Valentine Greeting to Red Cross Volunteer Couples: Deborah & Michael

by Stan Frank, American Red Cross

If an individual can find great reward in volunteering with the American Red Cross, it stands to reason that a couple can double the reward! That’s exactly what several couples at the American Red Cross in Greater New York have discovered. This Valentine's Day, we celebrate some of their stories.

Deborah Kerr and Michael Hoeft

Deborah Kerr and Michael Hoeft have known one another for nearly 17 years and have been together as a couple for just over two years. They have volunteered together for the Red Cross on Long Island for a little over a year, but have a long history of volunteering with the organization: Michael started volunteering with the New Jersey Region in 2009 and Deborah on Long Island in 2000.

For the Red Cross, Deborah serves as a Disaster Action Team Captain (DAT) as well as a Shelter Manager. Professionally, Deborah works as a Legal Assistant, doing contract work for a large petroleum company on Long Island. As a volunteer, Michael worked with Disaster Services Technology (DST). He recently joined the Greater New York team as the Logistics Program Support Manager after he retired with 26 years of service with the rank of Lieutenant from the Passaic County Sheriff’s Department.

Deborah Kerr and Michael Hoeft volunteer together on Long Island.

In addition to volunteering with the Red Cross, Deborah and Michael both volunteer their time and service as Amateur Radio Operators and are active members of several local emergency communications organizations and Amateur Radio Clubs. They spend quite a bit of time annually managing amateur radio volunteers for three events in Manhattan: the TCS New York City Marathon, the United Airlines NYC Half-Marathon, and the LifeTime Tri New York City Triathlon. Deborah also serves as president of the ECSARC – a partner group of the American Red Cross, which operates out of its home base at the Red Cross’s Long Island office in Mineola.

Asked why they volunteer, Deborah said, “We both volunteer for several organizations and enjoy being able to give back to others. We both enjoyed great careers and volunteering was always a way to give something back, demonstrate our capabilities, and work alongside many exceptional people that give their time for nothing more than a ‘thank you’.”

Thank you Deb and Mike for all you do for the American Red Cross and Happy Valentine’s Day!