Board Member, Volunteer Brant Daniel Says It’s All About Support

By Kassidy Ketron, Intern

Board Member and Volunteer Brant Daniel said his work with the American Red Cross is all about offering support.

For the past three years, he has been a board member and served on the service delivery committee for the South Plains Regional Chapter.

“We’re there to support the staff, to fundraise, to make sure that financially and just to make sure everybody gets the support they need to carry out their functions,” Daniel said. “Staff-wise, as far as what they need to do to get volunteers, get volunteers plugged in. We’re there to support.”

Not only does he serve on the board, but he has helped respond to a few local disasters.

These experiences were an eye-opener for him, he said.

“You can’t even at that time put yourself in their position, but just to see that they just need to know that somebody’s there to guide them through, to know that they’ll have a place to stay, that they’ll have their basic needs taken care of,” Daniel said. “Just because they’re in a state of shock and to know that there is somebody there to help them through, and to oversee the next few hours and days as they try to get things put back together.”

Often times, he said the public is used to seeing the American Red Cross on TV responding to a large-scale disaster, and may overlook the disasters that occur right down the street.

“We kind of tend to overlook the little things that happen that might not seem like much here, but to the persons involved, I mean, it’s everything and just to know that there’s an organization here that can help see those people through the immediate times,” he said, “to help them get back on their feet and get the immediate needs and concerns taken care of and they’ve got somebody to walk them through that process.”

Not only does Daniel believe disaster response is rewarding, but knowing that he is a part of an organization that does so much to help people.

Whether it’s health and safety training or emergency preparedness, he is proud of what the Red Cross does.

“It’s just that same thing and even the assistance that military families are given, you’ve got the disaster services and just knowing there’s a place in the community that people can get health and safety training,” Daniel said. “Just all the way across the board is just something that is so vital to our community and being prepared as we enter tornado season. There’s preparedness, there’s health and safety, there’s what we do for connecting military families in their time of need, I just appreciate everything that is behind the Red Cross mission.”

He said he also appreciates the work the staff and volunteers put into making the chapter successful and still keep smiles on their faces.

After he was approached to join the board, he said he realized how important it was to take care of local Red Cross chapters, too.

“It’s just the feeling you get knowing that if something happens in the middle of the night anywhere in our 13 county region,” Daniel said, “and I know the same goes on across the country, that there will be somebody there to fulfill that mission of making sure that somebody’s needs are being met.”

This National Volunteer Week, we salute people like Brant, who work hard to offer support to the American Red Cross’ mission. To join Brant and learn about volunteer opportunities, visit redcross.org to start your Red Cross story today.