July 8, 2018 Article submitted by Rick Padden
For Red Cross volunteer Rochelle Obechina, disaster relief is far more than providing a roof, bottled water, cots, blankets, and scrambled eggs. According to her, there are basic human needs, and then there is the need for humanity. “We may be displaced, but community hasn’t gone away,” she said.
Red Cross volunteer helps evacuee celebrate one of life’s moments. Photo courtesy of Arden Anderson
Folks evacuated from their Basalt, CO homes because of the Lake Christine fire got more than just the basics. “I think it’s important for the community to be engaged in assisting at the shelter, and for the shelter to be engaged with the community,” Obechina said Saturday. “The fire is there, (visible on the nearby mountainside), but people still need to know that we’re still all family — we’re a community.”
Beyond donating money to the Red Cross, which provides for basic needs, there’s a lot people can do, Obechina believes. “Tonight, for example, we have Spellbinders coming in to do storytelling for the kids. We’ve had The Art Base come in and do jewelry-making and art, and they will be back tomorrow. It’s a relief for the kids, but also for their parents, you know?”
Two days ago some local face painters were on scene, and then a young woman in a dinosaur costume showed up. That evening the school district cranked up their audio-visual system to show movies.
Rosalba Ceballos, 27, of Basalt (left), introduces a young Lake Christine Fire evacuee to her dinosaur at the Basalt Red Cross shelter Friday afternoon. Ceballos had brought her oversized friend to the shelter to cheer the kids up, and said she does such things “just because it’s fun and I’m a big kid. Inside the dinosaur costume was friend Lindsey Anderson, 18, also of Basalt.
Obechina met with other Red Cross shelter volunteers and challenged them to think creatively about involving the community to lift the spirits of the evacuees. After watching the nearby forest go up in flames and having to leave their homes on short notice, spirits did indeed need a lift.
“I think my favorite moment today,” she said, “was when it started pouring down rain, and everyone rushed to the doors and cheered. I was talking to one of the evacuees, and he had tears coming down his cheeks.”