Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Natalia Murillo | CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti (March 11, 2021) – Camp Lemonnier’s American Red Cross...... read more read more
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She has snacks, toiletries, games and even comic books in her office up in the sky. Free wireless internet access, frozen ice pops, greeting cards, DVDs, the list of goodies goes on. Visiting Kelsey at the American Red Cross office on Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti (CLDJ), gives troops here a chance to stock up on morale-building items and seek solace.
While fun items and delicious treasures are appreciated, Kelsey provides a deeper level of support. As the Station Manager for American Red Cross, Djibouti, Kelsey Smith, a Chicago resident, supports all organizational activities for deployed troops in this area of operations and for military ship crews around the world.
“My primary role is to deliver emergency messages for people at Camp Lemonnier and within the area of operations,” said Kelsey. “From this office we cover the Middle East and Africa.”
In addition to land-based operations, American Red Cross personnel deliver important messages to ships all around the world. Kelsey and her coworkers at other deployment sites work with the military to communicate emergency messages to troops both safely and quickly.
The emergency messages cover a number of different urgent scenarios.
“It could be for emergency financial assistance, or if someone is about to have a baby at home and there are complications or if they want a birth announcement, assaults, deaths, illnesses amongst family, major injuries, or even incarceration of a close family member,” added Kelsey. “It’s a very broad term so anything that the military deems is an emergency and that can be verified is communicated to the service member.”
American Red Cross Emergency messages are sent from home to someone who is deployed by contacting the Hero Care Center at 1-877-272-7337, a military casework line available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“Anyone can seek services from their local Red Cross office,” said Kelsey. “Also, if someone wanted to support this location or reach out to us, they can go to their local office. These are the same offices that provide disaster relief and blood drives. The support staff there will address the donations or emergency messages this way.”
Other priorities for the American Red Cross deployment locations include cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification and recertification classes, first-aid and automated external defibrillator training and volunteer opportunities. Volunteer hours are very limited. Anyone who is interested in updating their certifications or obtaining one for the first time can do so through the office on base. Due to COVID-19 policy and response, in-person courses are temporarily suspended. Online courses are available through the website.
On March 22, 2020, CLDJ went under restricted access to many social locations and American Red Cross had to close its doors. The station manager at that time went home and no replacement was immediately sent to protect the American Red Cross staff and the base’s residents. When Kelsey took her role here in October, 2020, the office had been closed for six months. Since Kelsey’s arrival, troops have been able to request and receive care packages by phone and email. On March 15, 2020, she hosted a soft opening of the office and has been able to rebuild bonds here on base.
CLDJ is a forward operating base that enables U.S., allied and partner nation forces to be where and when they are needed to ensure security in Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia.
Kelsey said that most troops don’t discover her from her second-floor container workspace office and American Red Cross services soon enough and she hopes that more people visit the office upon arrival to Djibouti.
This isn’t Kelsey’s first time to the area nor working with the military.
Kelsey’s inspiration for applying to work with the American Red Cross comes from personal ties and family ties. She served with the Peace Corps in Malawi, has a Master’s degree in international public services from DePaul University and is inspired by her mother, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Shannon Wilson.
“My mom joined the Army when she was 17-years-old,” said Kelsey, smiling and very proud as she speaks about her mother. “I would play in the helicopters in the Chicago Armory where she was a secretary. I was a baby so all the people in her unit would play with me and help babysit while I was crawling around all the equipment and watching the planes land on the flight line at Midway airport. Eventually, my mom became a nurse. She has been in for 36 years and done multiple deployments with the last one being to Kosovo in 2012. She did 31 years with the Army National Guard and then switched to the Army Reserves. She is ready to finally retire.”
Lt. Col Shannon Wilson, who serves as the Regional Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer with the Army Reserves, is currently activated on a COVID-19 mission in Cleveland. When not on military orders, she works as the Region VII Emergency Medical Services Coordinator for the State of Illinois.
While her mother may be done with deployments, this is Kelsey’s first deployment assignment with the American Red Cross—and it’s coming to a close soon. She has made friendships here at CLDJ and is sad that she must leave. She said that she has really enjoyed it and will tell others about it when she gets home.
She looks forward to getting home to Patches, her one-eyed, four-year-old rescue dog.
“I’m a real animal lover,” said Kelsey. “I do everything with Patches. I take him everywhere I can.”
Not only is Kelsey an animal lover and dog owner, but she also fosters dogs. She has worked with a Chicago-based organization called, One Tail at a Time, for a few years and really enjoys it. Kelsey said that while Patches is her dog, he is also the one who teaches the foster dogs that come in how to behave.
Kelsey will soon return to Patches and to her role as Senior Services to the Armed Forces Specialist at the Chicago American Red Cross location.
“I’m going to talk about my experience here and working and living on a military base,” said Kelsey. “Not a lot of people know about Djibouti so I will talk about that too. As a result of COVID shutdowns, there was very little, if any Red Cross presence here on camp and nobody knew about it or what we do. I feel like my greatest accomplishment has been to bring awareness back to the camp. People know they can reach out to us and now know what we are about. It feels good to leave knowing that troops felt like they could reach out to me any day at any time, even in the middle of the night.”
If you ever need to reach the American Red Cross for assistance or want to support their cause, connect with them at any time online at https://www.redcross.org/contact-us.html or by phone at their main line, 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767). For emergency messages to the military installations and ships, contact the Hero Care Center at 1-877-272-7337.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 03.24.2021 10:39 |
| Story ID: | 392171 |
| Location: | DJ |
| Hometown: | CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 283 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
This work, CLDJ American Red Cross Manager Supports Troops, by PO1 Natalia Murillo, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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