When Katie Adams joined the Red Cross as a member of the AmeriCorps program in February, she knew volunteer recruitment would be a big part of her job. Little did she know, that a few months later she would be recruiting her entire family to help people in nearby communities during fast-moving wildfires.

After earning a degree in hospitality and tourism management from Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Ore., Katie, 23, returned home to Ontario, Ore. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Katie knew she wanted to do something that would help people, and AmeriCorps and Red Cross seemed like the right fit.

“My mother was working with the Ontario warming shelter,” Katie said. “And I was already interested in volunteer work.”

At Red Cross, Katie shares disaster preparedness information and recruits Disaster Cycle Services volunteers to help meet families’ most immediate needs during a disaster. That role hit very close to home for Katie in July when wildfires forced evacuations in communities across East Oregon.

Over the next few weeks, Red Cross and its partners opened shelters at the Malheur County Fairgrounds and at the Four Rivers Cultural Center, both in Ontario, and the Church of the Nazarene in Baker City.

“Eastern Oregon caught on fire all at once,” Katie said. “Since the beginning of July, it has been a whole month of fire.”

To help staff those shelters and deliver comfort and care, Red Cross needed more volunteers to raise their hands. That’s when Katie turned to those she knows best – her family.

“It made sense to start by recruiting Mom, who is already an active volunteer,” she said.

But that was just the start.

“My whole family then went into full-service mode,” she said. “Around the clock, there were five members of my family volunteering at the Red Cross shelter. … But, it was a lot more than just my immediate family.

“Even our grandparents helped by watching our family dog while we were away at the shelter. Then, sometimes, even the neighbors watched our dog. It takes a whole village.”

Katie’s mother, Adele Schaffeld-Griffin, was more than willing to lend a hand. Adele works as a county building official and is regularly involved in situations involving property damage and the need for rapid re-permitting.

“I have been involved with helping others since childhood,” she said. “When I was little, 9 or 10 years old, I saw my brother run up the driveway on fire from a burn barrel. I saw then how the community came together to help our family. I saw how volunteers could help.

“So, I began showing my three daughters about volunteerism at a young age,” she said, adding that all three are now Red Cross volunteers. 

Katie started helping others early on, Adele said.

“Katie helped with the warming shelter during winters and worked on contact tracing during COVID.

“Having children with a heart of service was important to me.”

Following her mother’s guidance, Katie is teaching life lessons to her younger sister, a high school sophomore.

“I told her taking Red Cross CPR classes could give her a head start into the medical career,” Katie said.

To reinforce the lesson, Katie is also teaming with her sisters to create and oversee a Red Cross Club at Ontario High School and will spend time working with the Nyssa, Ore., Health Occupation Students Association.

Katie has enjoyed her time at the Red Cross so much that she has signed on for another AmeriCorps term.

“There are some things left in our community that I could really help out with,” she said. “And volunteering is especially rewarding when you are in your own community.”

JOIN OUR AMERICORPS TEAM

Our AmeriCorps Red Cross program is searching for six passionate people to join a team of highly motivated volunteers striving to make a lasting impact in communities near and far.

This program offers a range of opportunities in public health and safety with positions located in Billings and Missoula, Mont., and Ontario, Ore.

Benefits include bi-weekly stipends, health and dental coverage and childcare assistance to those who qualify.

Learn more here: bit.ly/americorps-redcross. The term begins Sept. 16.