For some, retirement can mean sunny climates and complete relaxation. That’s not exactly the case for Red Cross volunteer, Craig Fleming. After retiring from the Air Force, Craig moved from sunny Los Angeles, CA, to Fairview Heights, IL, to be closer to his family. Initially, his golf game kept him busy, but after a few weeks Craig found himself wanting to do more. “I had just retired and wanted to do something with my time. So I went to the Fairview Heights Red Cross office, asked what I could do and the rest is history,” Craig recalled.

And that history is still a relatively new one. Craig has been with the Red Cross for a little over a year, but he has already taken all of the available classes, become a Disaster Action Team (DAT) Supervisor and Team Leader, performed disaster assessment following the flash flooding in September, and deployed on national disaster relief assignments, including Hurricane Ike. And he hasn’t stopped there. Craig recently began training to help with Lifeline installation.

While retirement has given Craig time to volunteer, there is another factor that remains Craig’s strongest motivation and real reason for volunteering—a love for helping others. “To tell you the truth, Hurricane Katrina is what opened my eyes to what people can do to help others,” Craig said. “A lot of people sit back and think about volunteering, but you don’t know how good it feels until you actually do it.”

It was this attitude that led Craig to the Red Cross and gave him the chance to experience the gratification of volunteering firsthand. One recent experience that Craig recounted illustrates this point perfectly. While on disaster assignment following Hurricane Ike, Craig was volunteering in a Red Cross shelter that was bustling with children. One day the children were given large drawing tablets and red crayons, and asked to express what the Red Cross meant to them. Craig recalls that at the end of the day there were at least 25 pictures spread across the gym floor. While they were all heartfelt, Craig remembers one in particular. The picture read, “My family is in the hands of the Red Cross.” And that’s something Craig will never forget. It’s the “reaction of the people that you help—how appreciative they are,” says Craig, which makes him do somuch for others. But if it were up to Craig he wouldn’t stop there. “I wish I could do more, not just nationally— worldwide. I want to be out in the field with the people.”

“Craig is one of those guys that is always ready to lend a hand,” said Sandy Vaughn, Metro East Service Center Manager. “If we are shorthanded or a DAT member can’t go to a fire, we know Craig will go (if at all possible). That is, if he’s not on the golf course,” Sandy joked. According to Craig, “Everybody knows Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays are my golf days. Other than that I’m all yours.”

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