|
Red Cross Brings Mother and Son Team Together to Provide Emergency Relief
by Sharon Alfred
Friday, January 02, 2009 — Eleanor Morgan, and her son, Jack, have always done volunteer work for the American Red Cross. They have more than 50 years of Red Cross volunteering between the two of them.
The impressive volunteer team of mother and son, Eleanor and Jack Morgan, are pictured here (going from left to right): with Eleanor Morgan, veteran Red Cross disaster volunteer (pictured on far left); Wisconsin Governor James Doyle, Jr. (pictured in the left center); Jack Morgan, experienced Red Cross disaster volunteer and CEO of the American Red Cross Northeast Florida Chapter (pictured in right center) and Glenn Lockwood, the Disaster Officer and Job Director for the Wisconsin Floods (pictured on far right).
|
Eleanor Morgan has been volunteering with the Red Cross since 1985. She remarked, “I am a national Red Cross instructor, and always available to teach at my chapter and other local chapters. The Red Cross has been a huge part of my life.”
Her son, Jack Morgan, is also a long-time Red Cross volunteer with the Red Cross. In May 2005, he became the CEO for the American Red Cross’ Northeast Florida Chapter. But, this didn’t stop him from being a member of the Disaster Services Human Resource (DSHR) team. He jumped at the chance of being able to help with the flood situation in Madison, Wisconsin because his mother was assigned there too. He said, “It was the first time in 25 years that we were assigned to the same DR.”
Eleanor likes for her co-workers to call her El. She stated, "If they don't call me El, they call me Mom." Of course, Jack (Morgan), a retired bank executive and her son, calls her Mom. At the assignment in Wisconsin, El endured endless teasing from remarks such as “Oh, is this Bring-Your-Son-To-Work Day today?” But through it all, El just smiled and happily went about her tasks, "because of the (grateful) expressions on people's (the flood victims) faces ... because of the (thank you) notes ... the letters ... the hugs. And yes, in this case because she had the opportunity to work with her son. And, Jack felt the same way.
Although Jack is an experienced relief worker with more than 20 years of Red Cross volunteering to his own name, he is among the believers of "Mother knows best.” Jack worked incredibly hard to give assistance to those victims suffering from the high-water floodings, but he wisely said that "if you go out and work with your mom, they're still the boss and they know a lot more than you do."
El and Jack are both back in their homes in Florida. Especially during hurricane season, they remain prepared to be sent out on disaster services emergency assignments. Perhaps they'll get the chance to work together at another deploy locale. But no matter if they are working alone or together again, El and Jack are ready and willing to help wherever they are needed most.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of disasters; provides nearly half of the nation's blood supply; teaches lifesaving skills; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization – not a government agency – and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its humanitarian mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at www.redcrosschat.org.
Related Content:
|
