By Pat Kondas, American Red Cross of Colorado and Wyoming Public Affairs
Gilbert Nelson says he got into Government Operations because it was already similar to his regular job as Emergency Manager in Weston County. After 24 years with the Fire Department and previous work in corrections and law enforcement, he says becoming the EM was a “perfect fit,” as was becoming the GovOps Lead for Wyoming.
Gilbert says that as the Emergency Manager he assists the Fire Department at incidents, and then if the people need Red Cross assistance, he’s there to provide it. He can provide the immediate assistance and then refer them to a Disaster Action Team member to take care of the details.
Being the EM and also being a volunteer are basically the same kind of work, says Gilbert. He said, “Even when I’m deployed or doing something for the Red Cross, I’m learning something for my job as Emergency Manager. It’s like free training for my job.” He says, “My boss sees it that way. He supports my work with the Red Cross one hundred percent.”
Gilbert has been able to deploy nationally a few times for the Red Cross. When he deployed to Hurricane Ida in Louisiana, he worked in the State Emergency Operations Center. It was a good experience, he says, because he got to work with all the other entities, like FEMA, Health Care and Rubicon and see how they work with the government and everyone else.
When he deployed last year to the tornadoes in Mississippi, he went as GO, but when that position wasn’t needed, he shadowed the Spiritual Care lead. He was able to go out into the community and actually see the affected areas and talk to the people first hand about their experiences and how they dealt with it. He said, “A lot of it was just listening to their story and offering them whatever services that we could.” He talked to one woman who said she knew every person who had died in the one town that was hit. She had live there her whole life and knew everybody. He said, “I talked to the police officer that was on duty and the tornado basically chased him down the street. He kicked in the door to an apartment and got everybody into the bathtub; and two minutes later he was pulling people out of the rubble.”
Gilbert says what drew him to the Red Cross in 2018 was the “willingness to serve. I liked that.” And he wanted to be able to deploy to places and help and learn that side of things. He said, “It’s just something I’ve always liked to do, like being in the Fire Department for 24 years. It was serving, and there’s the excitement of it, and there’s always the training aspect. When you’re actually doing it, you’re learning at the same time.” He says, “Just the ability to do what I could to help is always satisfying.”
To anyone considering volunteering for the Red Cross, Gilbert would tell them that “it would be an excellent decision. It’s rewarding.” He says he’s met some wonderful people, not just in Wyoming, but also in his deployments. “It’s always a joy,” he says.
Red Cross Month is a national tradition that began in March 1943 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the first Red Cross Month proclamation — and each U.S. president has followed ever since.
Join the Red Cross Month celebration by visiting redcross.org/volunteertoday to make a financial donation, become a volunteer or take a lifesaving skills course.