``NORMAL PEOPLE LEAVE DISASTERS. WE FLY INTO THEM.''; VALLEY VOLUNTEERS RESPOND TO FLOOD VICTIMS.Byline: Dennis McCarthy Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
Frank Glorioso was painting the town red Sunday night Sunday Night, later named Michelob Presents Night Music, was an NBC late-night television show which aired for two seasons between 1988 and 1990 as a showcase for jazz and eclectic musical artists. in Fargo, N.D. He was playing bingo at the local hotel. ``Man, I can't wait to drive out to the Chart House in Malibu for a good steak,'' Glorioso said by phone Monday morning when we talked. ``A couple of more days and I'll finally be home.'' That's good news on two fronts. For Glorioso, it means his own bed and a good steak - until the Red Cross phones his Agoura Hills home asking if he's available to respond to another disaster. And for the Red River flood victims of North Dakota North Dakota, state in the N central United States. It is bordered by Minnesota, across the Red River of the North (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N). and Minnesota, it means the disaster has wound down to a point where the Red Cross can finally leave. Glorioso, owner of a local communications technology Noun 1. communications technology - the activity of designing and constructing and maintaining communication systems engineering, technology - the practical application of science to commerce or industry firm, is one of a handful of San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. residents who did us proud during the great floods of '97. Volunteers who dropped what they were doing and left their families and jobs for three weeks or more to help coordinate Red Cross efforts to help hundreds of thousands of victims survive the devastating dev·as·tate tr.v. dev·as·tat·ed, dev·as·tat·ing, dev·as·tates 1. To lay waste; destroy. 2. To overwhelm; confound; stun: was devastated by the rude remark. flooding. Local people like Nancy Marks and Frank Chew from Canoga Park, Lyssa Kerridwynn from Sylmar, and Bill Frazer from Mission Hills. People like Charles Smith Charles Smith may refer to: In basketball:
People who can't seem to say no when the phone rings and the voice on the other end of the line says some people you don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. in another part of the country need your help. Can you come? Sure. The phone call to Frank Glorioso's home came on April 8. There was a small job up in North Dakota that needed a communications expert. Could Frank take a look? It shouldn't be too tough or long. Yeah, right, Glorioso says Monday, laughing. ``In the beginning, it was considered a small job, but that changed very quickly. By April 17, we were evacuating 45,000 people from Grand Fork. ``It wasn't a small job anymore. It was a high-level disaster now.'' Glorioso was responsible for setting up communications for the Red Cross workers on the job - getting them the cell phones, pagers, hand-held radios and everything they needed to help people in utter disarray as the floodwaters overwhelmed their lives. ``I'd be out there in the middle of it all, and I'd look over and see someone I recognized from home, the Valley,'' Glorioso said. ``We'd just look at each other and smile and get on with our work. ``It's hard to say what draws us to this kind of volunteer work, but a large part of it has to be the helping people and seeing the immediate results of your efforts,'' Glorioso said. ``It's very gratifying grat·i·fy tr.v. grat·i·fied, grat·i·fy·ing, grat·i·fies 1. To please or satisfy: His achievement gratified his father. See Synonyms at please. 2. . You're seeing a town and its people at their worst, and you're helping them deal with it. ``Normal people leave disasters. We fly into them. I guess it tells you the caliber of person volunteering for disaster duty with the Red Cross.'' Yeah, it does. High-quality caliber. Bill Frazer and David Ceron getting food and shelter to flood victims and emergency workers on a daily basis. Lyssa Kerridwynn, family service specialist, meeting one-on-one with individuals and families to get them immediate emergency assistance. Frank Chew working with local community mental health providers to ensure that the emotional needs of the victims were being looked after as well. Nancy Marks, Jay Brara and Charles Smith, damage assessment technicians, charting the size and scope of the flooding and the level of damage to dwellings. Frank Glorioso, communications officer, making sure everybody stayed in touch. The TV is on in Glorioso's hotel room Monday morning. He's watching the weather channel. He does that a lot, wherever he goes. Since Jan. 3, he's been home exactly 11 days, and it looks like he might be packing his bags again - only a few days after unpacking them. June 1 starts the hurricane season Hurricane season refers to a period in a year when hurricanes usually form. For more information see: Tropical cyclone#Times of formation. For a lists of past seasons, see:
A tropical cyclone having sustained surface winds less than 39 mi (63 km) per hour. See Note at cyclone. is moving toward the southern tip of Mexico, the weather forecaster is saying. Glorioso sighs. With some luck, he might catch a few nights' sleep in his own bed and a good steak before the phone rings again, and a voice on the other end of the line says some people he doesn't know need his help. Can he come? Sure. |
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