By Josh Egbert, American Red Cross of Colorado and Wyoming Public Affairs
Thea Wasche has been a fixture of the American Red Cross of Southeastern Colorado for the last 16 years. She’s also known statewide and around the country for her many deployments to help those in their time of need. Her journey with the Red Cross all began though with the help of her four-legged companion, Willow.
“I started with the Red Cross when I was asked to become one of the founding members of the Animal Visitation Program at Evans Army Community Hospital,” explains Thea. “The new program was approved by the hospital commander and was chartered to be run through the Red Cross.”
Thea is currently the Emergency Response Vehicle Lead and feeding lead for Southeastern Colorado. But she wears many hats for the organization. She deploys locally and nationally, responds to local home fires, and is also a Service to the Armed Forces member as Animal Visitation Handler.
“Knowing that anytime I am called for assistance, whether it is sheltering, driving a vehicle, serving a meal or even visiting with my therapy dog, I’m doing my part to alleviate someone’s suffering and bringing a little bit of sunshine into probably one of the worst experiences of their lives,” said Thea.
Bringing that bit of sunshine was on full display during devastating flooding in Nebraska and Iowa in 2017. Thea was assigned as a shelter manager in one of the most impacted areas outside Omaha, Nebraska. People started to arrive at the shelter who had just lost everything in the flooding. But, as she and other volunteers listened to their stories of survival and personal tragedies, they realized a special group of teens was even more affected.
“These teens were getting ready for their high school proms. They were just devastated that the dresses and outfits they worked so hard to buy were lost and their hopes of attending their first prom were crushed,” said Thea. “My staff and I quickly spread the word through a very caring community that was shelter was located in and several church members came together and we had new prom dresses and shoes donated to these deserving teens and their dream of attending their first prom was able to come true.”
Thea is an invaluable member of the Red Cross team. She most recently deployed to Florida to help those impacted by Hurricane Ian. She’s done media interviews for television stations across Colorado and Wyoming, showing care and compassion, all while showing the importance of the Red Cross mission.
“Joining the Red Cross provides one with a definite feeling of self-worth by assisting and helping those impacted by tragedies and disasters,” said Thea. “It also provides you with an amazing opportunity to become part of a GREAT team!”
If you want to join the great time just like Thea, click here to learn more about volunteer opportunities in your community.
