Red Cross only as good as its supporters

By Sand S. Hale
Special to The Collegian

Hurricane Ivan made landfall in Pensacola, Florida, early Thursday, Sept.16, 2004. Ivan, the 3rd Hurricane to hit Florida in September, caused miles and miles of damage to many southern states: Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia and Pennsylvania.

By early October, four back-to-back hurricanes hit, followed by numerous tornadoes, tropical storms, monsoons, and flooding damaging thousands of homes, neighborhoods and communities across five states.

Thousands of families had their homes or apartments and businesses damaged or destroyed across five states and millions of people were without power and water for two to three weeks at a time.

Most stores, restaurants and gas stations were closed for at least one full week—many completely destroyed, causing chaos and devastation in major proportion. Pensacola was just one area hit hard by the storms.

Amid the chaos and destruction, thousands of Red Cross volunteers from across the country were dispatched to aid in the recovery process of the many people affected by the disaster, volunteering countless hours to help with disaster relief operations across the south.

As a local Red Cross Disaster Services volunteer, I’ve trained for nearly two years, preparing to assist family, friends, and neighbors locally and across the country in disaster relief operations.

From assisting with single-family fires to aiding in major relief operations like the Southern California Wildfires (Oct/Nov 2003) and Hurricane Ivan, I was there to help victims obtain relief (shelters, food, clothing, basic needs) and begin the process of rebuilding their lives.

When it became inevitable that Hurricane Ivan was going to make landfall, I was contacted by my local Red Cross chapter and asked to drive an ERV (Emergency Response Vehicle) from Southern California to Florida to assist with mobile feeding operations.

On Sunday, Sept. 12, 2004, with little more than hours notice, I packed my bags and drove from Oakhurst to Santa Ana, Calif. to pick up an ERV and begin my cross-country journey.

I met my traveling partner, Pedro Polidano, at the Orange County Chapter first thing on Monday morning, inspected our vehicle and obtained driving directions and disaster briefing before starting our weeklong drive.

Before leaving, we were told to expect the worst, being this was the third major hurricane to hit the area in less than 30 days.

The situation would be challenging, to say the least.

I’m very proud to have been part of the Red Cross team.

In summary, the American Red Cross sent 10,000 volunteers to aid victims of the four hurricanes and served 6 million meals. The local Fresno/Madera chapter sent 12 volunteers.

The American Red Cross spent $80 million, making this the largest natural disaster relief effort in Red Cross history.

American Red Cross is funded by financial contributions.

The local Red Cross chapter is having a Community Spirit Week from Oct.25 to Nov.6 at the Kennel Bookstore.

We will be raffling off a basket worth more than $500, and the raffle tickets can be purchased for $1 at the bookstore. The money raised will help save a family.

This effort will also help inform students of how the American Red Cross helps victims of disaster and in turn encourage them to donate and help do their part.

Please help support the American Red Cross.

—Julie Levinson also
contributed to this article