By Connie Esparza, with contributions from Red Cross volunteer Joel Koenig
For anyone who has responded to a disaster, it’s often the smallest gestures that leave the biggest impression.
For Red Cross volunteer Joel Koenig, one of those gestures comes in the form of a small stuffed Red Cross teddy bear.
“As a Chicagoan, I know everyone’s talking about where the Chicago Bears will find their new home,” Joel joked. “I like to tell children that our little Red Cross bears are looking for a new home, too.”
For years, Joel has kept a supply of Red Cross bears with him while responding to home fires and disasters throughout the community. During disaster responses, he often shares them with children who have lived through a life-changing disaster like a home fire.
What may seem like a simple stuffed animal often becomes something much more.
“What I see from the little ones when I arrive after a fire is that they are looking a little lost, having in many occasions been woken up from their sleep and are now displaced from their bed, their home and their toys,” Joel said. “The bears seem to give the children something to physically hold on to—something to do. What is also very interesting is that they frequently ask if their siblings can have one too. That, to me, is a sign that they intuitively know something is ‘off’ in their lives and this little bear, in some small way, will be helpful to that little brother or sister.”
Joel’s observations reflect something Red Cross volunteers witness every day. Disasters happen suddenly and without warning, often leaving children frightened, confused and unsure of what comes next. A familiar source of comfort, even something as small as a teddy bear, can help provide a sense of security during an otherwise overwhelming moment.
That is also why the Red Cross includes Disaster Mental Health volunteers as part of many disaster responses. These specially trained volunteers help children and adults process the emotional impact of a disaster, reduce stress, build healthy coping skills and connect families with additional community resources when longer-term support is needed. Emotional recovery is just as important as rebuilding homes, and helping children feel safe again is an important part of the healing process.
The Red Cross also works year-round to help families prepare before disasters happen. Through youth preparedness programs, school partnerships, and family resources, children learn age-appropriate safety skills that help build confidence and resilience before an emergency ever occurs.
That simple act of kindness recently touched someone else in an unexpected way.
While volunteering at the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) in Bridgeview following the July storms, Joel asked the Disaster Recovery leadership if he could place a few teddy bears throughout the room. Among them was one sitting at the workstation of Barb Stanley, a Red Cross Disaster Health Services nurse who had deployed from eastern Washington to support the Illinois severe storm response.
Barb immediately noticed the little bear. Curious, she asked Joel when the Red Cross started giving the bears to children.
For the past 10 years, these little bears have accompanied Red Cross volunteers on disaster responses throughout the Illinois Region, offering comfort and a sense of security to children facing some of the most difficult moments of their young lives.
Barb was so touched by the story behind the little bear that she asked if she could take one home to Washington to share with her Red Cross Disaster Health Services team.
Today, that little “Chicago Red Cross bear” has found a new home more than 2,000 miles away, a reminder that compassion travels wherever Red Cross volunteers go.
For children whose lives have been turned upside down by disaster, the teddy bear is much more than a toy. It offers comfort during uncertainty, something familiar to hold onto when everything else feels unfamiliar, and a gentle reminder that they are not facing one of the hardest days of their lives alone.
As Joel knows so well, healing doesn’t always begin with grand gestures. Sometimes it begins with a warm smile, a caring volunteer … and a little Red Cross bear looking for a new home.
Helping children prepare before emergencies can make a meaningful difference in how they cope when disaster strikes. Families can find preparedness tips and age-appropriate resources at: https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/teaching-kids-about-emergency-preparedness/how-families-can-prepare-for-emergencies.html
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