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Special Needs Met in Red Cross Shelters
Written by
Bonnie Gillespie
, Staff Writer and Photographer, RedCross.org
Tuesday, October 05, 2004 — FOLEY, Alabama – Charles Stillwell rested quietly amid a pile of blankets on a cot in the Red Cross shelter, tubes stretching from his ears and nose to the machine beside him. A Vietnam veteran in his late fifties, Stillwell smiled weakly as he wiped a tear from his cheek with the back of his hand, his respirator humming rhythmically.
Charles Stillwell talks with a Red Cross worker while resting on his cot in the shelter. |
“You’ll have to excuse me, I’m just more emotional now than I used to be. And it’s just that everyone here has been so good to me. It really touches my heart,” he said.
A husband and father of two, Stillwell has struggled for years with a variety of health problems, including liver disease and severe backaches. And for the past six months, he’s required the help of a respirator to breathe – a respirator that needs electricity to work. So when Hurricane Ivan threatened to make landfall near his Orange Beach home a few weeks ago, Stillwell and his family scrambled to find a safe place to stay, that wouldn’t lose power.
“If it hadn’t been for the Red Cross I don’t know what I would have done,” he said. “We were at another place at first that was nothing like this. I have been so happy here.”
Many of those seeking shelter at the Community Center in Foley, Ala., were in positions similar to Stillwell, with medical conditions that required special care and perhaps an extra dose of compassion as well. And Red Cross volunteers like shelter manager Martha Luke worked tirelessly to ensure their needs were met.
“There are people staying here with a variety of medical problems like asthma, diabetes, cerebral palsy and others. But we have health department nurses on site that are helping out and everyone is very happy and comfortable,” said Luke, a volunteer with the Mobile chapter of the Red Cross.
Shelter manager Martha Luke lends a hand to one of the youngest shelter residents. |
A former Red Cross disaster specialist in Baldwin County, where Hurricane Ivan roared ashore with 130 mph winds on Sept. 16, Luke was among the thousands of Red Cross volunteers that pitched in to provide shelter for more than 400,000 people during the rash of hurricanes since late August.
“With the Red Cross, you get so much more out of it than what you put into it,” Luke said. “When I have people like the gentleman who came up to me and said, ‘Last night was the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had in my life,’ that’s what it’s all about.”
“In a shelter, you take care of the people, and it really is that simple,” she added. “Just show them love.”
Though the residents faced a plethora of difficulties – physical, financial and more – hope was still present. Despite adverse conditions, many enjoyed the extra quality time with their families.
“We sit and play cards and enjoy being together,” said Mary Boniphant, who came to the shelter along with her three older children. “But one of the best parts, too, other than having a safe place to stay is being able to share with the people around you.”
And shelter residents have indeed pulled together, along with the citizens of Foley and other Alabama coastal communities, who stopped by throughout the day with extra supplies for shelter residents.
“When the local buses came to evacuate us, we didn’t have time to grab anything, so when we got here we had nothing,” said Judy Barney, who came with her 92-year-old mother, Carol, to the shelter. “But the people here have taken care of us and we’ve had everything we needed.”
Almost 1,200 people like Judy Barney and her mother remain in Red Cross shelters throughout the hurricane-ravaged areas. You can help the victims of hurricanes, floods and thousands of other disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. Call 1-800-HELP NOW or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting our Online Donation Page.
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