Central Pennsylvania Red Crosser Forgoes Christmas at Home, Deploys to Tornado-Hit Tennessee

By: Nicole Roschella

  

When Melinda Rosario’s team at The American Red Cross learned powerful storms were headed toward the South and the Midwest, just weeks before Christmas, she knew she would likely deploy to the communities affected by the severe weather.

Rosario, a Disaster Program Specialist with the Central Pennsylvania Chapter, will fly out of Harrisburg International Airport to Nashville, Tennessee on Thursday to serve with the Red Cross in communities affected by the deadly tornadoes. After arriving in Nashville, she will drive two hours west to Martin, Tennessee. She expects to be dispatched to the town of Samburg, which took a direct hit from the storms. Rosario’s deployment will extend through Christmas.

“These folks may not have the holidays they expected but it’s a good reminder that we all need to come together and help each other,” Rosario said. “We’re going to bring some hope and happiness and basic human necessities to people. I don’t need to worry about if I can sit next to the tree. My tree and family will be there when I come back.”

Rosario said when she told her 14-year-old son she would not be home for Christmas, he understood that her job with the Red Cross was more important. 

In Tennessee, Rosario will be focused on recovery, working with the Integrated Care and Condolence Team. She will help people who were hospitalized and the families of those who passed away due to the tornadoes. 

This will be Rosario’s third Red Cross deployment in just 13 months. Around Thanksgiving last year, she helped communities in Oregon that were affected by wildfires. In February of this year, she deployed to Wisconsin to help families who lost everything in a series of apartment fires. Prior to her work with the Red Cross, Rosario has taken mission trips since she was a teenager.

“It’s devastating for the communities who are involved,” Rosario said, “but you really see how people rally together and support each other.”

There will be two special items in her suitcase for this deployment: a gratitude calendar, where she keeps daily notes about what she is thankful for, and a bag of fair-trade coffee from a mission trip partner in Haiti.

“No matter what situation you’re in, there are things you can be grateful for,” Rosario said, “and you want to have good coffee!”

Rosario hopes her story will inspire other people to help those affected by the deadly tornadoes.
“It’s such an easy give. Take an hour to give blood, donate a few dollars or volunteer for a couple of hours. The gift of time is the most important and the most precious,” Rosario said.

You can help people affected by disasters like tornadoes and countless other crises by making a gift to Red Cross Disaster Relief. To make a financial donation or schedule an appointment to give blood or platelets, visit redcross.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS. You can also use the Red Cross Blood Donor app or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 gift today. Every single contribution matters. Your donation is a commitment to helping people in need and enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small.