Turcotte aids Isabel's victims as Red Cross volunteer

by Mary Jo Curtis

Suzanne Turcotte doesn't panic when her phone rings in the middle of the night. She knows it's unlikely to bring news of a family crisis or come from a crank caller.

When she hears that ring, she knows a neighbor needs her help - and that neighbor may be two blocks or several states away.

As part of Red Cross disaster teams since 1985, Turcotte has provided aid to victims of Hurricanes Hugo, Andrew and Bob, as well as those of countless other national and local catastrophes. On her most recent assignment just this semester, she spent two weeks in Virginia with four other local Red Cross volunteers assisting the victims of Hurricane Isabel.

"The timing was right when the call came in, and I was able to take two weeks away from work to go to Virginia," said Turcotte, the manager of Brown's International Programs.

In the past she has worked on the front lines with disaster victims, but this time she was assigned to a phone center, taking calls from victims in Virginia, Delaware, Maryland and Washington, D.C., assessing their needs, connecting them with services and providing them with information.

"The most common calls were about food going bad after power outages," she said. "I directed them to the nearest feeding sites or, if their power was back on, to food pantries. Sometimes they had mental health or medical issues that we referred.

"In the past, I've gone out to the affected areas to do mobile feeding or damage assessment," she continued. "I prefer that - when you're face to face, you can read people better to see if they're OK. It's easier to get their undivided attention on the phone, but it's less personal. You don't get the smiles and hugs that come with being in the field."

Turcotte has served the Red Cross since she was in high school, when she collected donations for the disaster relief organization. She was a paid employee - the director of community development for the Worcester-based central Massachusetts chapter - for five years; when she left that position she became a volunteer.

In 1994, just before moving to Rhode Island and coming to Brown, the single mother of two was named that chapter's Volunteer of the Year. She now volunteers through the Providence chapter of the Red Cross. Over the years she has been called upon to provide relief for as long as the five weeks she spent in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Hugo - and as little as a few hours for local house fires.

"People are always very appreciative," she said. "I just hope someone would be there for my family if they were in need."