Elizabeth Shook has been volunteering with the American Red
Cross since she was 16 years old.
“My mother sort of dragged me into it to start with. So, it
was a family thing,” she explained.
She started out as a water safety instructor before moving
to training services, instructing others on CPR and First Aid. When getting
down on the floor became too much, she made the transition to Disaster Cycle
Services assisting with casework following disasters like home fires and then
made the move to staff services.
In total, that “family thing” has spanned 60 years.
About ten years into it, she met and married her husband Bob
who she then proceeded to “drag into it.”
“When I started, Beth always needed an extra person to make
the class roster when she was teaching, so I ended up getting a lot of
training,” Bob laughed.
And you know how the old saying goes, the couple that
volunteers together, stays together.
Married for 50 years, the couple based out of Allegany
County have worked together on everything from Disaster Action Team (DAT)
responses to major national disaster operations, highlighting the many diverse
opportunities available to those looking to volunteer.
“We worked together as a DAT team very often,” Elizabeth
explained. “There are a number of jobs that you can do totally remotely from
home and some of them are the hardest to fill. Those volunteers who have a
disability or need to operate from home are just as important to use as the
people who go out. DAT dispatchers can work totally from home alongside the
teams who go out.”
The couple used to responding to disasters themselves were
also on the receiving end of a response early on. In 1972 Bob recalled that
when 12 feet of flood water damaged the couple’s home, Red Cross volunteers
just like them were on the scene to provide shelter and meals until they could
repair the damage.
“We can relate to folks who have disasters.”
Reflecting on their evolving roles with the Red Cross over
the years, Bob recalled one of their first DAT responses together and what it
meant to them as a couple.
“One of the biggest we had was a fire in Cuba. A 15-apartment
building and about 45 people impacted. I worked on ten of the cases that day.
It was all taken care of in about four hours. It means a lot. You don’t get a
better feeling than helping somebody.”
That feeling rings true even more so around the holidays for
the couple. Recounting the Christmas they spent together volunteering in New
York City in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Elizabeth led a group
of volunteers, spending six months working on the operation helping to input
data for more than 30,000 people impacted. Making it a family affair once
again, Bob came to spend the holiday with her, both opting to use the time to
help others.
“I was able to go and work as an Emergency Response Vehicle
(ERV) driver delivering meals,” Bob explained.
“But he didn’t realize part of that was climbing 32 floors
to get to some of the apartments, though!”
And 60 years later with no plans to slow down any time soon,
the couple hopes their story will inspire others to make volunteering with the
Red Cross in any capacity a family affair this holiday season – and beyond.
“The core of Red Cross volunteers have a certain value of
humanity that they all share,” Bob explained. “Different religions, colors,
ages but we are all caring people.”
“They care about people and they want to help – you can
count on that,” Elizabeth smiled. “We keep going because of the people we help.
There is no greater satisfaction that knowing you can enable others to pick up
the threads of their lives and move forward.”
From DAT responses to local
blood drives, supporting military veterans and their families to national
disaster operations, you can learn more about volunteer opportunities – both
in-person and virtual – here or by contacting RecruitWNY@redcross.org
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