Built for the Moment
Updated: 6 days ago
Catholic Charities Eastern Washington’s Crisis Response Team jumped into action within 90 minutes after the Spokane Complex fires started to whip into an inferno on Aug. 1.
Leaders knew from the start, this would be a high-impact event.
"We were built for this moment," said Rob McCann, President/CEO of CCEW. "We knew we'd be in it for the long-haul to walk this hard path with our brothers and sisters across the community.”
While CCEW is equipped to respond to most emergency situations, a disaster of this magnitude also required some expert assistance as the agency mapped out a plan to support neighbors.
This is why CCUSA’s Vice President of Disaster Operations, Kim Burgo, and the former director of CC Hawaii, Rob Van Tassell – with firsthand experience dealing with the devastating Maui fires - immediately mobilized to Spokane to provide critical, best practice guidance.
“Working with the local agencies we can get into the local communities and see what folks who have been affected are up against,” said Burgo, who has assessed natural disasters all over the country. “The local agency can take that information and is then able to build their response.”
Burgo, who is FEMA-certified, and Van Tassell’s input proved valuable in those first few weeks, but as the days unfolded, it would be clear long-term support – for CCEW and more importantly the clients who needed services – would be necessary.
A key need? Case managers with disaster relief expertise who could reach out to the massive list of people impacted by the sweeping fires.
CCUSA provided virtual phone support for a few weeks, but two workers from other Catholic Charities agencies were deployed to Spokane to provide critical reinforcements.
“I think the folks we’ve called, they see hope,” said Eddie DeAnda from Northern Valley Catholic Social Services in Chico, Calif.
DeAnda and Stacey Menser with Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Owensboro, Ky., are part of the cadre CCUSA deploys around the country to assist local agencies. The pair visited Spokane for a week to assess damage, offer their insights and call people who had earlier sought aid at the Disaster Assistance Center at a local high school.
“We started off familiarizing ourselves with the community and what resources were already here,” said Menser. “So, we’ve done a lot of referrals to partner organizations like the Worthy Grant and Goodwill, making sure that as many people know what resources are available to them now and give them expectations about what Catholic Charities will be offering in the future.”
The biggest take-away? Catholic Charities’ strength is well suited to help people impacted by the fires.
“The folks I talk to, it gives them hope that there’s an organization, Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington, that’s going to be there – not just right now during the honeymoon phase, they’re going to be there after that,” said DeAnda. “They are going to be there during all the hard times, and the hard times are coming. Right now, it is very hard, but it is going to get harder.”
Menser says those phone calls and conversations are critical early on in the process when people want to be seen and heard as an individual.
“I think one thing that is important is the language that we use. We never refer to someone as a wildfire victim but a survivor. And I think it has given them a chance to have someone with compassion listen to their needs without judgement. And then encourage them by using that language but also giving them the power to reach out and find resources on their own.”
Burgo, with CCUSA, knows more than anyone that this personal approach will ultimately be the difference for people as they travel on the road to recovery: “Any disaster that happens is a disaster to the people it happens to, and so we want to make sure we respect the dignity of every person and give them what they need to recover.”
Learn more at https://www.cceasternwa.org/fire-assistance
