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Red Cross Workers Deploy With Service Members in Iraq |
| Theallineed.com |
"If I could have anything in the world right now, it would be a fresh, cold glass of milk," said Dennis Moran. It's the simple things he misses while being thousands of miles from home, but that is part of the sacrifice.
Moran is a member of the four-person American Red Cross mobile Armed Forces Emergency Services (AFES) team stationed in Baghdad, Iraq. He joined AFES in December 2006, working as an Assistant Station Manager at the Ft Carson, Colorado, office and was deployed to Iraq the following July.
AFES employees act as a lifeline to members of the U.S. Armed Forces, sending emergency communications to military men and women from their families to help prepare, prevent and respond to emergencies. These communications include birth announcements and notifications of illness or death. Worldwide, AFES staff members work around-the-clock to verify all situations before the emergency communications are sent. Often, these messages result in emergency leave being granted and allowing a service member to return home to assist and support their family.
"It takes a unique person to do this job," said Joe Moffatt, executive director, Armed Forces Emergency Services. "They are extremely dedicated to the Red Cross mission and to U.S. service members."
 | | Reservists Debra Weaver, Roxanne Forbes, Dennis Moran and Team Leader Kathleen Butler are currently serving with the Red Cross mobile Armed Forces Emergency Services team stationed in Baghdad. (American Red Cross) |
Far Away From Home
While there are AFES stations all over the world housing mobile employees, the mobile staff members deployed to Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan work and live with the troops in the areas of conflict. The Red Cross currently employs 100 full-time, mobile staff members that are augmented by AFES reservists who deploy for four to six months at a time. A deployment work shift is typically 10 hours a day, seven days a week.
"There is no greater reward than knowing that you made one soldier's life just a little bit easier, even if only for a moment," said Susanne Harlandt. "To service members, that moment becomes an eternal memory, and it does make a difference in their ability to get through one more day."
Harlandt began working as a volunteer for AFES in 2001 just after September 11. In 2005, she accepted a full-time AFES mobile staff position and recently finished a deployment in Iraq. She loves working in the hospital environment and being close to Berlin which happens to be her birthplace. Being far from home doesn't seem to bother her.
"My family is very spread out. My kids are grown and I have always moved around growing up. Being away from my family is not an issue for me," said Harlandt. "My experience has taught me that the world is not a large place when everything is only a plane ride away."
Being away from home makes you miss the little things in life that most people take for granted.
"I really miss the comforts of home," said Team Leader, Michelle Mays, who is working in Balad. "I miss being in a house versus being in a small room in a trailer. I miss my backyard and seeing the trees and the grass and the flowers. But what I miss most about home are my family, my friends and my puppies."
Mays copes by flipping through photo albums and emailing and phoning her friends and family each week. She also tries to keep things in perspective.
"I know that for us, this is only four and half month rotations," she said. "You can't feel sorry for yourself and dwell on the fact that you're away from home when you know that the troops are making a far greater sacrifice."
Working With Service Members
AFES deployed staff live and work side-by-side with military personnel on the military installations. They wear uniforms and follow the same protocol as service members. The installations are self-contained with office space, residential trailers, a gym and cafeteria that are all surrounded by tall cement walls. Life on the installation is busy while most of the day is dedicated to work with shifts sometimes lasting up to 12 hours.
While the 12-foot walls typically keep personnel safe, mortars fired by insurgents occasionally find their way over the walls. Insurgents have also attacked food convoys and destroyed the bridges they cross. While these events are dramatic, most staff say their biggest challenges relate to connectivity.
"It's not uncommon for us to lose Internet access and occasionally phone access throughout the day," says Mays. "Fortunately, we have colleagues in the country who are always willing to help out when we need their assistance."
Debra Weaver said learning the Army acronyms essential for communicating has been the most challenging part of her job. It is her first AFES deployment since she became a Red Cross employee in May 2007 and trained to be a reservist. AFES reservists go through an extensive training period for three weeks and must pass medical, dental and obtain a secret security clearance.
Marrietta O'Brien, often referred to as "the queen of deployment," is working on her ninth deployment. She is currently in Balad, Iraq.
"I think only those who truly have their hearts in this job can do it well, and it really does show," said Marrietta. "There are those of us who absolutely love what we do, and it is worth the discomfort that we experience in order to represent the organization in our positive way."
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