MEET OUR STAFF: TODD CONNELY
Experience working with first responders is invaluable when it comes to The Salvation Army’s disaster-relief efforts.
Todd Connely has brought more than 18 years of working at Douglas County 911 to his role as The Salvation Army Western Division’s Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) coordinator. He said that role includes substituting within the supervisor role when the supervisor is not around.
"How's that saying go? 'You have to paddle like crazy underwater while you're remaining calm on top.' And that's exactly what the people of 911 do. They have to be calm on the radio while they're talking to an officer that may be on a foot pursuit. You remain calm on the radio while you're dealing with Fire and Rescue."
He added the same goes for the people calling 911.
Connely said the 911 job required him to understand the stressful situations callers are in, whether they are trying to help a family member or someone that may be hurt.
That is not all he learned, though.
"What 911 also taught me is that you have to look at the big-picture situation,” he said. “And as the disaster services coordinator, you're not just looking at one incident.”
"We plan for the worst-case scenario. So, you're dealing with the immediate situation, but you're also thinking, 'What are these going to be tomorrow?’ ‘What are the needs going to be for the next hour?'"
Connely transitioned to the full-time position at EDS coordinator after retiring from 911. However, he said he had already been involved with The Salvation Army prior to that, having joined earlier as a volunteer.
"And that's when I still worked at 911,” he said. “I would come to The Salvation Army and go out to the multiple-alarm fires or police incidents, where we're called out to provide assistance to them."
He said it is important to him that The Salvation Army serves both the first responders and disaster survivors.
In Connely’s current role, he has helped coordinate relief operations in response to the 2024 Arbor Day Tornado Outbreak, windstorms, and the power outages during last winter’s blizzards.
In all those cases, the EDS crews he helps to lead immediately got to work assisting those who were impacted.
"We get on location and the police are asking us if we have anything to help them,” he said. “We immediately provide them with some warmth, some blankets, some socks—anything that we have available to us, we're able to help them.
“That is tremendously rewarding. When you see people that have suffered a loss like that in a short amount of time, in the middle of the night, and it's extremely cold."
He added you must maintain a sense of calm serving people in those situations.
"You have to understand that the person or persons may be upset at a situation that they're in, but as with 911, I'm there to provide some help."
Connely shared what The Salvation Army’s mantra, “Doing the Most Good,” means.
"To me, 'Doing the Most Good' means being there for somebody in their time of need."