By Susan Gallagher, American Red Cross
Some senior citizens take up knitting, read great literature or soak up the sun on some far-away beach. But American Red Cross volunteer Ellen Green devotes her energies to shuttling dozens of donors to blood drives, answering disaster assistance calls to help fire survivors, and conducting assessments on damage caused by fire and other calamities. She also deploys frequently across the nation to shelter those affected by wildfires, hurricanes and floods.
A resident of Clark in north-central Missouri, Ellen is a bit astonished at the number of roles she’s fulfilled at the American Red Cross since joining in 2018, as well as the multiple awards she has received. Recently she was awarded the first-ever Missouri-Arkansas Region Red Cross Biomedical IMPACT Volunteer Award, and also received the second annual Tom S. Hurley Public Service award from Boone County Missouri’s Office of Emergency Management. In addition, she was recognized with 2022 Missouri-Arkansas Region One Red Cross Award for exemplifying the mission of the Red Cross.
Not bad for a county girl, born and raised in a rural area near Poplar Bluff. She began her working life in factories and restaurants and then became a coder. Over the years, she married, raised four children, and cared for her grandchildren. Finally reaching a place in life for a well-earned rest, she began searching for volunteer opportunities and found the American Red Cross.
“I thought I would not have anything to offer the Red Cross,” she recalled. “I thought of the Red Cross as the organization that helped those affected by massive disasters. I seriously doubted they would want volunteers as old as I am. But on a whim, I gave them a call.”
She was surprised by the variety of volunteer opportunities offered by the Red Cross. She connected with Red Cross staffer Melissa Wilding and became involved in Disaster Workforce Engagement programs. Melissa, the Disaster Program Manager for Central & Northern Missouri, quickly recognized Ellen’s people skills and put her to work calling inactive volunteers and onboarding new volunteers. In January, Ellen was named a Disaster Program Manager Volunteer Partner.
Ellen brought Red Cross services to members of the Amish community she met through her sister and mother, who were close friends with Amish families. An estimated 9,000 Amish live in Missouri, making it the state with the seventh largest Amish population in America. The Amish are well-known for not using electricity or phones in their homes and for using a horse and buggy for transportation. Over the years, Ellen had driven her sister’s Amish farm workers home safely and, as a result, a large number of Amish families have her phone number.
In 2019, to increase participation in a Red Cross blood drive in Clark, Ellen provided rides to Amish friends willing to donate blood. She also encouraged Amish families to allow Red Cross volunteers to install smoke alarms in their homes.
“Their fire risk is high because they use wood, oil, and kerosene, instead of electricity, for cooking, lighting and heating,” Ellen said. “Some were initially suspicious, thinking there was a camera hidden inside the smoke alarm. I always made time to talk to them and help them understand that smoke alarms are important to their safety and were provided free of charge.”
Through the trust Ellen built in the community, she was able to encourage 150 Amish homeowners to allow Red Cross volunteers to install alarms in their homes. Two dozen more Amish homeowners are waiting for this year’s fire alarm installation, and people from other Amish communities in the Midwest are contacting her, asking how they can get smoke alarms.
Ellen says that responding to the needs of others has become a dominant force in her life. “No matter the temperature, the traffic or the irritations of not getting a signal on my phone, at the end of the day, I realize this work is the greatest thing I will ever do.”