Disaster Response (Page 4)

Canadian Kathy Mueller is currently working with the International Federation of Red Cross Societies as communications coordinator for the Ukraine humanitarian crisis; here, she shares her experiences.

Millions of people are stranded in dire conditions across Ukraine, struggling to access food, water, electricity, medication, childcare supplies, and other basic necessities. Those who are fleeing - sometimes in pajamas - take whatever they can carry. Their needs, too, are immense.

The conflict in Ukraine is having widespread and devastating humanitarian impacts. Thanks to the generosity of Canadians, the Red Cross can offer humanitarian assistance to people in Ukraine and surrounding countries.
Here are five of the most effective ways you can offer help right now.

With 16 years under her belt in the Canadian Red Cross, Ottawa volunteer Debbie James is accustomed to focusing on others. Debbie’s can-do attitude has led her through more than 100 responses across the country and an array of roles supporting others.
“If I have the bandwidth and my help is needed, I’ll try to do it,” she says.

Sepideh Alvandi and Vahid Zolfagharimoheb are married physicians from Iran who arrived in July 2021 to make Canada their new home.
The couple wasted no time applying their professional skills and humanitarian drive to help others in need in their new country.

When Dave Schiller decided it was time to retire after 30 years as a school counsellor in London, Ontario, he was looking for his next venture. He found it with the Canadian Red Cross.
“I wanted to retire to something and not just from something,” Dave explains.

As volunteers, we all give what we can when we can. The Canadian Red Cross could not help those in need without this support and volunteer Rudy Ambtman from Manitoba has a lot to give.

On November 14, Barb Gagnon saw flood waters come very close to her house just outside of Princeton, British Columbia. She was evacuated to a friend’s house with her dog, Daisy, and it wasn't long before she decided to roll up her sleeves “in order to keep my sanity and keep busy,” she says.