Now he has to live with his daughter in cramped conditions. I spent a fair while letting him talk and unload some of his stress and assisted him to various tem- porary housing as well as the Red Cross for cleaning supplies and to get some hot food elsewhere on the site.


A recent immigrant woman in her 70s came back from her elderly mother’s 95th birthday to find herself home- less. Her home of decades was gone. I stayed with her as she finally found temporary housing. She was relieved to be able to talk to someone about her feelings of despair and loss.


One gentleman I talked with said that he was in the middle of a conversation with God as the flood struck. He said their discussion was about giving over his earthly possessions to the event and freeing himself from the sadness of his loss. Though he said he was mainly untouched from the flood, he did need to share his close call and his con- cern for his community’s plight.


14


Our team was variously on site for one, two, or three weeks. Red Cross, the Mission Pos- sible folks and the Samaritans Purse were there for many more weeks. Many people and companies came for the day to help out. Over time, each of these contributions added to a sense of a great endeavor taking place, of belonging to something greater than one- self. There was a palpable sense of a giving community, of grace, and spirit. By volunteer- ing, I was a participant and a beneficiary to all of this.


In hindsight, it was soon over. Like other volunteer missions I have been on, my col- leagues and I experienced heightened and transformational self and other awareness with spiritual and emotional depth. The vol- unteer team, which I was part of, received positive feedback about the care we pro- vided, such as “awesome volunteers”, “hard shoes to fill”, “we want to be like BC’s lite touch” and, “maybe one day we will have to come and help you.” Volunteers came from across Canada. This was recognized by the residents and in itself had a strong healing power.


I have kept in contact with a few of my com- rades. As is often the case, friendships have


VOL. 46 NO. 2 | SPRING 2014 formed through the sharing of such strong


experiences in the service of others. Though I might not see them everyday, I come away with the strong knowledge that I am not alone. There is a renewed awareness of my personal experience in context with others, in the disaster event, in my life, and in the global community. Altruistic service, I believe, allows us to hone our higher nature. We gain perspective about who we are as human beings and it is an admirable means of self- care.


Biographies:


Laleh Skrenes, Ph.D., RCC, CCC, has been working in psychotherapy and counselling psychology in a variety of settings includ- ing private practice, mental health centers, and hospitals for the past 20 years. She also teaches Masters in Counselling Psychol- ogy courses in various universities both in Vancouver and abroad. Her two decades of experience consists of volunteer services on a broad spectrum of clients/patients in not- for-profit organizations both nationally and in- ternationally. She can be reached at Dr.Laleh. Skrenes@gmail.com.


Jack Jardine, BSW, MA, has been a social worker for over 30 years. He is a social entre- preneur, building agencies and programs to help individuals, organizations and communi- ties to better manage their social issues and aspirations. He has recently returned from several years practicing child protection in East London, UK.


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