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Red Cross AFES Staff Members Return from Middle East
Written by
Bonnie Gillespie
, Staff Writer, RedCross.org
Tuesday, May 27, 2003 — When returning Red Cross Armed Forces Emergency Services (AFES) workers Michelle Bailey and Deanna Young said they handled the pressures of deployment in the Middle East with humor, they weren't joking.
Red Cross AFES staff members Michelle Bailey (left) and Deanna Young recently returned from deployment with troops in the Middle East.
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During recent deployment debriefings at Red Cross headquarters in Washington, D.C., these first returnees from the war-torn region compared themselves to Keystone Cops when the first incoming missile drill sirens sounded across their camp in Kuwait. But the pair quickly evolved from fumbling with their bioterrorism gear to being the fastest duo at Camp Arifjan.
"During training you think nine seconds to get your gas masks and gear isn't nearly long enough, but when it's not a drill anymore, it only takes about two seconds to get everything on," said Young. "It wasn't long before we were suiting up faster than the soldiers. Every time that alarm sounded, you assumed it was for you."
Not only did Bailey and Young cultivate their suiting-up skills during their two months of service in the Middle East desert, but they developed strong ties to the soldiers they supported as AFES staff.
"It's hard coming home and knowing that the soldiers are all still there," said Bailey. "And that our Red Cross teammates are still there, too."
Since the American Red Cross is uniquely authorized by the U.S. Congress to relay emergency messages to armed service members worldwide, AFES staff are stationed with American troops around the globe, in times of peace and war.
As the recovery operation continues to unfold in Iraq, thirty-three AFES staff members remain stationed with thousands of U.S. troops in the region, acting as the primary link between military service members and their families.
AFES staff, like Michelle Bailey (center) interact daily with with the soldiers they serve alongside.
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But AFES workers like Bailey and Young also have the training and determination to overcome the unique obstacle of deployment situations. The "casework" involved in locating soldiers and relaying verified messages about births, deaths or serious illnesses is both crucial and continuous, but at times nearly impossible to carry out during the combat phase.
"Communication was probably our greatest challenge," Bailey said. "But phones, email, electricity - one or all of them went down at varying degrees every day."
With unreliable generators and telephone lines consisting of short, twisted wires jutting from the phone bases, Young agreed that there was an assortment of ongoing challenges.
"You'd walk in every morning and say 'Well, what's working today?'" she said. "Then you'd dive headfirst into the caseload for the day."
But together with their AFES teammate Mona Vines, these resourceful women tackled each situation as it arose, and the soldiers stationed at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait came to rely on them for more than relaying messages from home.
"The Red Cross canteen became known as the place to get good coffee," said Young. "And when you throw in some Girl Scout cookies, we couldn't keep them away."
Girl Scout cookies are only a few of the items shipped to troops for free distribution through the Red Cross Quality of Life program.
Books, personal items, stationery, snacks and even holiday decoration and cards regularly brought troops by the Red Cross station, Bailey and Young said. Those touches of home disappeared as fast as they could put them out, Bailey added.
"Each AFES team chooses a name and we were 'Team Cosmo,'" said Bailey. "That's short for 'cosmopolitan' which according to Webster's means 'at home, anywhere in the world.'"
Both are indeed at home anywhere and see joining AFES as natural courses for their lives. Bailey, 34, grew up an "Army brat" and will soon rejoin her family stationed in Germany. Thirty-six-year old Young's husband serves in the Army as well. Together, they now have almost thirteen years of AFES experience.
Young was even on the receiving end of a Red Cross message when she returned to the U.S. Her husband wanted her to know he had arrived safely for his own time of deployment in the Middle East, and he knew exactly where to turn.
Young's husband and the other service members around the globe can always find a touch of home with the Red Cross and AFES.
The American Red Cross is not a government agency. We rely on the assistance of caring supporters like you to deliver our critical services. You can support U.S. military members and their families through the American Red Cross as we provide assistance and comfort. Your gift will support the nationally coordinated Red Cross services provided to military families across the country and to American service men and women located throughout the world. Please make a financial donation to Service to Armed Forces by calling 1-800-RED CROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions may be sent to the American Red Cross Service to Armed Forces, P.O. Box 91820, Washington, DC 20090. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.
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