CAMARILLO : Red Cross Honors Volunteer of Year

Joan Coombs-Rabuano does not consider herself a thrill-seeker. But over the past eight years, the 53-year-old Camarillo resident has rushed to the scene of some of the worst natural disasters in Southern California.

As a disaster-relief volunteer for the Ventura County chapter of the American Red Cross, Coombs-Rabuano routinely exposes herself to danger. In June, 1990, for example, she found herself near the fire line in Ojai. Only a strip of road separated her and other volunteers from advancing flames.

She has had similar experiences helping victims of Santa Barbara’s Painted Cave fire last summer, the Whittier earthquake in October, 1987, and the Malibu fire in 1982.

“It’s just part of the job,” she said.

Although she doesn’t get paid by the Red Cross, Coombs-Rabuano, a registered nurse, often works as hard and as long as she would in a regular job.

In addition to disaster relief, she coaches other volunteers and helps provide support to military families based at Port Hueneme and Point Mugu.

In recognition of her efforts, the Ventura County Red Cross recently named her its volunteer of the year.

But Coombs-Rabuano, whose soft voice still has a trace of an accent from Boston, which she and her husband left 22 years ago, said she never expected any recognition.

After starting as a Red Cross blood bank nurse, Coombs-Rabuano first helped disaster victims during the 1982 Malibu fire, which destroyed several hundred homes. She’s been chasing floods, fires and earthquakes ever since.

Disaster relief is rewarding because “you’re helping those who are really in dire straits,” she said.

The Red Cross often helps disaster victims find temporary housing, but Coombs-Rabuano is part of the team that meets the less-visible needs. The health services team may fill insulin prescriptions for diabetics, replace eyeglasses or refer people to mental health counselors.

The Red Cross means most to disaster victims who don’t have insurance or nearby relatives to help out, which Coombs-Rabuano said is one reason she is so dedicated to the relief agency.

“I firmly believe in the principles on which the Red Cross is founded--neutrality, universality, all men are created equal, that sort of thing. We try to treat everyone equally, no matter whether they’re rich or poor.”