The Texas Gulf Coast Red Cross has been working in collaboration with Harris County and the City of Houston to provide shelter to residents of the Houston area who may find themselves without a safe, warm place to stay. Howard Jeger, of Kenowick, Washington, was one of many volunteers helping to staff Red Cross warming centers and shelters during the cold weather this past weekend.

As an organization that relies on volunteers for 90% of its staffing, the Red Cross calls on people from all walks of life to contribute to its various lines of service and carry out everything from running shelters to providing safety training. Stationed at the Bayland Community Center in the Gulfton area of Houston, Howie oversaw resident registration, making sure that people felt welcome as they sought shelter from the cold. 

What makes Howie’s service special is that he travelled across the country to support the relief effort. The Red Cross frequently deploys people to assist with its operations in different parts of the country, for example: before or after an extreme cold event or natural disaster. When speaking to Howie, one notices that he has a unique sense of duty, and prioritizes service to others. This is further made evident by his willingness to deploy to Houston during its moment of need. 

Howie has been volunteering with the Red Cross for a little more than a year. He was inspired to join the organization during last year’s Palisades Fire in California. Howie shared that when the local fire captain in Kenowick went to help fight fires in California, he wanted to pitch in. He offered to take care of the firehouse in the captain’s absence–cooking, polishing the fire engine or walking the dalmatians. Since he was so passionate about wanting to help, the captain, who happened to be a local Red Cross board member, recommended he join the organization. 

Since then, Howie has been an active volunteer. “There’s been no looking back. It’s the best organization I’ve ever joined.” Howie has been trained by the Red Cross and specializes in sheltering, food, and transportation. He makes his skills available to the organization and was ready to deploy with little notice. He explained: “So the call came out on Thursday, asking me if I was available to come down to Houston and I said sure absolutely, and here we are.” 

Howie assisted the Red Cross in providing blankets, food, and comfort to residents. Simply put, he and the team were there to “make sure everybody [was] fed, make sure everybody [was] happy. and then also provide them assistance with any type of social needs.”

When asked what he might have to say to someone who’s interested in volunteering or supporting the work of the Red Cross, Howie said: “The fulfillment that comes with it is beyond description…We need anybody and everybody. There’s skills that we need that you probably don’t even know you have. You don’t necessarily need to deploy. We need people for a multitude of needs and we train for them. Right now, we have a little over 2,000 courses that are free that we will train you. Please, please, please join.” 

To learn more about how you can support the Red Cross and its mission, please visit redcross.org. 

Story By: Albert Connolly