By Terri Seydel

Many people dream of retirement as a time to slow down and enjoy life at a more relaxed pace. But Fred Lehman of Lansdown, Pennsylvania had an entirely different retirement plan after 40 years of working for the Philadelphia Inquirer as VP Operations and a volunteer firefighter. So, in the year leading up to his retirement, he enlisted with the American Red Cross Disaster Action Team to train for disaster deployments.

Volunteering During the Pandemic

Shortly after joining the Red Cross, the Covid pandemic began and caused limitations for deploying volunteers. However, there was no shortage of local disasters, so Fred served his first year responding to 160 local disaster response calls in the Philadelphia area.

For local disasters, the Red Cross Disaster Action Team is dispatched to provide immediate assistance to the victims. Fred’s most memorable interactions are with young families with small children. He’s made it a common practice to give every one of these children a stuffed animal to have something of their own during this traumatic time in their life.

Deployed for Tornado Relief in Kentucky

Fred’s first long-distance deployment with the Red Cross was in late 2021 when a devastating tornado touched down in western Kentucky and caused devasting damage across 229 miles and numerous communities.  

On December 23rd, Fred Lehman left Southeastern Pennsylvania for a 3-week deployment to Kentucky. He drove a Red Cross Emergency Relief Vehicle carrying much-needed supplies and joined hundreds of other volunteers from across the country. The amount of devastation seemed overwhelming, but truckloads of donated items arrived daily, and the teams of volunteers worked tirelessly in 12-hour shifts to distribute necessities and help the impacted community members.

Fred describes this deployment as an amazing experience to see everyone coming together and caring for each other. He is quick to remind us…. “We are all in this together”.

Honoring Exceptional Volunteers

The Red Cross relies primarily on volunteers to provide humanitarian and disaster relief services. The volunteers provide a wide variety of support and collectively show an overwhelming dedication to their communities. In recognition of his commitment, Fred Lehman was chosen as one of the 2021 American Red Cross Exceptional Volunteer award recipients.

When people ask Fred for advice on volunteering, he encourages ‘If you can, do it! You’ll get far more out of it than you ever put into it.”  

You can read about other local award recipients in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Red Cross blog during April’s “National Volunteer Week” spotlights and beyond. Or check out volunteer opportunities to see if you’d like to become an American Red Cross volunteer.

Editor’s Note: We’ll be profiling outstanding Red Cross volunteers throughout National Volunteer Week April 17-23. Be sure to check back daily!