By: Suzanne Lawler

Red Cross volunteer Marzetta Dennis’ daughter always jokes that her mom has a tattoo across her forehead.

“Yeah, she says there’s a sign up there that says you can talk to me because I will listen,” Dennis quipped.

It’s absolutely true. Dennis is a warm, friendly person with a big smile and a desire to help those in need. The woman who deployed three times to disasters in 2024 and just got back from the California wildfires has woven the Red Cross mission into the fabric of her life.

Dennis enlisted in the U.S. Air Force after high school. Her grandmother took care of her siblings, but then her grandmother got sick.

“She needed to have surgery, and she needed me to come back home to help while she recuperated,” Dennis recalled. “Unbeknownst to me, she talked to her doctor, and he called the Red Cross. I got a message from my commanding officer that I needed to pack and come home.”

Through the Hero Care Network, the Red Cross facilitates communication between service members and their families during emergencies.

“Once I got packed, the Red Cross picked me up and took me to the airport. They put me on a plane, met me in Atlanta, and drove me to a little town in Eatonton, Georgia. It happened so fast that it just blew my mind. That has always stuck with me — that the Red Cross does what they say they’ll do.”

She saw the humanitarian organization in action again when Hurricane Katrina left its mark in history in 2005. The storm devastated a large swath of the Southeast, especially New Orleans, where the levees failed and much of the city sat underwater.

“I was involved in Hurricane Katrina, not as an evacuee but as someone who helped, not with a particular organization at the time, but I saw what the Red Cross did for people, and I was like, ‘I want to do that at some point in my life,’” she said confidently.

After a career in the private sector, that time in her life came in 2024 when Dennis retired. She immediately jumped into service with the Red Cross, deploying to disasters and working in shelters.

“I’m thankful I’m not in the position some of our clients are in; however, I’m able to help them come back — not to be completely whole, but to get them on the path to get there,” she said. “And we always offer hope. If you can put a smile on one person’s face and provide some hope, that goes a long, long way.”

She likes to tell the story of a little boy she met at a shelter after Hurricane Helene, an example of how the smallest things can make a difference. One day, as supplies were being loaded on the shelves, a little boy spotted some chocolate muffins.

“He asked, ‘Would you save some of those?’” Dennis recalled. “And I said, ‘We’re going to use them for breakfast.’ The next morning, when I gave him that bag with the chocolate muffins, his face just lit up.”

For a little boy, chocolate muffins are everything. Life is more complicated as an adult, but Dennis says the Red Cross is there throughout the long road after a disaster.

“I’ve seen a lot in recovery, and just to see the clients be so happy and if they’re not going back to their homes, that they are going someplace and the Red Cross and other agencies, especially the Red Cross, are giving them some assistance, that has helped them out a whole lot. So, I’m proud to see that whatever financial donations people make to the Red Cross, the clients are benefiting from those donations. I can truly say that I’ve seen the Red Cross give money to the people who need it the most.”

The woman who also gives blood regularly is ready to do more. Right now, she is training with the Red Cross to work in a shelter resident transition role, helping people plan their next steps in recovery.

In a way, Dennis’ journey with the Red Cross has come full circle from when she was 18. Now, decades later, she is the one giving back by providing comfort and care and carrying out the Red Cross mission.

HOW TO HELP You can help people affected by disasters and countless other crises by making a gift to the American Red Cross. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. People can donate by visiting redcross.org/donate, calling 1-800-RED-CROSS, or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.