Experience Volunteering on The American Red Cross Disaster Team

For eight weeks I volunteered on the Disaster Team at The American Red Cross Coastal Chapter in Myrtle Beach.  The Disaster Relief Team is a group of volunteers who prepare for disasters in our country and are the first people on site when a disaster occurs. They help by providing supplies, shelter, and food to victims of disasters in their community. I worked with disaster team director,Lou Palm, and Mrs.Wendy Springs, the office manager, of the chapter. I helped them by  filing  hurricanes relief forms, labeling locals maps where hurricanes may strike, and creating brochures which helped victims recover from a disaster. Also, I worked in their office to answer the phone, make copies, and printed important  documents. This work experience allowed me the opportunity to take part in a hurricane disaster exercise. The volunteers were separated into groups dealing with a specific needs such as  damage assessment, client case work, and providing shelters for victims. At the end of the exercise, all the volunteers came together to report their findings and progress. Also, the weaknesses and strengths of the exercise were discussed in order to make suggestions for improvement. I learned about how to prepare my community for disasters in our county. In the future, I will continue to volunteer at the American Red Cross on the Disaster team and raise awareness in my community about disasters and how to prepare for them.