Nicole St. Victor’s path to the American Red Cross is rooted in community service.

Before joining the Red Cross, she spent years working in higher education, leading diversity and equity programs while also being active in local community advocacy. During her time at Trinity Christian College, she regularly led student volunteer groups into disaster zones across Kentucky and West Virginia. Those early trips taught her what it really takes to show up for families during their hardest moments.

When she relocated to West Michigan in late 2025, she decided to take that passion a step further. She joined the Red Cross as a community disaster program manager in Grand Rapids. In under a year, she was deployed six times, supporting everything from local responses in Michigan to major multistate disaster efforts.

One of those deployments brought her work full circle, sending her to the south suburbs of Chicagoland, including Homewood, Lansing, Crete and East Hazel Crest. It was an under-resourced area she knew well, having lived and raised her family there for years.

When back-to-back major storms hit the area during the summer of 2026, local families were left in continuous recovery mode. Returning to her former neighborhood as a responder made the crisis deeply personal.

Serving as client care chief, St. Victor managed a team of 16 responders overseeing health services, mental health and recovery intake. Knowing how difficult it was for local residents to travel into downtown Chicago for assistance, she worked with external relations teams to bring digital and in-person resources straight into the neighborhood, eliminating major transportation hurdles for families in need.

She also spent time on the ground with the shelter resident transition team, serving meals and sitting down with residents in the shelters. Throughout the response, her focus remained on the humanity of the people she met.

“Disaster isn't their story,” St. Victor reflected. For her, relief work is about preserving a person’s dignity and helping them see a path forward.

She is also quick to share credit with her team. She highlighted fellow responder Donna Swope, whose relentless problem-solving helped secure critical aid for vulnerable clients facing the aftermath of both storms.

Whether responding to emergencies across West Michigan or returning to the neighborhood where she raised her family, St. Victor’s mission remains the same, showing up with empathy, removing barriers and meeting neighbors right where they are. 

By Megan Kusulas, American Red Cross communications volunteer