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Storm damage inspiring people to become volunteers

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — There’s a need across central Indiana. From Howard County to Montgomery County, tornado victims need food, shelter and hope.

And the American Red Cross needs people who can provide it.

Nearly all day at the organization’s headquarters at 1510 North Meridian Street, groups have been getting trained to become volunteers. Some will help at shelters while others will do disaster assessment.

“It just shows the humility of Hoosiers here in Indiana wanting to help people who are in need,” said Duchess Adjei, Regional Communications Director for the American Red Cross, Indiana Region.

That desire she talked about kicked in quickly for Adam Marcom after he saw the devastation in Kokomo.

“I’ve always wanted to volunteer for the Red Cross and help out wherever I can,” Marcom said.

In the training course, volunteers learn how to provide relief for different types of disasters and how to meet the needs of victims by watching a series of interactive videos. They even get quizzed on the information.

“Literally people come at our site at our regional headquarters and get a couple hours of training and deploy right to Kokomo and we can do that within an instant,” said Adjei.

Marcom hopes to lend a helping hand at the shelter, a selfless act that will fulfill his need to give back.

“I’ve got to try to help out somewhere, somehow,” he said.

Training courses will be held at the headquarters Friday at 10:30 a.m., then at 1:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and 7:30 p.m. People can call ahead or simply walk in and sign up.

If you’d like to make a monetary donation to the American Red Cross, call 317-684-1441.