My first national deployment... Week 2

Week 2...

Monday (April 29) was my day off. We got to choose a preferred day off and this was my preferred day since the weather was forecast to be nice. Not all volunteers choose to take their day off but before I left for my deployment I got some tips from volunteers at my local chapter who have gone on national deployments and they all recommend taking your day off if available. It's a great time to step away from the stress of the deployment! Even though we enjoy what we do and helping people is a wonderful thing, it is a stressful event for volunteers too! I chose to spend the morning working on my job search, reviewing emails I have received with job prospects as well as other sources. I try to keep up with my emails daily but that wasn't always possible depending on how busy the day was so I made sure to spend some time catching up before playing on my day off. After a few hours working on the job search I decided to head down to Springfield, Illinois to see the house Abraham Lincoln lived in (and where he was appointed presidential candidate before heading to the white house). It was a beautiful day weather wise and I was glad to spend some time sight seeing.

After the tour of the Lincoln House and doing a self-guided tour through the neighborhood, I headed south to some antique malls. Found some really cool coca-cola stuff but knowing I didn't have room in my suitcase I resisted the urge to buy anything. Monday night several volunteers were getting together for what has become our evening ritual... dinner out. The group decided on Joe's Crab Shack again. I was still in Springfield when I got the call and learned the plan so I was a few minutes late but was able to join up with everyone. Here are a few pics from dinner including a huge turtle sundae which I shared because there was no way I could eat it all! The group pic after might have been best served taken before dinner. We all had protruding tummies in the pic!!!

Tuesday (April 30) I went out with fellow volunteer Donna and a student nurse. This was essentially a PR project. The local college had student nurses come over to the Red Cross and learn a little bit about the Red Cross in general and since their happened to be an active disaster (the flooding) they were able to ride along with some of us going out in the field and learn a little about how the Red Cross helps during a disaster. Donna and I were able to take the student out to some of the flood sites and show him how to do an assessment. He seemed genuinely interested and even filled out what we call a street sheet. Here are some pics from areas we visited.

Here's a pic of fellow chapter volunteer Terrence and I on Terrence's last day. He and I were the only volunteers from the Greater Kansas City Chapter doing Damage Assessment at this disaster. It is possible some volunteers from GKC were working in different areas and I didn't meet them on this trip. 

Tuesday evening we were treated to the Annual Volunteer Banquet. Each chapter does this type of event for their volunteers. It was planned well in advance and since their was a national deployment in Peoria at the time of their banquet they invited those of us in town to help with the disaster to attend which was very generous of them! We were able to tour the Caterpillar Center and participate in the simulation training if we wanted to then finished up with appetizers and a short presentation with the local chapter volunteers. Here are some pics from the Caterpillar tour.

Wednesday (May 1) another volunteer Jerry and I ended up going to Clark County to do damage assessment in a little town called York, Illinois. That local chapter did not have DA technicians and so we made the 3 and half hour drive out there. It took us about 2 hours to assess approximately 20 houses that were affected by the flooding there. The people we met were wonderful! They shared their stories and their concerns that the area has flooded a few times in the last 10 years and that it might be time to move to higher ground. It was sad to hear some of the stories! Pictured below is a kitty called Callie. She was a sweet girl and wanted all sorts of attention from Jerry and I. Once we completed our assessment we headed back to Peoria. We found a small mom and pop restaurant for dinner and arrived back in Peoria around 9 pm which made for a long day!

Thursday (May 2) our group was breaking up as several volunteers who had arrived the week before I did were getting ready to go home. Here is a group pick with most of the DA team before volunteers processed out and headed home that evening. I was on the standby team this day so it was a very quiet day for me and my volunteer partner. My supervisor was one of the volunteers heading home so she completed my evaluation before she left. I am happy to say it was a good one and I am invited to continue on as a DA on national deployments! I hope I represented my chapter well!

Dinner was at Lariat Steakhouse with a big group of DA volunteers so that we could have one last chance to bond and say good bye before the group broke up. After dinner most of us headed to the hotel bar for a celebratory drink before sending volunteers home. Apparently I wasn't being social enough so Dick and Donna stole my phone so that I would TALK to them instead of text on my phone. Brats! :)

Friday (May 3) fellow Kansan and volunteer Bruce and I headed out to finish up some areas along Highway 29 that weren't previously accessible. It was raining again but we were able to get in to the areas that other DA volunteers hadn't previously been able to get in to. We completed that area and then headed to lunch at the River Beach Pub. It was a nice little place and they were very welcoming to us. They thanked us for coming out to volunteer. It's always nice to get a thank you! :)

Upon arriving back at headquarters I took some pics to show what the war room looks like:

                           

This pic is actually from the war room over at the civic center. We had 2 separate headquarters (war rooms).

Saturday (May 4) I headed down to Frederick (Schuyler County) with 2 local red cross volunteers from Peoria. They are new to DA so it was my job to train them before Bruce and I (the only remaining team members from DA) headed home on Sunday. We encountered a closed highway that we weren't aware of so we stopped to ask a local how to get where we needed to go. He was great! He gave us an alternate route and we were able to get to Frederick and complete the assessment that could not be previously completed due to the portions of the highway in Frederick being flooded. We talked to some of the locals in Frederick and heard their stories. Everyone's story is different. I really enjoyed it when we were able to get out of the car and talk to locals directly affected by the flood. On our way back to Peoria we stopped at a little cafe in Rushville, Illinois called Special Touch Cafe. They serve breakfast all day and I had probably one of the best omelets I have ever had! Loved being able to stop at local places and experience the local atmosphere as well as help out the economy a little bit.


Sunday (May 5) was a travel day as I headed Home! Overall it was a great experience but I couldn't wait to get home and snuggle with CJ!

I hope you enjoyed reading my rendition of a national deployment for the Red Cross! Now I better get my butt in gear and get another full time job! Any suggestions???