Strathmore man becomes part of Faces of Humanity

Miriam Ostermann
Times Associate Editor

 

Becoming a public speaker or the face of a national campaign wasn’t what Strathmore’s Sean Freeman had in mind when he set out to Ebola-ridden Sierra Leone, the devastated Philippines, and disaster-stricken Nepal last year.
Freeman, a Canadian Red Cross technician delegate, was recruited for his electrician and firefighting background. Upon returning to Canada at the end of last year, he was approached by the organization to become a part of the Faces of Humanity campaign, which aims to raise awareness and boost their volunteer base.
Since then, along with 12 other individuals, Freeman’s been promoting the Canadian Red Cross’s efforts by being displayed on posters and speaking at a gala opening in Calgary, city hall in Edmonton, and participating in a panel discussion at the University of Calgary throughout the month of March.
“It’s not my primary goal to be a public speaker or to work in PR, but it’s been interesting,” said Freeman.
“It was really very worthwhile to do that and I felt honoured to be put in that position. A big part of what we do with the Red Cross is paid for by other people, and then we can say this is what I’ve done with your money and this is the difference it makes.”
The Canadian Red Cross was involved in 236 emergency and recovery missions in 51 countries last year, and is involved in disaster preparedness, violence prevention and domestic efforts. While Freeman is part of the Canadian Red Cross Emergency Response Unit (ERU) and took on the responsibilities of ensuring operations ran smoothly, dealt with the upkeep of the field hospital and hooked up the power supply in Nepal, he has also helped with projects closer to home – floods in Manitoba, ice storms, and North America response.
Sharing his experiences with the public wasn’t a hard task for the Strathmore local; however, emotions ran slightly higher when he was asked about his time in Sierra Leone and his fears and worries in dealing with the Ebola crisis, as his parents were in the crowd at the Calgary gala.
The father of one is balancing his volunteer efforts with family life, but enjoys making a difference, the work involved, and the adventure of getting involved in relief missions in another country. Being involved in the campaign also helped explain the scenarios to students and those less travelled who may not fully comprehend the realities of such a mission.
“If you’re young and you haven’t travelled too much it’s a lot just to travel, and to get on a plane and go somewhere during a crisis, disaster, or emergency is something else as well,” he said. “Quite often in that crisis or disaster you’re trying to set up a field hospital and you’re living in a tent and everything you have to eat you packed with you. It’s pretty rough and some people have this romantic version and it’s not necessarily like that.”
The month-long multifaceted Face of Humanity campaign, which also features the individuals on billboards and subway cars, helped shed light on the workers needed, including construction workers, paramedics, firefighters, electricians, and ex-military.
Freeman currently remains on the ERU roster for disaster relief, but hopes to spend some quality time with his family for now.