There is an unlikely friendship - Alzinia Pailin is an American Red Cross volunteer from California and Marie Bernatchez is a French speaking Canadian Red Cross volunteer from Quebec. But after being paired together on a three-week deployment in the small town of Lac La Biche, south of Fort McMurray, as part of the Alberta fire response, the two women found much common ground including their work as Red Cross volunteers and quickly became friends.
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The Canadian Red Cross is recognizing our 120th anniversary through a new online platform. The project, celebrating 120 years of helping those in need, highlights important moments in our history through significant events and stories displayed on an interactive timeline. Last week, I had the opportunity to sit down with veteran Red Cross volunteer, Ted Itani, to talk about Red Cross history and one item in particular that connects our Red Cross stories: a model landmine.
On May 3rd, Anita Blanchette made a promise to her husband as they drove away from home in Fort McMurray, with massive flames chewing up the countryside just 200 metres away: “I told my husband ‘I don’t think we will have a home to come back to. If we do have a home when we return, I will be giving back’,” she said, tearing up.
After returning to her miraculously intact house, Anita kept her promise: she is now giving back as a Red Cross volunteer on Hardin St.
“I really, really wanted to say thank you. I don’t think I conveyed how grateful I was.” Maggie Ireland fought back tears as she thanked two Red Cross volunteers for their assistance after she and her niece, Jamie, were involved in a car accident in downtown Edmonton.
In 2009, the Red Cross was there for Jillian Mullowney. Now a disaster management volunteer, Jillian shares her inspiration for working with the Red Cross, her experience helping support those impacted by the Alberta fires, and the day everything came full circle.
The last few weeks have been busy ones for Cindy Baillargeon, a Red Cross volunteer from the Lanaudière region of Quebec: she spent them in Alberta, helping out Fort McMurray evacuees. When she saw images of the wildfires on the news, she knew that the Red Cross was bound to be involved. It wasn’t long before the call for volunteers came through, and she accepted without a second thought.
My family recently found ourselves on a Caribbean island where we were having a wonderful vacation. My husband and I have always loved the water and once upon a time were both lifeguards in Canada (let's just call us 'retired'). With two young children, we respect the ocean and are always looking for opportunities to talk over safety in the water, taking the opportunity in this case to explore ocean currents and what they mean when we're thinking about cooling off in the ocean.
So, why did I volunteer with the Red Cross? The Red Cross presented an opportunity for me to volunteer my skills as a semi-professional communications person and write about the indispensable people of the Red Cross and tell their stories.