White House Author

A native of Warner Robins, Georgia, Monica was serving in AmeriCorps when Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. After her AmeriCorps service ended, she wanted to continue to serve—so she moved to South Mississippi to work with the Red Cross in hurricane recovery. She started as a case manager, working to help families get back into their homes. Now she is a Community Resilience Coordinator for the Red Cross in South Mississippi, pilot testing a new strategy for the Red Cross to build resilience at the community level by leveraging and connecting community networks. Monica has brought together diverse community stakeholders and leaders to take action around significant risks and vulnerabilities: for example, Monica helped bridge cultural barriers between first responders and non-English speaking populations, resulting in better communication when home fires and other emergencies strike.