By, Holly McIntyre

I have been with the Red Cross for two years and sadly could never find the right time to deploy. With everything going on in today’s world I felt a need to do more.

When a call for volunteers to deploy to Houston or Louisiana in preparation for Tropical Storm Cristobal I knew this was my time to go.I will admit I was a little nervous and apprehensive about going not only because it was my first deployment but also because of COVID-19 and the civil unrest in our nation.

I went with the mind set that this deployment would not look like any local disasters I have worked on in the past and that I would need to be patient and take it one step at a time. Equipped with masks, gloves, and sanitizer I arrived at Reno Airport and boarded my plane to Houston. My flight was full, but everyone was very mindful of their space and everyone on the flight wore masks the entire time.

Upon my arrival in Houston I was met by another Red Crosser we waited for two more Red Crossers to arrive. We were asked to space our seating in the fifteen-passenger van as far as possible from each other and to continue to wear our masks.

So, we would meet sometimes maintaining social distancing and wearing masks to listen to a meeting as a group on Red Crossers computer.We were continuously attending virtual classes on COVID-19 awareness and were required to wear our masks any time out of our personnel rooms only being allowed to remove them for eating or drinking.

A group of us were able to keep busy assisting in the Houston Chapter warehouse and preparing a trailer for congregate sheltering if needed. I will say wearing a mask in the ninety degree heat and ninety percent humidity was a bit of a challenge and I have a whole new appreciation for our doctors and nurses who have been having to wear them for months.

Cristobal by-passed Houston and my team of ten were transferred up to Beaumont, Texas. We spent two days waiting to hear where we would be going next. During that time my team got to know one another, did some training and bonded. If we had to set a shelter, we were ready.

Our deployment ended the second night in Beaumont, Texas and we were all sent home the next morning. Even though we never set up an actual shelter I feel I learned quite a bit about deploying in this new life environment and the importance of teamwork within the Red Cross.