To the staff of the Disaster Services department at Chapter Headquarters, Sandy Soll is a lifesaver - no pun intended. Each week, Sandy takes on more responsibility and has affectionately been deemed, Disaster "Jane of All Trades."

Jeannie Edington, disaster services specialist said, "Sandy has been such a blessing to the Disaster Services team. She can step in at a moment's notice and complete any task you send her way. We are a busy department working in an environment where things can change in an instant if a disaster occurs. Sandy is wonderful because she is so knowledgeable about how the department functions. She can help with just about anything."

Sandy came to the St. Louis Area Chapter four years ago. In her first role, she served as a Disaster Action Team (DAT) member. "My roots are in DAT but after a few months I wanted to understand all the moving parts that make up the Red Cross Disaster Services so I branched out to be a Disaster Services Human Resources (DSHR) member and then started helping behind-the-scenes with administrative work." Sandy went on to say, "To me, I don't classify myself as only a DAT volunteer or only a DSHR volunteer, I am a part of the Disaster Department. Wherever they need me, I'm ready to help."

She proved this ln 2004 when she stepped into the role of Disaster Specialist for two months following the retirement of a long-time staff member.

"We didn't miss a beat once Sandy stepped in to help," says Mary Anderson, director of Disaster Readiness Response.

Sandy has worked five national DSHR assignments, which required her to deploy to the scene of the disaster for three weeks or more. Her first assignment took her to Louisville, KY, in June of 2004 following tornadoes and flooding. The second assignment took her to Orlando following Hurricanes Frances and Jean. In Orlando she assisted with relief efforts  for a total of 37 straight days. Her third assignment came in the days following Hurricane Katrina. Sandy assisted for nine weeks at St. Louis Area Chapter Headquarters, helping to assist more than 6,700 hurricane evacuees who made their way to St. Louis from the Gulf Coast.

A few months after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, Hurricane Wilma slammed into the Florida peninsula. Sandy deployed to Miami, Florida, for 24 days to assist with behind the scenes staffing needs. Her most recent assignment took her to Binghamton, New York, following severe flooding. Sandy helped to make sure Red Cross volunteers from around the country were taken care of, were healthy and had all the resources they needed to complete the relief operation. "There is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes and I enjoy helping with the administrative needs of the Red Cross."

In her spare time, Sandy loves to square dance. For the past 20 years, she has been dancing at least twice a week. "I dance whenever I can," she says. Sandy also likes to read and travel. She has a large extended family, many of whom live in Toronto, Canada. "My family is spread all over the country and Canada but the Red Cross is like another family to me," she says.

Sandy has been volunteering every Monday and Thursday at Chapter Headquarters. When asked about her future at the Red Cross, Sandy says, "I hope to continue with local and national assignments. I love what I do."

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