Interviewed by: Rosalind SE Carney, volunteer
What motivated you join the Red Cross as a volunteer?
“I drove past the Red Cross building at the time when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, Texas. I had seen on the news the devastation the people faced and I decided there and then to volunteer with the Red Cross.”
What recent volunteer work did you perform for the Red Cross?
“I volunteered with the finance department of the Red Cross. I became part of a team of four members known as the “gratitude gang.” The role of the gratitude gang was to thank people for recent donations ranging from $100 to $10,000. Donors who gave $5000-$9999 received a handwritten thank you note. Those who donated $1000-$4999 received a personalized thank you email, and the remaining donors were thanked by a phone call from a member of the gratitude gang.”
How was your experience as a Red Cross volunteer?
“It was a really rewarding experience, especially as this process of personally thanking donors was recently initiated with the creation of the gratitude gang. At the last count, my teammates (Christine Spalding, Lauren Waymire, Laura Song) and I had thanked over 28,000 donors. We also had the opportunity to interview by phone volunteer recruits who wanted to deploy to assist with hurricane relief efforts.”
Is there a particular anecdote of a phone call with a donor that you remember?
“Yes! A lady told me that she had volunteered with the Red Cross for twelve years. Her late husband had also been a volunteer and they had regularly donated money to the Red Cross when natural disasters occurred. The phone call from the gratitude gang was the first thank you call she had received. She was so touched that she promised to continue donating. She also encouraged us to keep up the good work! She said that the phone call was so fulfilling and that she really appreciated being recognized by the Red Cross.”
What did you perceive as the donors’ primary motivation?
“In general, compassion; people just wanted to help. Others just wanted to give back to society as a humanitarian response. Some of the donors had relatives and friend in the areas affected by Hurricane Harvey or Hurricane Irma.”
What future volunteer roles are you looking forward to with the Red Cross?
“I would really like to be deployed to relief shelters because it really makes you appreciate the little things in life. You have to have a heart larger than life itself to embark on such missions. I LOVE what the Red Cross stands for, I commend them for returning normality to communities daily, touching lives in many ways. It was really an eye-opening, rewarding and fulfilling experience for me to volunteer as a part of the gratitude gang. It is an honor to be granted this interview to inform others of my experience. Thank you.”
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