Many of you know that I spent some time taking Red Cross disaster classes earlier this summer. I was able to help staff the Red Cross call center hotline for Hurricane Dennis and placed some calls to people whose houses or apartments had burned down in the Denver area to make sure they had received the assistance they needed. Overall it was very interesting and satisfying. The volunteers are fun to talk to and have unbelievable stories from all the disasters they have seen. When Hurricane Katrina hit I felt as many people did – completely stunned and shattered at the pathetic response (government response that is). It’s important to emotionally hold it together when dealing with disaster survivors and I felt so emotional myself I had a hard time figuring out how I could help and keep it together myself.
After a little investigation I discovered a closed military base in Denver had taken in several hundred evacuees. Yesterday, I was able to put in an eight hour shift with the Salvation Army whose mission was to feed the hundreds of evacuees, volunteers, and police officers at the base. I ended up as one of three people who manned the mobile feeding kitchens (the bases kitchens are not up and running yet). Before you ask, no, I did not really cook much 
, I did more food prep and seasoning. We served roast beef, KFC chicken, diced potatoes, carrots, and corn on the cob. The mobile kitchens were very efficient with gigantic burners and pots to work with, several forms of ovens and warmers, and refrigerated units all over the place. I guess it was like a highly efficient RV with every available space being used for something. A lot of what I did was communicate with the servers. You’re low on carrots – ok let me get you some – ooh we’re out of corn – damn the corn takes so long! It wasn’t rocket science, but it was great to see a group of people getting and eating some food that I helped provide.