Almost five months later I am finally sharing my first Disaster Relief Operation (DR) experience for Hurricane Irene with the blogosphere. Jane Bowler and I drove an ERV to North Carolina where we stayed in a shelter in Roanoke Rapids before we were stationed to a Southern Baptist Kitchen in Williamston, NC. We served two meals a day out of Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) to roughly 300-500 people in Creswell, NC and Jamesville, NC. It’s very hard to put into words my experience. I met a lot of wonderful, kindhearted people, who have forever changed my life. The caring Ms. Beverly who fed everyone in the shelter at Roanoke Rapids and stayed long hours making sure everyone had something to eat. Sister Kieran opened up her church in Williamston, NC and allowed the ERV crew (12 people) a place to sleep and shower, along with her wonderful congregation making us delicious meals. The fire departments at Jamesville and Creswell set up well organized feeding stations, making it easy for those without electricity to have access to a hot meal. Teams from these fire departments went around their town, alerting their citizens when the Red Cross was coming so they knew when they could receive something to eat. Creswell Fire Department was gracious enough to allow Jane and me to help deliver meals to flooded areas. We were able to see first hand the wrath of Irene with homes, roads, and churches under water. My first DR was also memorable because I had the most amazing partner, Jane Bowler.(Jane underlined that part) We were the youngest ERV drivers that, at times, were questioned because of our youth, BUT we proved time and time again that we were ready to take whatever came at us. I’m so proud of the work we accomplished and the help we were able to provide. Below are some of the memories I, Jane, and American Red Cross PR captured, so check ‘em out!
Filed under: Aimee
