“We’re just doing whatever we can to help the community,” said Bobby Macle, a deacon at Celebration Family Church in Stinnett, Texas. The church opened its doors to support the surrounding Panhandle plains immediately after a devastating wildfire consumed over a million acres, leaving hundreds of homes with major or total damage.

The American Red Cross has been utilizing the church facility to provide immediate assistance to those affected by the fire. Now, two weeks into the disaster relief operation, the Red Cross has set up an intake center there to meet with families to determine the level of financial assistance available to support their efforts to recover.

“We had a big wildfire here in 2014,” Bobby said, “and the church did what we could to help at that time. But we realized that we could do a lot more. So, when we constructed a new fellowship wing for the church, we designed it specifically to be ready in case of another disaster. We designed a large common area, with side rooms where recovery organizations could meet with individuals. We also installed showers in the restrooms and built a commercial-style kitchen so meals could be prepared and delivered to anyone who needs them.”

The Red Cross has long realized that we may not be the total solution, but we’re part of the solution. The Red Cross facilitates bringing together diverse relief organizations to quickly and efficiently meet the needs of those affected by disaster. The Red Cross establishes memorandums of understanding with partner organizations in advance, so when disaster strikes relief and recovery assistance is available as quickly as possible.

The Red Cross needs volunteers to carry out this lifesaving mission. Volunteers receive training and are prepared to respond quickly in case of disaster. If you’d like to be part of the team delivering support in times of crisis, call 1-800-RED CROSS and become a volunteer.