Red Cross volunteers from our area are on their way to help victims of severe weather across the country.
Volunteers from Wisconsin will be in Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri.
It's been the wettest December on record in St. Louis and the state of Missouri is under a state of emergency. Texas continues to recover from devastating tornadoes. In Oklahoma, there is a deep freeze from a Christmas ice storm.
Red Cross volunteers will spend at least two weeks in the affected areas and said even though they are giving the gift of time, they are the ones receiving something special.
"It is very tiring, it can be very confusing, but it's very fulfilling," said volunteer Becky Tiles. "The people are very appreciative of having a warm place to go and food to eat."
Red Cross and community shelters are open in Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, Illinois, Missouri, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
The Red Cross is also supporting families in Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi due to severe weather and flooding.
More than 1,100 homes have been damaged by storms across the affected areas and the number could increase. So far, 53 people have died from severe weather since Christmas Eve.
