned Parenthood (PPFA). Before PPFA, Stripling served in leadership positions at the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC DOHMH), first as a director of the Emergency Planning Unit and later as assistant commissioner for Agency Preparedness and Response. Prior to his roles in New York City, Stripling coordinated disaster responses for the Florida Department of Health. He has helped plan and implement the responses to more than twenty federally declared disasters and public health emergencies. Stripling holds an MPA in Emergency Management from Florida State University and a BA from Williams College.