EDS Support for Lex250, Boston Marathon
by Hugo Bravo
Two hundred and fifty years after the “shot heard around the world” was fired, Massachusetts celebrated the anniversary of the first battles of the American Revolutionary War, including the Battle of Lexington. Lex250, held this April during Patriots’ Day weekend, brought crowds from all around the world, requiring an increased number of state and local emergency management partners and first responders to assist at the event’s parades, concerts, historical reenactments, and more.
“We have a great relationship with the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), who have been planning their response to Lex250 for over a year,” says Emily Mew, director of Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) for The Salvation Army in Massachusetts, which offered support to the police, fire chiefs, and responders planning for their communities. Three of the four towns hosting events requested help from EDS.
With EDS’s presence at the Boston Marathon also happening days after the Lex250 kickoff, The Salvation Army called in its own reinforcements: volunteers and EDS services from the Greater New York, Empire, New Jersey, Southern New England, and Northern New England divisions.
Jersey strong
“The New Jersey Division came with a team and their field kitchen,” says Mew. “I was excited to show off the Eastern Territory’s biggest EDS asset.”
Seth Ditmer, director of EDS for New Jersey, says, “We were at different spots every day, wherever they were expecting the largest number of emergency personnel that needed food.”
In four days, over 80 Salvation Army workers from six different divisions provided over 6,000 meals and over 14,000 snacks and drinks to state employees, local safety personnel, police and firemen, CERT teams, FBI, National Park Service personnel, volunteers, war reenactors, and community members, according to Mew.
“One of the biggest events, the yearly reenactment of Paul Revere’s ride, usually attracts 500 to 600 people. This time, it brought close to 10,000,” says Stan Carr, EDS operations specialist.
Three days later, Carr was serving at the Boston Marathon for the first time, taking in the intricacies and logistics of being part of the massive event, which attracts over 30,000 runners and half a million spectators.
“EDS has such a great presence in Massachusetts,” Ditmer says, “so the community was already familiar with the work of the Army. But I think a lot of people who saw the New Jersey kitchen truck were surprised that The Salvation Army had made the trip from out of state to help.”
“Seth and Stan are friends, not just colleagues,” says Mew. “When I put out the call, their team jumped on board to be a part of Lex250. They knew that since it fell on the same weekend as the Boston Marathon (as well as Easter), our teams would not be able to be at both places.”
Next summer, back home in New Jersey, Ditmer says, EDS will require similar cooperation when North America hosts the 2026 World Cup in venues such as MetLife Stadium. State planners, who have been preparing the response for over a year, are already considering having extra personnel ready to respond to the gatherings and fan festivals that can come with such a popular sporting event, and The Salvation Army has a long relationship as their feeding partner.
Volunteer values
Sami Baghdady, a longtime member of the Salvation Army Greater Boston Advisory Board, is an experienced volunteer who has served with EDS for various assignments, including in Puerto Rico for Hurricane Maria. But for Lex250, Baghdady had his own long-term plan in mind.
“I reached out to Emily and asked how my daughter Julie, my son Johnny, and Johnny’s friends could get involved,” says Baghdady. “High school students always need community service hours to graduate, and one of my personal goals is to find the next generation of Army volunteers.”
Baghdady and the kids visited a Lexington high school that was serving as a command center to feed city officials. He asked one of the first responders there what they did, and the man told them he was part of the bomb squad.
“The teens were shocked! It was just an incredible moment for them to see what they were part of,” says Baghdady.
“On Saturday, the teens were looking for things to do, asking questions, and working under more experienced volunteers,” says Mew. “But by the time that they worked the Boston Marathon, they were taking initiative and doing everything that experienced volunteers know to do.”
Mew adds, “I hope I see them again with us. There aren’t always big events like Lex250 or the marathon, but someday, when they’re older, they may want to deploy with EDS locally.”
“They’ve become ambassadors for volunteering,” Baghdady says, “telling their friends about what they’ve done. It’s easy to give your time in a library or help a teacher after class, but there’s nothing like the hands-on experience of working with EDS. These kids learned a lot about The Salvation Army, and even I learned a little more than I knew before.”
A team effort
“On Sunday, before we started setting up for the day, Stan Carr led us in prayer,” says Baghdady. “It was a beautiful moment that reminded me why the Army is here: to carry out the mission of Christ together. When you serve with The Salvation Army, you walk in as a volunteer, but you walk out as part of a larger family.”
“So many little pieces have to fit for an event like this to be successful,” says Mew. “DHQ and various departments help by sharing their resources, time, and expertise. Volunteers who usually don’t do EDS take on new roles. Army employees from other states drive miles to answer the call.
“And that’s what I love about this job: seeing the collaboration between all these different entities. It motivates me to continue the work.”
