By: Angela Ezell

North Texans were on alert on Saturday, May 25, as meteorologists analyzed and warned people of impending severe weather. At the edge of Dallas/Fort Worth, the town of Valley View took a terrible hit by an EF-3 tornado, which leveled many homes as it made its way across Cooke County.

One Valley View mom woke to hear the worst Sunday morning from where she had been staying in Florida as she planned her mother's funeral. Her husband had died, two of her sons were in the hospital and her home was gone.

Upon arrival in Valley View, American Red Cross volunteer nurse Tanna Lazaroff stayed close.

"The tornado blew houses off their foundations, several feet across the area," Lazaroff said. "Some people were caught under the debris when the houses landed."

Lazaroff was on the scene the day after the tornado, helping Valley View residents understand what happened the night before. She accompanied the woman back to see where her home had been.

"She was extremely distraught and in shock," Lazaroff said.

Her house was destroyed, and she was eager to find her two sons. They were together at home when the tornado touched down but were taken to different hospitals after the catastrophe.

The youngest son sustained the most severe injuries. He required several surgeries, including one to stabilize his neck and another to stabilize his shoulder. Lazaroff stayed by the woman's side for several hours at the hospital as her son underwent his third surgery.

"I just didn't want her to be alone," Lazaroff said. "It's heart-wrenching for one mom to go through so much and to go through it alone."

Lazaroff is a licensed professional counselor and the lead counselor for Red Cross Disaster Mental Health services for the North Texas Region. She is also a disaster mental health advisor for the Red Cross Southwest and Rocky Mountain Division.

She joined the Red Cross in the 1990s but couldn't be fully active because of familial and other life responsibilities. However, she came back to the organization in July 2016 after a gunman shot and killed several police officers in Dallas.

Despite the difficult situations she sometimes finds herself in, Lazaroff enjoys her work with the Red Cross. She says, "Knowing that I've helped somebody get through the hardest time of their life" is the most enjoyable part of volunteering. But she also feels the constraints of the work. She says, "Not being able to do enough" is the most challenging aspect.

Lazaroff is still in touch with the mother from Valley View. "There's nothing you can do to take the hurt away," she said.

The Red Cross North Texas Region is always looking for volunteers to help fulfill its mission of preventing and alleviating human suffering in the face of emergencies. There are volunteer opportunities available for every interest and availability schedule.

For more information on volunteering with the Red Cross, please visit http://www.redcross.org/volunteer or call 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767).