GREEN COVE SPRINGS — The job was monotonous. Open a box. Remove the contents. Assemble the parts. Add new pieces. Put the item back in the box. Repeat the process 530 times.

For most, the two-day project at the Clay County Fairgrounds would be too tedious. For members of Team Rubicon, it was a worthy mission because it benefited Clay County Fire Rescue.

“They approached us because they had a need, and we’re glad we could help,” said Mark Boyd, a former information officer with the U.S. Navy.

Such is the behind-the-scenes work of the nonprofit group of volunteers committed to helping with community projects and assisting with disasters.

Even as they helped Fire Rescue, they were already thinking about a possible deployment to Texas in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl. Team Rubicon, or “Greyshirts” as emergency management organizations around the country know them, is a well-respected group because it is well-organized and has served a necessary role in removing debris after a disaster. It’s the grunt work nobody else likes to do.

“We work with community emergency managers,” Boyd said. “We work with other volunteer organizations to support whatever the needs are in that particular community. After Hurricane Beryl barreled through, now we are gearing up to support Southeast Texas and Louisiana.”

When they’re not responding to disasters, Boyd said Team Rubicon is eager to find community projects to “keep our volunteers engaged.”

The group helped pick up more than 20,000 wreaths at Jacksonville National Cemetary following Wreaths Across America last year. They also worked traffic control at the cemetery for Veteran’s Day and spent weeks helping in the aftermath of Hurricane Adalia in 2023. They helped the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service with its fire mitigation projects

The volunteers leverage their skills and experience to help a community prepare, respond and recover from a crisis and disaster. They receive special training using equipment needed to remove debris, deliver food and water, and evacuate residents to safer grounds.

District 4, First Coast Metro, includes Clay, Duval, Nassau, Baker, Flagler, St. Johns, and Putnam counties. However, Boyd said the local group has traveled to other states to help after a storm.

Team Rubicon started with eight veterans in 2010 following the earthquake in Haiti. William McNulty and Jake Wood led a medical team into Port-au-Prince three days after the earthquake, and they were overwhelmed to see the scale of the disaster and the desperate need for a better response.

Boyd said fourteen years later, there are more than 160,000 members worldwide, including 1,200 in First Coast Metro.

“Our organization is made up mainly of veterans and first responders, but really, anyone can join,” Boyd said. “There are a lot of ways to get involved.”