"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

After rushing around every weekend this month to find presents for my family and friends, I took a few hours this weekend to volunteer with my fellow Red Crossers at Jefferson Barracks VA Hospital.  We passed out stockings with word puzzles, socks, small toiletries and “canteen books” (money to buy snacks inside the hospital).  It wasn’t much – but it meant the world to these guys.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

It’s official. We have less than a week left before the holidays begin and if you haven’t found your holiday spirit yet –I hate to point out the obvious- but you are running out of time. So whether you have gifts to buy, cookies to bake, or frigid temperatures to brave, I’ve discovered the perfect remedy to accompany any last minute holiday preparations. And as an added bonus- the discovery of your holiday spirit yields a donation to the American Red Cross.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

A few weeks ago, I had one of the most fulfilling and memorable experiences of my life. I went with a group of Red Cross staff and volunteers to deliver gifts to veterans at John Cochran Veterans Hospital. Giving these individuals who served our country a small gift was extremely rewarding. Their faces lit up as they received their gifts.  Everyone was so appreciative and thanked us sincerely.  I can only hope for the same experience as we prepare to deliver holiday gifts to both John Cochran and Jefferson Barracks veteran hospitals next week. Hopefully we will bring a smile to their faces all over again.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

This week has been quite eventful. Part of what Red Cross is chartered to do is services to the armed forces. So for the holiday season the Red Cross Americorps NPRC members at other disaster staff have put together gifts for veterans at John Cochran and Jefferson Barracks. The gifts included fleece blankets, stockings stuffed with coupon books for the hospital canteen, puzzle books, among other items. After putting everything together Danae’, the other Americorps NPRC member, other volunteers and I took the blankets and will be taking the stockings tomorrow to pass out to the veterans. It’s great to give a little to men and women who have given so much.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Now that we have Thanksgiving under our belts- loosened belts, for that matter- the Holiday season is fully underway. While that means, trees and cookies, family traditions, and friends, it also means shopping. And in my family, shopping has become quite the tradition of its own.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

As another night shift with the Red Cross Disaster Action Team comes to a close, my team is happy we had an uneventful evening. This means there were no fires to respond to in the Greater St. Louis area. Quiet nights like this are few and far between during the winter months. But one thing that did surprise us was the number of carbon monoxide detectors going off (I stopped counting these alarms after the 10th). Now that the nights are growing colder, more people are starting up their furnaces and detectors are picking up on CO leaks. Let this be a reminder to all of us to take the time to check the batteries in our carbon monoxide detectors as well as our smoke detectors.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Last week I watched a documentary called Kamp Katrina, directed by Ashley Sabin and David Redmon. The film is a gritty, raw, and painfully realistic look at the months following Hurricane Katrina and her devastating wrath. The story is told through the eyes of Ms. Pearl, an eccentric, yet compassionate local who opens her backyard to a dozen strangers left homeless by the storm. Together Ms. Pearl and the survivors establish a tent community that they dub “Kamp Katrina.” Focusing primarily on the residents and their self-destructive habits, we are invited into the community’s post-Katrina lifestyle. And with substance abuse, violence, unfair politics, and little visible assistance, it’s not necessarily someplace we want to be.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Another exciting week in St. Louis has flown by.  This past week has made me realize even more what a great privilege it is to be working with the Red Cross as the AmeriCorps preparedness member. It really opened my eyes as to how much the Red Cross affects people. One of my special projects this week was to purchase items to fill gift bags for 120 veterans that reside at our local veterans hospitals.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

As summer fell into the crisp days of autumn, and our clocks fell back an hour, I found myself falling into a long overdue list of chores last week. My first job - cleaning the basement. What seemed like a daunting task turned out pleasantly after rediscovering my old childhood book collection. There were Boxcar Kids and Bernstein Bears, nursery rhymes, and my personal favorite, the “Choose Your Own Adventure” books. I loved those! In the books, everything was a chain reaction created by you. When you got to the end of a section you had a choice to make- either jump to a new page or continue reading- and you made selections all the way until you had chosen your own ending. They were practically different stories every time you opened the book.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

As Red Cross AmeriCorps National Preparedness and Response Corp members, Danae and I have the opportunity to work on service projects with other non-profit organizations in St. Louis area. This week we are setting up dates to work with Habitat for Humanity. We are excited to work with other volunteers from the St. Louis area in building a family a home!  We will also be working in the ReStore, the resale store that Habitat has for items like household appliances.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Vote for the American Red Cross!

On November 4, millions of Americans exercised their right to vote. We applaud you for making your voice heard.

Voting is fun, right?

Why not have some more fun and vote for the Red Cross  on Facebook. With your help, we could win $50,000 from the Western Union Foundation .  Oh, and don’t forget, you can vote once a day for the next 21 days.

We can’t do it without you so, take a minute and help us win!

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

On “Make A Difference Day”, Oct. 25, the nation's largest single day of volunteerism, more than 3 million people turned out to perform thousands of charitable acts for others. I had the opportunity to go to Jefferson Barracks Memorial Hospital with the St. Louis Area Chapter Youth Corps volunteers to play bingo with the veterans. Not only was it amazing to meet all of the veterans, but we had a great time playing bingo! There were around 15 veterans and five Red Cross Youth Corps and Americorps members spending time together that day. The other volunteers and I helped call out numbers, get drinks and cookies for the vets and played a few rounds as well. The winners got coupons to the hospital cafeteria. I think the veterans enjoyed having new faces around and spending time with us.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Do you know that if a person stops breathing for ten minutes or more, it is almost certain that irreversible brain damage will occur if no one intervenes? Administering CPR during this critical time can make the difference between life or death – or the quality of life.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

When I was a kid, there was never a question I hated more -except maybe “why don’t you eat your vegetables”- than the infamously posed “What do you want to be when you grow up?” For starters, I knew I wasn’t going to grow up and if I did, I didn’t want to be known as a certain occupation. I wanted to do. And for me, the only thing I wanted to do with my life was make a difference in someone else’s.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I have been working at the St. Louis Area Chapter for almost three months now as an AmeriCorps member. It’s truly been a great experience. One of my favorite job responsibilities is to teach disaster preparedness education to different groups around St. Louis. This is a free service of the Red Cross and last year the Chapter educated over 100,000 people!

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

My husband and I lived in University City during the flooding on September 14, 2008. We spent a week at Heman Park when the Red Cross set up shelter for the tenants of University City.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Hello, my name is Pamela Bowser. I was a victim of the flooding during Hurricane Ike. When I walked into your offices, I was afraid no one would believe my story.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

A little over five weeks ago, I deployed on my first Red Cross national disaster assignment to the Red Cross Hurricane Gustav relief headquarters in Baton Rouge, LA. I checked in at headquarters and was then sent to an area 30 miles west of New Orleans. Being a RN, my professional expertise was called upon to help Red Cross staff and volunteers with their medical needs during their deployments.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

After Hurricane Ike hit the Gulf Coast, I volunteered to help at the American Red Cross national call center.  At the call center, I was in a position to help the truly desperate people, the ones who weren’t able to make it to a shelter, who didn't know how to find food, or who had nothing but the Red Cross 1-800-Get-Info phone number to try to survive. They were usually the ones in the hardest hit areas, where delivering food and supplies door-to-door was nearly impossible because of downed power lines, flood waters and debris blocking the streets. In most cases, I was able to direct people to nearby resources like FEMA Points Of Distribution for food and water, Red Cross shelters, Red Cross feeding sites or other governmental and community resources.  But there were some p

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"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Last month, Private First Class Ja’mel Bryant, 22, was killed in a vehicle accident near Baghdad. To honor Private Bryant, and to show support to his family during this difficult time, the American Red Cross lined the entrance of Jefferson Barracks Park while Private Bryant was transported through the cemetery entrance to his final resting place. In order to give you an idea of the impact that this service has on families, I wanted to give you a brief account of my experience that day.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Now that I am back from my recent deployment to Louisiana and have had some time to think, I wanted to share one last experience with you. I've been with the Red Cross for nearly four years now and have worked on at least ten disasters. Each disaster assignment I serve on provides me with lessons I'll always remember and memories I'll never forget.  Each experience is different, yet each teaches me that no matter what part of the country I might be in, there are certain truths that unite us.  This time, that lesson was taught by a client I met when I was serving on an ERV during the Hurricane Gustav relief efforts - a four year old girl named Angel.  Angel's family was affected by both Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Ike.  Their trailer in the bayou took a bea

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"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

When I wrote last, I had been on deployment for one week in West Wego, Louisiana, helping at a kitchen during the Hurricane Gustav relief effort. The "kitchen" was actually a parking lot filled with five refrigerator trucks, six trucks filled with cans known as "the pantry", and countless small tents set up for the site manager, meal preparations and a small meeting room. It was a big operation!  I have to say that the next week went by just as quickly as the first.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

This year the Red Cross has responded to a groundbreaking number of disasters. How can I tell? I’m in charge of a 95,000 square foot Red Cross warehouse that ships disaster supplies to affected areas – and we have been busy! When I first joined the Red Cross in January 2007 the first few months were relatively calm compared to the past year. I would say the long hours of going into the warehouse at 8 a.m. and not leaving until midnight began in October 2007 with the California wildfires. Since then, being busy has become a habit at the warehouse as the Red Cross continued to respond to wildfires and winter storms throughout the end of 2007. Then 2008 began with even more winter storms, flooding in multiple states (in April, June and September) and most recently Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

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"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

On Sunday, September 14, I woke up to 18 inches of water in my first floor apartment. There was no time for me to grab much – just a few clothes and a pair of shoes. My family is all out-of-town, but luckily a co-worker offered me a place to stay until my daughter arrived late that night.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I have been a volunteer for the St. Louis Area Chapter’s Disaster Action Team (DAT) for several months now. You can usually find me on the Wednesday or Saturday night shift working from 4:00 to midnight. Often the night crew will respond to at least one fire, but sometimes there are none. No matter what, the DAT members make sure we have our trucks – and ourselves – prepared to respond at a moment’s notice.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Hello all, I have a few minutes to give you an update.  The shelter I was working in is now closed because all sheltering needs have been met in that particular area. Now I am supervising the Back Data Entry Unit at Baton Rouge Headquarters. I have really enjoyed this job. It works like this: caseworkers are now meeting with families on an individual basis to assess their needs following the hurricane.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

My wife Sheila and I have been in Bay Town, Texas, not far from Galveston, for a week now. I can easily say that this assignment is the most challenging that I have experienced as a Red Cross volunteer. The community still has no electricity or running water. Gas lines continue to be 3-5 miles long. The Red Cross is going to be here for a long time to come. We're needed here and I hope that the people who live in these communities aren't forgotten.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

It's about 9:00 a.m. and I am getting ready to crawl into my bed to grab a few hours of sleep. Since last Sunday, I have been working the overnight shift from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. at the Red Cross emergency shelter in University City. While our guests are sleeping, I am awake, regularly checking on them to make sure they are okay, making coffee and snacks in case someone needs a late night snack, and I'm around in case one of our guests needs someone to talk with.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Whew--this is a big relief effort--all I can say is that Red Cross will be here for a long time. It's day eight for me at the Joint Field Office (JFO) here in Austin, Texas--I'm not sure when I'm coming home to St. Louis (don't say that to my 6-year-old :). I'm serving as the National Public Information Officer (PIO) at the JFO. The JFO is set-up by FEMA to bring all leadership of the fifteen relief arms of FEMA together in one location--while Red Cross is a charity, not a government agency, in the spirit of partnership the Red Cross is invited to be here too. My job is to coordinate information between FEMA and Red Cross.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

My damage assessment partner and I are traveling through Texas lowlands right now and we just passed an incredibly flooded section of land. If we got out of the car and walked down into the field, the water would be well above our heads! Right now we are traveling from Houston, Texas, to the Orange County, Texas, Red Cross Chapter where we will receive our next assignment. Since we are only a few minutes away, I have to make this quick.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I’m back at the shelter in University City today. Last night, the Red Cross provided 15 people with a safe place to stay. My wife, Lois, was here serving meals and snacks, and offering warm blankets and comfort kits. When I arrived this morning at 8 a.m., most of the guests had left for work or were on their way to check their flood-damaged homes. The water came so fast and swift that people in its path had no time to prepare. Now, the waters have mostly receded and people are going back to clean up.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I arrived at the University City Red Cross shelter this morning at 8. I’m helping with the daily operations and making sure the guests’ needs are met. It’s pretty slow right now. The five guests we had last night returned to their homes to assess the damage. But we’re still open, ready to help people in need.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

My wife Lois and I are currently volunteering at the Red Cross shelter in University City. We are tasked with managing the shelter and making sure all the guests are well taken care of. Yesterday’s storm was very powerful and hundreds of homes were affected across the area. We weren’t sure how many people would show up at the shelter so we were prepared with dozens of cots, comfort kits, meals and snacks. There are several other volunteers and staff on-hand to make sure everything goes smoothly.
 

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Becky White and I are currently at the staff shelter in Baton Rouge, resting up and waiting on Hurricane Ike to pass. We woke up about 5:30 a.m. this morning to the sounds of the shelter manager saying we were under a tornado warning. At about 9:00 a.m. I walked over to the coffee shop to grab a cup of coffee.

 

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

The last week has been so busy that I haven’t had a chance to write. Let me fill you in on my experiences responding to Hurricane Gustav. One week ago, I entered a vacant Wal-Mart building in Baton Rouge, LA, to find it filled with Red Cross staff and volunteers.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

While working the overnight shift from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. at a Red Cross shelter just outside of Baton Rouge, LA, I looked around at the about 200 people sleeping—they were 200 reasons I was in Louisiana helping after Hurricane Gustav left hundreds of thousands without power.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Two days ago, my wife and I were two of the several hundred volunteers assigned to help the ongoing preparations for Hurricane Ike’s expected landfall in Texas this weekend. We were originally deployed to Orlando, FL, but when Ike changed paths, we did too.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

My husband Jim and I are volunteers with the St. Louis Area Chapter. We were activated for Red Cross disaster relief assignment on Saturday. We were assigned to Florida and arrived in Orlando late Saturday night ready to help with any and all Red Cross sheltering.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

“I’m on week two here in Baton Rouge and I think it’s about to get worse. In addition to helping with the emergency needs of thousands of families impacted by Gustav, we’re now anticipating another mass evacuation because Ike looks like it’s heading right toward us. T

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Who can forget the images from Hurricane Katrina - the people stranded on their roofs, the murky water submerging miles of homes, the helplessness of the people at the Superdome. Those images inspired me to get involved. 

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Three days before Hurricane Gustav made landfall, I boarded a plane in St. Louis and headed for my sixth disaster assignment since becoming a Red Cross volunteer one year ago. I deployed to Covington, LA, which is close to New Orleans. I waited out the storm with 125 other Red Cross workers as Gustav passed over the Gulf Coast region. We were without electricity for two days in the staff shelter. Of course, there were nearly one million others in the region without electricity, too.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

“I’m at Baton Rouge headquarters. It’s tough here because there’s no electricity. Gas lines are a mile and a half long. There are no grocery stores open anywhere.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

“I’m going to Baton Rouge tomorrow. I’ve been selected for transportation slash warehousing. I’ll monitor all the rental cars that are taken by the caseworkers and staff workers. I’ll be putting all the rental contracts into the database, assign drivers to vehicles, put in all information on the car—color, license plates, who we got the car from, where they’re going—and as staff workers come in they process through me and that goes into the database.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Today’s my sixth day on the job. Larry Boyer—another Red Cross volunteer—and I left St. Louis last Thursday to drive the St. Louis Area Chapter’s Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) to Baton Rouge. Since we arrived, we’ve helped to preposition supplies and we had to wait out the storm.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

Click here to view pictures of the press conference and shelter center

 

St. Louis, Sunday, August 31, 2008 - The American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter is preparing a shelter today in anticipation of up to 600 Hurricane Gustav evacuees arriving in St. Louis from Louisiana; Governor Blunt will host a press conference at the shelter at 2:00 p.m. today to discuss Missouri's role and response to Hurricane Gustav.On Saturday, Governor Blunt announced that Missouri entered into an agreement with Louisiana to shelter <

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"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

 

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I have been back in Missouri for several days after being deployed as a Red Cross volunteer to Southern Texas, following the landfall of Hurricane Dolly. During the one week I was there I served as a government liaison, assisting the two local volunteers who had been working around the clock prior to Dolly's landfall.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I have been a Red Cross volunteer for seven years now, and let me tell you that every day brings a new experience. Some days I am a Mental Health Instructor, teaching other volunteers how to provide emotional support and care to individuals and families affected by disasters.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I am a volunteer for the local Disaster Action Team (DAT) and we respond to local disasters, primarily house fires, 24-hours a day, 365-days a year. Fires can be traumatic for nearly all involved, especially children.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

After only one week at home following the recent floods in Missouri, I am leaving for Texas today (my 15th wedding anniversary). Early this afternoon I will be flying to the Red Cross staging area in San Antonio to receive my disaster assignment. Right now, all I know is that I will be working with the Partner Services team. In Partner Services, team members serve as Red Cross liaisons for government and non government agencies.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

After assisting with flood relief efforts in Indiana, I joined my wife, Denise, in helping St. Louis area residents who were flooded out of their homes.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I arrived back in St. Louis last night around 6:00 after volunteering for the flood relief efforts in Martinsville and Terre Haute, Indiana. It’s my first time back in St. Louis in over a month because I’d been in Iowa for tornado relief before heading to Indiana. This deployment was my 50th Red Cross disaster assignment.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I just returned to St. Louis from Martinville, Indiana where I was the Client Services Supervisor. As a client services worker, it’s my job to make sure people receive Red Cross assistance after a damage assessment has been completed for their home.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I'm a fellow St. Louisan who is currently volunteering in Waverly, Iowa in the wake of the worst flooding I have ever seen.  The Red Cross is here in Waverly and in 30 other cities and towns across the country helping people get back on their feet. We're providing hot meals, shelter, clothing, medicine, emotional and physical health services - all at no charge to those in need. And we'll be here until every last need is met.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I am providing administrative support for the Red Cross Emergency Services Director in Hannibal, Missouri. Right now, I am coordinating deliveries to Red Cross shelters in the Hannibal area and various feeding sites. In the area we have shelters open in Canton, Kahoka and Louisiana.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

I am the shelter manager at the American Red Cross shelter at Winfield High School in Lincoln County. As of right now, I have been stationed at the registration desk at the high school and answering lots of phone calls. All day long I have people calling me for information about how to volunteer with sandbagging, where to give blood, how to donate money or asking simply about what they can do to help. We even have people who show up at the shelter looking for volunteer opportunities!

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

The flooding along the Mississippi Valley has impacted several states.  If you or someone you know has been impacted by the flood or if you are volunteering or have volunteered in the effort, we would love to hear your story.

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on

The Midwest Region has been ravaged by high levels of flooding over the past several weeks.  States all along the Mississippi River Valley have been impacted.  The Red Cross is providing assistance in Illinois, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, West Virginia and Missouri.   Resources are available! 

"By St. Louis Area Chapter Web Team on