Lending a Hand After the Storms

Their names are benign enough--Earl, Georges, Mitch--but to Red Cross worker H. Frank Chew, their mere mention sends him packing. Literally.

As hurricane season rolled into the Southeast and the Caribbean in September, the 74-year-old psychologist dusted off his suitcase, anticipating a call for assistance in the storm-ravaged area.

After Georges slammed into the Florida coast, Chew and his fellow Red Cross volunteers arrived on the scene to spend 21 days traveling among Tavernier Key, Key West and Miami, assessing the needs of families whose lives had been turned upside down.

“This work is difficult, but also rewarding,” the Canoga Park resident said. “I get the chance to be part of a team that comes from all over the United States to help families get their lives back together. I’ve met so many interesting people. It’s quite rewarding.”

Rewarding, yes, but sometimes draining as well, Chew said.

“Tornado sites are the hardest,” said the relief worker, who last April spent 10 days in central Alabama assisting clients who were exceptionally hard-hit by a series of deadly twisters. “The damage from them is the most traumatic, as though a bomb has been dropped.”

Chew and a team of Red Cross mental health volunteers descended on the devastated southern towns. They offered immediate, short-term crisis counseling to families, as well as long-term assistance, such as setting up mental-health contacts for clients who needed psychological help after the Red Cross workers left the scene.

Recalling a pivotal event in the Alabama relief operation, Chew said he counseled a storm survivor who had experienced the trauma of moving the bodies of loved ones around his house as the twister ripped through his property.

“We had to help him deal with his experience of loss of life of family members, issues most people aren’t ready to deal with so soon,” Chew said. “It can be quite stressful.”

Chew, who served in the Navy’s Hospital Corps in the Pacific during and after World War II, said he is accustomed to dealing with stressful situations.

Following his four-year Navy stint, the New Jersey native began work toward a bachelor’s degree at San Diego State University, but interrupted his undergraduate education for a two-year tour of service in Korea. The veteran returned in 1953 to San Diego State, where he earned a master’s degree in psychology three years later.

Following graduation, Chew worked as a social scientist and computer specialist for the Rand Corporation in Santa Monica for 15 years. Then, in 1970, he joined the faculty of USC, where he served as director of an adult education program, among other posts.

The married father of two retired in 1990, and signed on as a Red Cross volunteer in 1996.

“Frank goes to disasters on a moment’s notice, and can remain calm and compassionate with the clients even in the most stressful situations,” said Red Cross crisis counselor Dusty Bowencamp.

Chew’s first call in 1996 took him to North Carolina, where he assisted Hurricane Fran victims. Twelve national disasters later--including tornadoes, floods and fires--Chew keeps his bags packed, ready to lend a hand whenever he’s needed.

“I’ve learned to roll with the punches and to be flexible,” the volunteer said. “I like the sense of camaraderie I get from this work. That and a sense that we’re making a difference in someone’s life.”

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