By: Frederic Klein

It was not unusual for Charles Wilson to hear shouting from the hallways of his apartment building on Cottage Avenue in Mount Vernon, New York. When he heard someone pounding on his door around 1:30 a.m. on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, he knew this was different.

“I heard a lot of screaming in the hallway,” said Mr. Wilson. “I’ve heard that before, a lot of kids who should be in bed, running up and down the hallway. I ignored it because I had gotten used to that. Then there was a loud banging on my door, and I said, ‘those are not children.”

He opened the door of his seventh-floor apartment and smoke billowed into his face. Quickly grabbing his jacket and slippers, Mr. Wilson ran downstairs and left behind his apartment filled with more than a decade of memories and personal treasures — including a trove of books related to day trading, a hobby which he picked up in retirement after spending three decades working for Amtrak and teaching in the South Bronx.

“I had a huge library in there, five shelves of books, mostly how to day trade,” said Mr. Wilson. “I saved for that while I was teaching because I was tired of working for others and I had no business skills – I was a science guy. So, I spent thousands on learning how to day trade, and those books were still valuable to me. Gone with the wind.”

As he stood on the street in the middle of the night, watching flames erupt from his apartment window, Mr. Wilson saw volunteers with the Red Cross arrive and start connecting with residents. It was his first experience with the Red Cross other than him donating to the organization in the past.

“It was like shock and awe, I was surprised at how you guys [Red Cross Disaster Action Team] responded and how you provided,” said Mr. Wilson. “It was really outstanding. I thought it would be some pain and suffering involved, but the suffering’s only been financial.”

Following the fire, Mr. Wilson and more than 200 of his neighbors have been waiting to find out if and when they will be able to return home to try and salvage anything remaining in their apartments, charred and drenched by an estimated 4.5 million gallons of water during the firefighting effort.

As an outpouring of support from the Mount Vernon community has arisen to help support the residents, Mr. Wilson was impressed by what he saw.

“If another disaster happens, have faith that Mount Vernon will do its best to solve the problem and help out,” reflected Mr. Wilson. “Made me think, well, maybe not to put so much time in day trading and work with you guys.”
 

Disasters don’t pause for holidays — and neither do Red Cross volunteers. Put on a red vest and join us. Visit redcross.org/volunteer to find the right opportunity for you.