"THE RED CROSS WAS ON MY PORCH"   “You hear about the Red Cross in other countries, helping in war-riddled places,” says Frances Fullmer. “And then all of a sudden, the Red Cross was on my porch.”   Fran was at work and her daughter, Kathleen Rodriguez, was out on the summer evening when faulty wiring in their rented Beacon Hill home caught fire. The fire department put out the blaze before it spread far, but the thick smoke killed Kathleen and Fran’s cat and destroyed almost everything they owned.   A Red Cross Disaster Action Team immediately responded to the scene. “I was in shock,” Kathleen remembers. “Then the Red Cross showed up with their laptop and their lists. They had a [debit] card we could use for new clothes and had a hotel already lined up.”   The next morning Kathleen and Fran were able to retrieve critical medical supplies from the house, but found that the house was uninhabitable. Their clothes were destroyed, as well as their household goods and Fran’s collection of 250 movies. The only piece of furniture they could save was an antique rocking chair, which despite repeated washing still carries a smoky smell.   Kathleen is usually a “take charge” person, but in the middle of a disaster she didn’t know where to start. “The Red Cross gave us references and told us what we would need. I didn’t even know where to begin looking for help… but [as days went by] I just went down their list and made calls.”   Kathleen and Fran had exhausted their savings, and they had some blemishes on their credit history. They couldn’t afford a rental deposit, and thought they’d have to take cash advances and go further in debt just to have shelter. But in their follow-up meeting with Red Cross caseworkers, Kathleen and Fran discovered that they were not alone. To their delight, the Red Cross provided the deposit and first month’s rent for a new, more affordable apartment. Fran and Kathleen moved out of the motel and into their new home just a week after the fire.   “I’m used to giving, not receiving,” Kathleen says. “But a lot of people came out of nowhere. Those two volunteers met us in the dark of night, holding flashlights so that they could finish paperwork at ten o’clock. They took care of us and kept us grounded…. And the Red Cross kept checking in and stayed in contact. They had a ‘can do,’ positive, proactive attitude toward everything we faced. They gave me something to stand on [while I] put my life back together.”     On average, the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties responds to an emergency like this every 48 hours. All Red Cross assistance is free. Click here to find out more about our disaster relief services, or make a donation to help us support families like Fran and Kathleen.

“I don’t remember the names of the two people, but I would love to say thank you. We love you. They were so kind. So hard-working. So understanding. They seemed to know what we needed before we needed it. They knew we weren’t thinking straight. And they took care of us and kept us grounded.” - Kathleen Rodriguez