Today, August 19th, is World Humanitarian Day and to celebrate we're sharing a day in the life of a Red Cross humanitarian aid worker.
These photos offer a glimpse into a day in the life of IFRC aid worker Jamie LeSueur, a Canadian who is working in Zimbabwe in response to the food crisis.
Jamie LeSueur, a Canadian aid worker and the IFRC Operations Manager for the food crisis in Zimbabwe, walks with a potential beneficiary, Pauline, who explains to him how the El Niño induced drought has drastically impacted her and her family.
When you're in the field, your vehicle becomes your office. Jamie's trying to get some pieces in for a tight deadline. Whatever you've got to do, right?
Travelling through rural Zimbabwe to meet locals impacted by the drought also means meeting more team members from the local Zimbabwe Red Cross offices. Jamie sits in on a provincial managers meeting in Masvingo.
A key part of working with the Red Cross is being able to improvise with limited resources while in difficult circumstances. Here Jamie crafted his own Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) tape to assess this young boy's malnutrition profile.
Jamie tours a local community garden in Gwanda. The chief of the garden explains how it allows them to support one another and the orphans in their villages. The drought has impacted the prosperity of the garden this past year.
It's the little moments like this one that make the long days in the field worth it. After a long day of field visits, Jamie gets to take a break and play some soccer with the local kids. They couldn't stop smiling!
At the end of each visit with potential beneficiaries, Jamie takes a moment to thank each family member for talking with us and telling us their stories. Jamie notes that he's always so amazed by their resiliency.
At the end of a hard days work, Jamie enjoys some local Zimbabwean cuisine. He sits with his teammates in a rural Red Cross office, that is without power, and reminisces on the day's experiences.
See more stories of humanitarian aid workers in this
World Humanitarian Day blog post.