By Andrea Richards

When June St. Laurent arrives at the scene of a disaster, she notices the little things.

Is someone standing in the heat? She suggests moving into the shade. Does someone look tired? She looks for a chair.

Her daughter, Denise, may be beside her entering information and handling the technical side of the response, but June, now 80, keeps her attention on the people in front of her.

“She’s always thinking of things that she can suggest, like maybe we should move over here in the shade, it’s kind of hot, or get a chair for them,” Denise said. “She’s very interested in making them comfortable.”

It is a role that comes naturally to June, and one that marks the newest chapter in an American Red Cross journey that began years ago alongside her husband.

The couple became volunteers while living in Branson, Missouri after their church asked for people willing to serve. They began by responding to local fires before deploying to larger disasters across the country, including two deployments following Hurricane Katrina.

After her husband later passed away, June spent several years away from the Red Cross.

Then Denise decided she wanted to volunteer.

“My daughter, after he passed away, came down like five years later, and she wanted to join the

Red Cross,” June shared. “So I told her I’d do it with her.”

For Denise, joining the organization was something her parents had encouraged for years.

“My mom and dad used to do the Red Cross, and they kind of got me interested in it,” Denise said. “When I retired, I decided I had the time to do it.”

Her father had even suggested that she might one day enjoy the work.

“My dad said, ‘You should do this. Someday you would really like it,’” Denise recalled. Returning to the Red Cross meant stepping back into familiar work for June, but the way disaster response is carried out had changed. Today, much of the information gathering and casework is handled electronically.

That has created a natural division of roles between mother and daughter during calls. Denise often takes the lead on entering information and handling the technical side of the response, while June focuses on the people in front of them.

“She really depends on me to do all the technical stuff,” Denise said. “With her, it’s mostly the personal connection to people. That’s her lane.”

Denise had already experienced the impact of a home fire before becoming a Red Cross volunteer herself. Her son once lost his home in a fire and called her in the middle of the night.

She drove to his home, picked up him, his wife and their dog, and helped them begin figuring out what they needed next.

Now, she and June help other families navigate those same uncertain first hours. Sometimes, their support continues beyond the initial Red Cross response.

June and Denise also volunteer at a thrift store operated by their church. The store provides available clothing and other items at no cost to people who have experienced a fire, and Denise often tells nearby Red Cross clients about the resource.

One day, while Denise was working at the store, a man she had recently helped after a fire walked through the door. She recognized him immediately, asked how he was doing and helped him find clothes and several other things he needed.

For Denise, seeing clients again after the immediate crisis has passed can be especially meaningful. “They always seem very glad to see us when they walk in,” she said.

The mother and daughter now share not only Red Cross service but a common desire to help people in their community.

Denise describes June as a “go-getter” who consistently puts the needs of others before her own.

“She doesn’t think of herself much,” Denise said. “She thinks of others a lot more than she thinks of herself.”

Soon, their family’s Red Cross involvement will grow again. Denise’s husband is now working toward becoming a Disaster Action Team volunteer as well.

“It feels good to kind of be a team,” Denise said. “We’re all three of us interested in helping people and doing what we can for them in a difficult time.”