The American Red Cross Northwest Wisconsin Chapter is looking for more volunteers to help in times of crisis. When disaster strikes, whether it’s a home fire, flood, or storm, the Red Cross Disaster Action Team (DAT) is first on the scene, offering comfort, essentials, and hope. We are urgently seeking compassionate and dependable volunteers to join this critical team.

Become a Lifeline in Your Community – Volunteer with
the American Red Cross Disaster Action Team. When disaster strikes, whether it’s a home fire,
flood, or storm, the Red Cross Disaster Action Team (DAT) is first on the scene, offering
comfort, essentials, and hope. The Red Cross of Northwest Wisconsin is urgently seeking
compassionate and dependable volunteers to join this critical team.
As a DAT volunteer, you’ll be trained to respond to emergencies, support families in crisis, and
make a meaningful impact while gaining valuable experience and being part of a caring
community. Be there when it matters most. Volunteer today.
Mike and Cathy Stevens of New Richmond, Wisconsin, will celebrate 51 years of marriage next
month, and near the end of the year, they’ll also mark eight years of volunteer service with the
Red Cross Northwest Wisconsin Chapter. Longtime volunteers with DAT, this devoted duo has
become a steady presence in times of crisis, offering comfort and compassion to neighbors
throughout Wisconsin and beyond.
Their Red Cross journey began not long after Cathy retired from a long and fulfilling nursing
career. “I’m a retired nurse,” she explains. “When I graduated from college, I even considered
the Peace Corps. So, when I retired from nursing, I just didn’t think I could walk away from a
profession like that without doing something for a humanitarian organization.”
Caregiving has always come naturally for Cathy. She spent years working overnight shifts in
hospitals, rotating through nearly every department, she also taught in local schools.
Volunteering with the Red Cross was a new way to continue serving others – and Mike, equally
community-minded, decided to join her. “We had no idea what we were getting into,” he
admitted with a laugh. “We didn’t realize how much the Red Cross really did.”
They would go on to be trained in everything, from comforting families after a fire to sheltering
evacuees during national emergencies and driving Emergency Response Vehicles (ERV). Since
becoming volunteers with DAT, the couple has responded to countless home fires across the
state, provided overnight shelter during emergencies, and deployed across the country for
national disaster relief. Mike has responded to two home fires just this week.
When it comes to their work as disaster volunteers, the Stevens are driven by kindness.
“Somebody needs to be there to show these people compassion… a friendly face. And now that
we can give hugs again, it’s wonderful.”
Their deployments have taken them far beyond their hometown – sheltering hurricane survivors
in Florida, helping during Oregon’s wildfires, and providing virtual casework for veterans during

the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, they pulled an overnight shift after a large
apartment fire broke out in Eau Claire, helping to care for nearly 20 displaced residents, many of
them with disabilities.
Since Cathy spent most of her nursing career working graveyard shifts, she was already well-
prepared to handle situations like this as a volunteer. “Most of the people there were elderly or
disabled, and they just needed someone to be there and care for them,” recalls Mike.
While the couple has dozens of stories from the field, one that stands out happened during the
pandemic in Oregon. At the time, traditional group shelters weren’t possible so, evacuees were
put up in hotels. The Stevens, alongside other Red Cross volunteers, set up an outdoor supply
hub in the parking lot.
“We got to know some of the folks really well,” Cathy recalls. “And when it was time for us to
leave, they actually threw rice at our car and cheered for us to come back.” For both Mike and
Cathy, volunteering is about giving back and setting an example. “The Red Cross gives us the
opportunity to do something meaningful,” Mike says. “It’s one of the best causes out there.”
They hope their example inspires others, including their six grandchildren, who range in age
from 6 to 21. “We were even featured in one of their school essays about volunteering,” Cathy
says.
Looking back on their decades together, and their years of Red Cross service, the Stevens say
they feel grateful for the opportunity to make a difference. “This is a humanitarian organization
that truly lives its values,” Cathy says. “When I read the Red Cross code of ethics for the first
time, I knew it was exactly what I wanted to be part of.”
Mike says all the Red Cross volunteers they’ve met follow that same code of ethics. “They’re
wonderful people doing wonderful work,” he says.
If you want to make a difference in the lives of others, consider putting on a red vest and
joining us https://www.redcross.org/local/wisconsin/volunteer.html.
About the American Red Cross: 
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies
about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international
humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is
a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public
to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or
CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.