Bringing Welcome Relief: Ann Kuchins '67

It took Red Cross volunteer Ann Kuchins ’67 four days to get to Guam—and only then on a military transport plane. Ann was part of the disaster response team that deployed to the island territory after Typhoon Mawar hit in May, the strongest storm to sweep through the area in 20 years. With buildings flooded or ripped apart, power out, and debris everywhere, Ann and her fellow volunteers got to work setting up the area’s first emergency shelter, where they would provide beds, meals, and other types of assistance over the next few weeks.

This is Ann in her element. Since joining the Red Cross Bay Area Chapter nearly seven years ago, she has assisted in response to wildfires and extreme weather in California and Oregon, Hurricane Ian in Florida, and most recently to the storm in Guam. She has served in a number of roles, including in leadership positions, mostly related to managing shelters and providing financial assistance to people affected by disasters. Last spring, she received the Volunteer of the Year Award for 2022 for the Northern California Coastal Region, which consists of five chapters that serve more than 10 million people. “There are so many people who do so much for the Red Cross, who give so much of themselves, that it was just amazing to receive this award,” says Ann, who notes that 90 percent of Red Cross workers are volunteers.

After graduating from Santa Catalina, Ann earned a B.A. in history from UC Berkeley and began her first career as a high school teacher. She taught social studies and drama, took a break to pursue acting in New York City, then returned to the Bay Area to earn master’s degrees in counseling and theatre arts from San Francisco State University. She worked as a school counselor and teacher for a number of years before embarking on a second career as a technical writer so she could devote more time to acting and directing in regional theatre.

When she retired, Ann wanted to get involved with something that would make a difference in people’s lives. She attributes that drive, at least in part, to Sister Mary Kieran, Santa Catalina’s first head of school. “That’s her spirit living within me and wanting to live up to what she wanted for all of us—to be a giving individual,” Ann says. As she looked into the Red Cross, she became intrigued by the possibility of going to other areas of the country and by the variety of volunteer roles available. She signed up.

Her first deployment was to the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history, which destroyed the town of Paradise in 2018. Ann stayed for three weeks, first assisting in a shelter set up for victims and later managing a shelter for staff. She recalls, “When I left, I got in my car and just cried. Emotionally it was so overwhelming. [It wasn’t only a matter of] working with people who had lost everything; it was also being part of this huge operation that is implemented in a matter of days.”

When volunteers sign up for a deployment, they have to make a two-week commitment; as she did for the Camp Fire, Ann usually opts to stay longer. Volunteers must also be certified in different Red Cross services in order to deploy. Ann is certified in equipment and food distribution, but mostly uses her skills for sheltering and recovery case work, which involves providing people with financial assistance and helping them access other necessary resources.

One of the key things that Ann has learned from the Red Cross is flexibility. In addition to the sheer uncertainty of disasters, jobs and locations for responders can change from one moment to the next. During another spate of wildfires in Northern California in 2020, Ann drove all over the region as part of a standby team that had to be ready to set up a shelter in two hours if called upon.

The shelters themselves are impressive operations. Volunteers provide basic necessities—from diapers to toothbrushes, from medical and mental health services to spiritual care. They also lend support in extraordinary circumstances; in one instance, Ann held the hand of a woman who was going into labor. Shelters are a microcosm of the communities outside. “There’s a wide assortment of people that you meet. It certainly takes you out of your bubble to go to different parts of the country, or even in your local community,” she says. “… You may work with people who don’t always share the same values as you. But you’re there on a mission, and I love the philosophy of the Red Cross that everyone is welcome.” Ann says that being a boarding student at Catalina helped prepare her for this part of the work. “Living with so many different girls at that age was very valuable in learning how to get along in life and learning how to adapt to different situations and different people.”

Red Cross volunteers don’t need a natural disaster of major proportion to step in with assistance. Ann responds to local emergencies as well, whether helping people displaced by a house fire or assisting with evacuations for flooding events in San Mateo County. “People normally think of the Red Cross with big disasters—the fires, the hurricanes—but there’s plenty to do at home,” she says.

Ann especially encourages high school students to get involved with their local Red Cross. There are many opportunities for youth to build leadership and communication skills and to serve their community. These include learning CPR, staffing tables at community events, visiting elementary schools to talk about fire safety, installing free fire alarms in people’s homes, and helping at blood banks.

Ann plans to continue volunteering for deployments as long as she can and serving alongside others who are as dedicated and enthusiastic about the mission as she is. “I’ll do whatever the Red Cross wants me to do,” she says.