Submitting a response is how the public, survivors, and other partner organizations see exactly how your organization is helping after a disaster — what you're offering, where, and for how long. It's also how other organizations can see where the remaining gaps in service are, so efforts don't overlap or leave a need uncovered.
- Go to Submit Response — you can also get there from the Submit Response button on your My Responses page.
- Make sure Disaster Response is selected (it's the default; it's a toggle next to Long-Term Recovery (Rebuild) near the top of the form). If you're actually submitting long-term recovery work instead, see How to Submit a Long-Term Rebuild Project for how the two differ.
- Select the disaster you're responding to (required for a disaster response).
- Choose your Response Types — what services you're providing (select all that apply). This list starts out short, showing only the most common, featured response types as clickable tiles. If what you're offering isn't in that shorter list, click Show All Response Types to reveal the complete list along with a search box, so you can quickly find and select something more specific (for example, a narrower category than "Debris Removal"). Click Show Featured Only to collapse back down once you're done.
- Fill in the rest of the form:
- Location Name (optional) — the host church or building name, when relevant
- Response Location — be as specific as you can, including a full address if possible, so the response gets an accurate map pin. A Suggested Locations dropdown may appear if Serve Source already has locations on file for your organization.
- GPS Coordinates (optional) — Serve Source will automatically place your response on the map based on the location you entered; only add coordinates if you want to be more precise.
- Start Date and End Date — dates can be in the past, present, or future. The End Date is just your initial estimate for when the activity will wrap up (it defaults to two weeks out); Serve Source automatically archives the response on that date, but you can extend or close it early any time — see How to Update a Disaster Response or Long-Term Rebuild Project Once Submitted.
- A description of your response operations and how people can get help
- A link to more information, if you have one
- Review your entry and submit.
Your submission is tied to your organization, so make sure your organization profile is accurate first — the public will see this response alongside your organization's information.