I’ve been here for about half of my three-week assignment, and my days have developed a routine. Lights go on at 6:00 a.m. in the gym, but I am usually awakened by someone’s alarm at 5:30 a.m. If the number staying at the staff shelter is light, I’ll take my shower in the morning. There have been nearly 100 staying here for the last few days and I’ve taken my shower in the evening when there are no lines.

My cot is at the very rear of the gym, next to two basketball net stands that make a handy place to put my bag and hang up clothes. We were told to bring a sleeping pad and light-weight sleeping bag, but there was no room in my bag for the sleeping bag and I left it at home. Instead I brought a double-bed sheet and a backpacking air mattress. The air mattress goes on the cot, and then I fold the sheet so that I have a top and bottom to slip in between. There are lots of woolen blankets from Japan, and I spread two of them on top of the cot and am set for the night. The temperature in the gym is usually set on the cool side, so two woolen blankets are about right.

The shelter managers have scrounged up a big basket of towels and washcloths for anyone to use. Also they have an assortment of toothpaste, shaving crème, shampoo, etc available in the bathrooms. I found a pillow that someone had brought and left behind, and immediately claimed it for my own.

In the morning I fold up my blankets and sheet and pile everything on my cot. The bag goes underneath and I push it all to the back of the gym. My space is then “reserved” for the next night.

At the back of the gym are two large folding screens set up as separate changing areas for men and women. Other than that nicety and separate bathrooms for women and men the rest of the facility makes no distinction. You could say that I’ve been sleeping with 50 women or more every night while I’m here.

Breakfast in the dining room is an assortment of cold cereals and fruit, coffee and juice, bagels and toast. It is strictly a serve-yourself operation to prepare, serve and clean up after yourself. The shelter managers keep a good supply of food and snacks on hand, and the coffee pots are always full and hot.

I try to get on the road about 6:30 a.m. to get into headquarters about 7:00 a.m. There are usually several people who need a ride and the car is usually full. Some are newly arrived volunteers going in to get their assignment, while others are assigned to headquarters and will be coming back to the staff shelter at the end of each day.

The work day begins

We have a daily staff meeting at 7:30 a.m. and go over the events of the previous day and check assignments for today. The writers and photographers have their own separate meeting right after where we talk about story ideas, make assignments and discuss leads. People then depart for the day to wherever their assignments take them. Usually a writer and photographer go out on assignments together, and I have been teamed with Tom Jacobson a professional photographer from Wisconsin.

Others stay at headquarters handling other duties. In Public Affairs we have an administrative aid and a couple of fund raising specialists, in addition to several folks that handle media queries. In addition to the staff at headquarters there is Public Affairs staff at each of the major shelters or area headquarters. When I go into the field I try to coordinate with them, since they are usually very close to the shelter operations and our clients in the shelters.

If there are draft stories to print out and edit, I’ll do that before leaving on assignments. Tom will work on his photos from the previous day’s shooting while I turn interview notes into stories. I usually have one of the other writers edit the drafts of my stories before turning them into Jack Papp, our team leader, for his edits and approvals. Once articles are approved I send them electronically to the American Red Cross headquarters in Washington, D.C. Photos are similarly shipped off. There articles and photos are edited and then posted on the American Red Cross website. Other stories go into a local newsletter that we produce, or are the basis for local press releases.

Field assignments

Depending on where we go to pursue stories, we’ll be gone most of the day. The work in Public Affairs is fascinating and rewarding, especially when I get to interview disaster survivors and hear their stories. But it is also exhausting, between the traveling and the late-night writing. There are never enough hours in the day.

Usually it is late when we return to Baton Rouge from wherever we have been traveling, and we’ll go directly to our staff shelter. There we’ll clean up, take a shower, go out to get a bite to eat, and set up the computers.

I try to go over my handwritten notes from the day and organize them into stories. The average story for the Red Cross is 300 to 1,000 words, and emphasizes the work that is being done to relieve the suffering of Hurricane Katrina victims. Tom sets up next to me at a table in the dining room and works on his photos. Together we select photos to go with the stories, he will edit and crop them, and then burn a CD for me so that I can prepare a file with the photo captions.

Today my laundry was waiting for me when I got back from the road. It had all been cleaned and pressed and folded by one of the church families from our shelter. Enclosed with the laundry was a note: “God bless you! Thank you for helping us here in LA!”

I was touched, and a little embarrassed. It is us who should be thanking these fine folks for putting us up, not them to us.”

Lights out

Headquarters pretty much closes down around 6:30 or 7:00 p.m. People return to the shelter at the end of their work day and sit around relaxing. Some lie on their cots in the gym and read or work on their daily journals. Some go jogging, and many just socialize in the dining room or watch television. The most popular programs are new channels with stories about Hurricanes Katrina or Rita. There is usually a van or two available to take people to dinner at one of the restaurants nearby, and sometimes there is food for supper at the shelter.

Lights in the gym are turned out promptly at 10:00 p.m., and most turn in for the night. There will be a few night-owls in the dining room, and usually Tom and I stay up until about midnight working on articles. When we finally call it quits I have to use my flashlight to find my cot in the darkened gym. Sleep normally comes easily, although I often use ear plugs. There are always at least a few heavy snorers in the gang sleeping there. Tomorrow morning will come too early.