There for us on our worst day

By Ashley Peterson-DeLuca

When a disaster strikes, like destructive winds from a spring tornado or a nighttime house fire, the immediate needs are obvious: food, clothing and a safe place to sleep. But the long road to getting back to normal requires a different kind of ongoing support.

It is the mission of the Nebraska-Iowa Red Cross Client Care Team, an integrated group of staff and volunteers, to ensure that when a family loses everything, they aren’t alone as they rebuild.

Shanie Bockmann

Shanie Bockmann, Regional Client Care Manager, emphasizes that empowerment is the foundation of their work: “Ultimately, we want them to be empowered to advocate for their own recovery. We are an objective third party who can point them in the right direction.”

Bockmann, who has a background in social work, oversees a team of caseworkers, health workers, and spiritual and mental health specialists across Iowa and Nebraska. They rotate on-call shifts, ensuring that every family affected by a disaster receives a call within 24 hours.

“For most of the people we work with, they have just experienced the worst day of their life,” she explains. “We approach our conversations with empathy and understanding of this as we explain who we are, the framework for how we can help, and what they can expect next. That’s huge.”

One of the first things a Red Cross caseworker does is evaluate the family's needs, whether physical, medical, mental, or spiritual and connect them to specialists.

When a home is destroyed, life-saving essentials often go with it. That’s when the Disaster Health Services (DHS) team is called in.

Sue Hensley

“We need to move quickly,” says Sue Hensley, lead for the regional DHS team. “You can’t mess around when you need to replace insulin or a wheelchair.”

Hensley oversees nearly 40 volunteers, mostly veteran nurses like herself or other medical professionals, who help jumpstart the process of replacing essentials like medicine, mobility aids, glasses or other medical equipment.

If the clients have experienced a fatality in the family, caseworkers can tap in members of the Integrated Care Condolence Team (ICCT). The ICCT is a specially trained group of individuals who have additional knowledge and experience in dealing with the trauma associated with this type of loss.

Greg Smith, a retired minister and Disaster Spiritual Care Manager, helps survivors navigate the deeper questions of identity and loss.

Greg Smith

“Disasters disrupt a person’s sense of meaning,” Smith explains. “If we only meet physical needs, we’re only doing part of the work.”

He adds: “It’s not about religion—it’s about helping people process loss, reconnect with what matters most, and begin to make sense of what they’ve been through.”

Smith’s approach is rooted in presence before answers. He recalls a survivor who seemed composed while filing paperwork but eventually broke down under the weight of survivor's guilt. By simply sitting with them and letting them speak the unspoken, the burden shifted.

“That’s what spiritual care looks like,” Smith says. “Quiet, human and deeply meaningful.”

Are you ready to make a difference in your community? 

Whether you have a medical background like Hensley, a pastoral heart like Smith or a desire to lead like Bockmann, there is a place for you. Join our team at redcross.org/volunteer