By: Evan Peterson
Tears of joy. “I left a shelter this morning and they cried; people were so glad to see us,” says Ellen White, a volunteer with the American Red Cross, who is slowly pacing through an asphalt parking lot that is filled with truck trailers.
“My job is to break the seal [of the truck doors] and look inside,” she says wiping away sweat from her brow.
“I love what I do.”
White is a logistical supervisor for the American Red Cross. The trucks she’s opening have carried disaster relief supplies from across the country. Her task is to catalog all of it. Those supplies include everything from shelter cots to Meals Ready-to-Eat. So, when Floridians call for help – the American Red Cross can deliver it to them.
“Hurricane Ian, this is the mega storm, the storm of all storms! And logistics is the backbone of the operation. You have one opportunity to get it, get it right, and get it to the shelters.”
Meteorologists and state leaders say Hurricane Ian will go down in the history books as one of the most catastrophic storms to ever hit Florida. Having left an overwhelming amount of destruction in its wake, the call to help residents bounce back is being answered by people like White, a resident of Virginia, who volunteered to leave home and head into the storm.
“I support the Red Cross, and the Red Cross supports the clients,” insists White, who says that for her, the reason to come and help is that simple.
“I will do this until I can’t do it anymore. The clients need all of these supplies,” she says gesturing to the dozens of trucks in this Orlando lot. “They have been through a terrible disaster, and to not have what they need,” she says before pausing for a moment, “I’m here hoping to make a difference, to get the clients what they need, when they need it.”
Ahead of the storm’s landfall, the American Red Cross diverted tens of thousands of disaster relief supplies to areas across the sunshine state. And now that residents are beginning to come out of their shelters, and assess what is left of their homes, volunteers like White hope that their work will mean residents can do what they need to without fear of their immediate needs not being met.
“Giving back to people that have been through a terrible disaster – I’m going to work hard. I’m going to work like I’m getting paid. That’s the difference. I’m going to give the clients 12 hours, or 16 hours if I
have to.”
Before stepping away from the back of a semi-trailer, and moving on to her next inspection, White looks up from her makeshift cardboard “clipboard”.
A smile slides onto her face, as tears well up on the sides of her eyes as she recalls how people were so grateful for the help.
“It’s like, that’s all I need. I don’t need any money. All I need is for people to say “thank you”, and even that is more than enough for me.”
The American Red Cross cannot achieve its mission of helping people impacted by Hurricane Ian if it were not for amazing volunteers like Ellen White. We thank them for their courage, bravery, and sacrifice in facing these challenges head-on.
If you’d like to contribute to our mission, information can be found here.
