Satisfaction in helping others found through Red Cross
You can never generalize when it comes to disasters, says Mike Masotti.
“There’s never one the same as another, something always comes up.”
Masotti, a Canadian Red Cross disaster management volunteer, says what may be the same in a disaster situation — locally, nationally or internationally — is the experience of being displaced, whether it’s just one person or thousands affected by some type of event.
And dealing people displaced by disaster is one of things the Pelham resident did while in Ashcroft, B. C. earlier this year. The largely Indigenous community was hit hard by a wildfire, with tens of thousands of acres and hundreds of homes lost.
“I was originally called out to work in a shelter as a responder. But the nature of disasters is usually you have to be very flexible. I ended up being a supervisor on an outreach team,” says Masotti, who is trained in disaster management and assessing people’s needs. Masotti and the team he worked with dealt with people who were ordered from their homes due to the wildfire. Helping those people get money, shelter, food, connect with family and access any and all other types of relief.
“I wasn’t personally involved, but some of the people on my team worked on the safety and well- being of those residents. There’s a lot of emotional stress involved in disaster.”
Masotti says it was a very busy two weeks in Ashcroft, and that he could have gone back to help out, but had to go back to work at his day job as a teacher.
During the Fort McMurray fires last year, he was teaching and not able to head to the area to assist people in need. Instead, he did casework locally with people displaced by the fire.
“Sometimes you travel and sometimes you stay put.”
In addition to the Ashcroft fire, Masotti worked with the Red Cross in Calgary during flooding in 2013. Closer to home, he helped out in Burlington during flooding in that city and has worked at fire scenes in Niagara where people have lost their homes.
Conducting a needs assessment, seeing what people need in the first 72 hours, putting them in touch with the right agencies and checking to see if they need counselling all comes into play during a disaster, he says.
Masotti, one of a few Red Cross volunteers presented with service and milestone certificates in October, says being part of the organization is one of the best things he’s ever done in his life.
“On a personal level, I love working with people who are there for the right reasons. They want to help in any way they can. It’s a great chance to give back. It could be any one of us at any time ( in need).”
Masotti says there’s no better satisfaction than seeing a sense of relief on a person’s face.
“They know someone is there to help, someone is on their side.”
Anyone who wants to become involved with the Red Cross can check redcross. ca or visit the Niagara branch at 11 Export Dr. in St. Catharines.