Red Cross Disaster Relief teams train at Campbell

     Classrooms used to teach courses in business and economics became emergency instructional areas for over 230 Red Cross volunteers headed for the Gulf Coast to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. The volunteers received crash courses in mass care, health services, shelter operations and counseling at Campbell University’s Research Triangle Park campus in Raleigh September 9-10.
     The idea to use the Campbell facility originated with Raleigh attorney and Campbell adjunct professor, David Robinson. “The Red Cross was looking for a training space, and I immediately thought of the RTP campus because of its spacious classrooms and technology,” Robinson said. “Campbell was more than happy to accommodate us.”
     The volunteers are being trained as Disaster Action Teams (DAT) and will work in the disaster area for approximately three weeks, providing immediate relief. One of the most important needs right now is for mental health counseling and client assistance, Robinson added. “The scope of this hurricane is just massive,” he said. “They’ll need volunteers to aid victims for years.”
     Robinson said he liked volunteering with the Red Cross because of its organizational integrity. “I like the people and the mission,” he said. “Sometimes it’s rare in nonprofit organizations that the quality of the people and the quality of the mission equal each other. The Red Cross is an incredible organization, and I enjoy these volunteers.”
     Volunteer, Ann Sabiston, a nurse at the Wake Medical Center Emergency Room, is no stranger to disaster. She has lived through two hurricanes and one volcanic eruption. That’s why she wants to help.
     “I know what it means to lose everything, to spend days in the dark and go a month without fresh water,” she said. “It’s hard to wake up everyday and stay in an environment that is so ugly, where the only place you can bear to look is up.”
     John Adams, the national manager of Logistics for the Red Cross, who worked with the organization during 9/11 and recent hurricanes Ivan and Isadore, said he has never seen a disaster like Katrina. “I thought they had endured the unspeakable at Pensacola,” he said, “but New Orleans is the worst I’ve ever seen. We just can’t get our hands on that thing.”
     Campbell University’s RTP campus offers undergraduate programs in business, accounting, criminal justice, social science and Computer Information Systems, as well as a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Trust and Investment Management. It is located at 808 Aviation Parkway in Morrisville.


Photo Copy: John Adams, national manager of Logistics for the Red Cross, discusses the impact of Hurricane Katrina with Red Cross volunteer, Ann Sabiston. Over 230 Red Cross volunteers received training recently at Campbell University’s Research Triangle Park campus. (Photo by Todd Scarborough)