Meredith Barrentine Volunteer Profile
Name: Meredith Barrentine
Location: Denver, Colorado
Volunteer Position: Service to the Armed Forces (SAF) Caseworker, Community Relations and Outreach Member and Military Entrance Processing Station Lead – CO-WY
Length of service: 17.5 years (March 2004)
Today, working from the Mile High Chapter office in Denver, Colorado, Meredith is very involved with SAF for the Colorado and Wyoming region of the Red Cross. She is a caseworker and was recently promoted to SAF Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) Lead.
Meredith became a volunteer simply because she was asked. “I received an email from my town of Glen Ridge, New Jersey, saying that our local American Red Cross was looking for volunteers to drive seniors to medical appointments a few hours a week,” said Meredith.
She started as a weekly driver and it wasn’t long before she was managing the program. “I coordinated that program for about four and a half years until the Red Cross discontinued Community Service programs in October 2015. I can’t believe I did that for 11 1/2 years!”
Meredith received a Pacesetter Award for her efforts. Her nomination said, “Meredith stepped forward to skillfully coordinate and manage the transportation program for Montclair and Glen Ridge. She is extremely dedicated and passionate about the program. She demonstrates superior customer service skills in interacting with our clients and her team of volunteers.”
After the Community Service Transportation program ended, Meredith spent a year helping in the chapter office. Then, in her last three years with the New Jersey Red Cross, she volunteered weekly in the East Orange Veterans Affairs Hospital gym, where she assisted men and women in training for the National Veteran’s Wheelchair Games.
Meredith also helped with her chapter’s Gala and even a few blood drives. “For two or three years, I was on our chapter’s Gala committee. It was a totally different type of volunteer work, but I enjoyed working with a group of experienced fundraisers towards the goal of one fabulous event”, said Meredith!
When asked about her favorite experience with the Red Cross, Meredith said, “I love working with and developing relationships with people from all walks of life – clients and fellow volunteers. They are all so special – like family.”
Meredith credits two dedicated employees who inspired her to give her time to the Red Cross. “Doris Burn was a 40-year employee who began as Director of Services to Military Families and Veterans and later became Director of Transportation and Social Services. Red Cross was her life. The other employee was Michelle Esposito, who dedicated 25 years to the Red Cross, beginning as a volunteer under Doris and rising first to Executive Director of our local chapter and ending as the Regional Volunteer Services Officer for New Jersey before succumbing to ALS this past winter.”
As a Red Cross volunteer, Meredith would tell someone who is considering becoming a volunteer, “there is a place for everyone at the Red Cross – no matter your time availability or interests. While volunteering is about giving to others, it also gives back to you in unexpected ways.”
When Meredith is not volunteering with the Red Cross, she enjoys visiting museums, galleries, concerts and plays. She was a New Jersey State Volunteer Advocate with the Ombudsman for Long Term Care Residents, visiting one facility every week for ten years until Covid-19 forced her to stop.
Meredith and her husband moved to Denver one year ago to be closer to their daughter and her family (and get out of pandemic-ridden New Jersey). She has an 11-month-old granddaughter in Denver and two grandchildren in Canada. She babysits about once a week and takes long walks in her neighborhood or around Colorado with her 13-year-old mini schnauzer. Meredith said, “My husband and I are looking forward to post-Covid times so we can take full advantage of everything Denver has to offer!”
Meridith is so AWESOME to work with and brings so much life, energy, joy, and love to our program! I am PROUD to support you and all the wonderful things you are doing with the MEPS Station!