By Julie Elledge, American Red Cross Public Affairs
It was a typical cloudless, frigid morning on January 6th, 2021 in Laramie, Wyoming when Toni received the call. Her home was on fire. Her eyes flew to the clock, realizing that her mother had left for work. Her four cats were stranded to fend for themselves. Her fears drove her imagination to the unthinkable. They didn’t have much choice—the active raging electrical fire devouring their home, or an escape into a frosty 0 degree landscape.
A stranger driving down her lonely road in a black pick up truck, quickly assessed the dangerous situation. Seeing her home engulfed in flames with a parked car in front, the faceless hero kicked down the door in search of survivors. Unwittingly this simple heroic act opened up an escape route for her four cats.
Sabrina, the self-imposed surrogate-mama-cat, responded to the opened escape route by carrying out Chubs, the youngest of the cats. Against her feral-instincts to avoid danger, she returned for Jazz, the second youngest. A third time Sabrina returned to her burning home in search of the final cat, Baby.
Toni arrived to a dizzying scene of fire trucks and fire fighters. The shock of watching everything she owned on fire slowed time. The only silver lining being that she found two of her cats, Chubs and Jazz, had escaped. Where were the other two? The fireman gently pressed his cell phone into her hand. A compassionate voice broke through the surreal image unfolding. The American Red Cross of Wyoming volunteer was a grounding presence in the chaos.
"A compassionate voice broke through the surreal image unfolding. The American Red Cross of Wyoming volunteer was a grounding presence in the chaos."
Feelings affect the amount of information that an individual can process. Negative emotions such as fear and anxiety narrows attention. In Toni’s case, she struggled to see past the safety of her cats. The mind copes with the overstimulation by reducing activity in the part of the brain responsible for thinking. Through a tunnel of feelings the comforting voice of a Red Cross volunteer reached her. “Toni what are your options for tonight?”
The calm voice cut through the malaise of emotion to survey the situation. What are her immediate needs? Calmly the Red Cross volunteer moved through Toni’s foundational needs — shelter, food, water, medication, safety, security. “These hotels in your area are prepared to respond to your needs. Tell them what has happened. They have special pricing.”
Pricing! How was Toni going to pay for a hotel, food or clothes? She had to work the next day. She was exhausted. Her mother needed medication. Everything she owns was burning. The Red Cross gently helped Toni to return to the reality of her situation. Not only did they help her think through what she needed and aid in securing the resources she needed, the Red Cross assisted her financially.
Resting in her hotel room the evening of the fire, Toni remembered that she had $1,500 cash in an envelope inside her dresser. She picked up the phone and called the fire fighters on the scene. After checking, the fire fighter reported that the dresser was in ashes. Surprisingly, among the embers the envelope and the money survived unblemished! There was still no sign of Sabrina or Baby.
Three days after the crisis, as Toni viewed the damage to her home, she was astonished when Sabrina showed up with Baby! Baby found a way to free himself but not without harm. His black body still carries the scars of being scorched by the fire. In his fear, Baby bolted into the wild. Sabrina, the self-imposed matriarch, took it upon herself to search for him and show Baby the way home. Within hours of being reunited and content her mission was complete, Sabrina laid down, never to open her eyes again. She gave her life to save her family. In Toni’s eyes, she is as much a hero as the stranger who kicked down the door and the community who responded with such compassion to her time in need.
Julie Elledge, Ph.D. is a volunteer storyteller for the American Red Cross Public Affairs/Communications Department. She is a professional coach in national practice, with four credentials including the prestigious International Coaching Federation and the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching. She is a recognized expert in the field of coaching and mental health. She is the founder of Mentor Agility, a training and education company pioneering the area of storytelling in coaching.