Red Cross volunteer shares story of Hurricane Isaac

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - "I'm just dedicated to helping people. I love helping people and anything I can do to help somebody, I'm there," Tippecanoe County Red Cross volunteer Shane Halbrook said about his experience down south.

Halbrook was one of 12 volunteers from Greater Lafayette who went down south to help relief efforts following Hurricane Isaac for two weeks.

"It's a real emotional time. You get a lot of hugs, a lot of people crying and you know you wind up crying with them," Halbrook said.

Volunteers traveled around Florida and eventually ended up in Gulf Port, Louisiana, providing food and clean-up kits to families in need.

Halbrook said driving the emergency response vehicles into an area that's been hit the hardest by the storm and helping families get back on their feet is something words can't describe.

"Everybody goes through emotional stuff every day, but it's just something that I can't compare anything to. It makes me the happiest person in the world to be able to help people," Halbrook said.

Heading south for Hurricane Isaac marked Halbrook's sixth deployment with the Red Cross.

He said he provided aid during Hurricane Irene, Tropical Storm Lee and after the tornadoes hit Kentucky and Indiana earlier this spring.

Halbrook said while all his deployments are a little different, there is one common emotion he has about all of them.

"I hate leaving. Honestly, I hate leaving. If I could stay there and continue doing anything I can for them I would. Every trip I've been on that's the worst experience of the entire trip," Halbrook said.

Now that he's back in Indiana, Halbrook said there's only one he wants to do after an emotional two weeks down south.

"Relax a little bit. Kind of gather thoughts back and get the emotions back on track. Just go back to work and continue moving on and wait for the next thing to happen so I can head out and help again," Halbrook said.