April 19-25 is Volunteer Appreciation Week. To celebrate this important week, we are highlighting the people who carry out the important work of the Red Cross---ordinary people who donate their time and talents to help others. If you would like to join their ranks, visit our Volunteer page.

It started with a simple desire to help others after retirement. Five years later, that desire has led Disaster Action Team (DAT) member Tom Poe to one fire after another, and has helped one client after another recover from many disasters.

When you sit down with Tom, you’re instantly at ease with his friendly, laid-back style. “I like volunteering for the Red Cross. It keeps me out of trouble,” he kids. Then he turns serious, “What the Red Cross does is so needed.”

That mixture of friendliness and seriousness that has gotten Tom out of bed in the middle of the night to respond to disasters in the two counties he covers as a member of the DAT. Once on the scene, he assesses the damage and starts assisting the residents. If the fire is big enough, Tom doubles as a caseworker in Family Services, and stays on scene interviewing clients to find out what they need.

It makes for very long days sometimes, but Tom doesn’t seem to mind. Maybe that’s because when he’s not on call for disasters, he relaxes by doing woodworking and traveling with his wife. Their favorite destination is Canada, but Tom says it doesn’t really matter where they go.

“There is beauty in everything,” he says. He uses this philosophy when on the road traveling or at the scene of a disaster. Like recently, he was distributing food baskets to clients from a fire.

“One lady gave me a big hug,” he says and smiles. “That made my day.”

The American Red Cross in Southeastern Wisconsin relies on donations of time and money so they can provide relief to victims of disasters and help people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies in Dodge, Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Walworth and Waukesha counties. To donate your time, please visit our Volunteer page. Financial donations can be made online through our secure contribution site.